Compartmentalization drives the evolution of symbiotic cooperation

Chomicki, Guillaume; Werner, Gijsbert D.A.; West, Stuart A.; Kiers, E. Toby

Abstract

Across the tree of life, hosts have evolved mechanisms to control and mediate interactions with symbiotic partners. We suggest that the evolution of physical structures that allow hosts to spatially separate symbionts, termed compartmentalization, is a common mechanism used by hosts. Such compartmentalization allows hosts to: (i) isolate symbionts and control their reproduction; (ii) reward cooperative symbionts and punish or stop interactions with non-cooperative symbionts; and (iii) reduce direct conflict among different symbionts strains in a single host. Compartmentalization has allowed hosts to increase the benefits that they obtain from symbiotic partners across a diversity of interactions, including legumes and rhizobia, plants and fungi, squid and Vibrio, insects and nutrient provisioning bacteria, plants and insects, and the human microbiome. In cases where compartmentalization has not evolved, we ask why not. We argue that when partners interact in a competitive hierarchy, or when hosts engage in partnerships which are less costly, compartmentalization is less likely to evolve. We conclude that compartmentalization is key to understanding the evolution of symbiotic cooperation.

Citation

Chomicki, G., Werner, G. D., West, S. A., & Kiers, E. T. (2020). Compartmentalization drives the evolution of symbiotic cooperation. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 375(1808), Article 20190602. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2019.0602

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 16, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Aug 10, 2020
• Publication Date: 2020-09
• Deposit Date: Aug 20, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 20, 2020
• Journal: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
• Print ISSN: 0962-8436
• Electronic ISSN: 1471-2970
• Publisher: The Royal Society
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 375
• Issue: 1808
• Article Number: 20190602
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2019.0602
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1258112