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Gut Microbes Can Split a Species
sciencehabit writes "The community of microbes in an animal's gut may be enough to turn the creature into a different species. Species usually split when their members become so genetically distinct — usually by living in separate environments that cause them to evolve different adaptations (think finches on different islands) — that they can no longer successfully breed with each other. Now researchers have shown that a couple groups of wasps have become new species not because their DNA has changed, but because the bacteria in their guts have changed — the first example of this type of speciation."
"Don't breed" means "don't breed normally". In the absence of better mates they will breed like rabbits.
I do not believe in karma. "Funny"=-6. Do good and forbid evil. Yours, Oft-Offtopic Flamebaiting Troll.
"I hate your guts" has always been a contraindication for breeding.
So, gut bacteria can make mating incompatible. What's new?
It's an artificial problem for the concept of "species", an outdated notion. Get it together, biologists.
Fuck systemd. Fuck Redhat. Fuck Soylent, too. Wait, scratch the last one.
It's singular.
Well, color me surprised!
Ezekiel 23:20
Inability to breed is not a qualification for a species boundary.
MEN IN BLACK will be a reality very soon.
me
Gut microbes influence is not surprising when you consider a human being is made more of gut microbes (10^14) than human cells (10^13). We even saw recently a paper about horizontal gene transfers between gut microbes and human cells, so perhaps we will have to consider a human being is mostly made of its guts microbes.
So McDonalds is the reason why Americans are becoming a different species?
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
Do we even know that these wasps have their sex determined by genetics? Certainly the whole XX vs XY is how humans do it, and I think most (all?) mammals follow the same pattern. But I believe in crocodiles it's determined by the gestation temperature of the eggs - those on the outside of mound become male while those in the center become female (or is it the other way around? I forget). And as we wander even further across the tree of life it seems reasonable to assume that the way our species does things is going to become increasingly irrelevant. Certainly by the time we get to slime molds all bets are off (five genders, and any two different ones can reproduce)
--- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
Greg Bear postulated that speciation might occur by more than just random mutations -- Darwin's Radio (1999) might be worth a read.
Wolbachia is a bacterial genus believed to infect up to ~90% of all insect species. It spreads rapidly through populations by allowing infected females to breed with any individual while infected males can only breed with infected females (the bacteria is passed on mother-to-child). Furthermore, many species actually depend on Wolbachia to become sexually viable, and in a few the bacteria actually induce the insects to undergo parthenogenesis (reproduction with females only).
Even now, Wolbachia is migrating north through California's fruit fly population. Last year I heard it had reached the Sacramento area.
.: Semper Absurda
The difference between Chimpanzees, Bobobos and Humans. We all share a common ancestor. And in the case of the Bonobos we know how they were separated from the Chimp group.
It's entirely correct to consider homo sapiens (and all higher order animals) as mobile parts of the biosphere. Our thoughts may be independent of it, but our bodies are not.
Even our thoughts... Some microbes influence our mind. Take toxoplasmosis, for instance, which is known to have mind controlling features.
At least that explains the riots rationally.