Publication Details

Category Text Publication
Reference Category Journals
DOI 10.1038/s41396-023-01381-5
Licence creative commons licence
Title (Primary) Shifts from cooperative to individual-based predation defense determine microbial predator-prey dynamics
Author de la Cruz Barron, M.; van Velzen, E.; Klümper, U.; Weitere, M.; Berendonk, T.U.; Kneis, D.
Source Titel ISME Journal
Year 2023
Department FLOEK
Volume 17
Issue 5
Page From 775
Page To 785
Language englisch
Topic T5 Future Landscapes
Supplements https://static-content.springer.com/esm/art%3A10.1038%2Fs41396-023-01381-5/MediaObjects/41396_2023_1381_MOESM1_ESM.pdf
Abstract Predation defense is an important feature of predator-prey interactions adding complexity to ecosystem dynamics. Prey organisms have developed various strategies to escape predation which differ in mode (elude vs. attack), reversibility (inducible vs. permanent), and scope (individual vs. cooperative defenses). While the mechanisms and controls of many singular defenses are well understood, important ecological and evolutionary facets impacting long-term predator-prey dynamics remain underexplored. This pertains especially to trade-offs and interactions between alternative defenses occurring in prey populations evolving under predation pressure. Here, we explored the dynamics of a microbial predator-prey system consisting of bacterivorous flagellates (Poteriospumella
lacustris) feeding on Pseudomonas putida. Within five weeks of co-cultivation corresponding to about 35 predator generations, we observed a consistent succession of bacterial defenses in all replicates (n=16). Initially, bacteria expressed a highly effective cooperative defense based on toxic metabolites, which brought predators close to extinction. This initial strategy, however, was consistently superseded by a second mechanism of predation defense emerging via de novo mutations. Combining experiments with mathematical modeling, we demonstrate how this succession of defenses is driven by the maximization of individual rather than population benefits, highlighting the role of rapid evolution in the breakdown of social cooperation.
Persistent UFZ Identifier https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=24815
de la Cruz Barron, M., van Velzen, E., Klümper, U., Weitere, M., Berendonk, T.U., Kneis, D. (2023):
Shifts from cooperative to individual-based predation defense determine microbial predator-prey dynamics
ISME J. 17 (5), 775 - 785 10.1038/s41396-023-01381-5