Microbiome-by-ethanol interactions impact Drosophila melanogaster fitness, physiology, and behavior
James Angus Chandler,
Lina Victoria Innocent,
Daniel Jonathan Martinez,
Isaac Li Huang,
Jane Lani Yang,
Michael Bruce Eisen,
William Basil Ludington
Affiliations
James Angus Chandler
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Corresponding author
Lina Victoria Innocent
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Daniel Jonathan Martinez
Department of Embryology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
Isaac Li Huang
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Jane Lani Yang
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Michael Bruce Eisen
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD, USA
William Basil Ludington
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Embryology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA; Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA; Corresponding author
Summary: The gut microbiota can affect how animals respond to ingested toxins, such as ethanol, which is prevalent in the diets of diverse animals and often leads to negative health outcomes in humans. Ethanol is a complex dietary factor because it acts as a toxin, behavioral manipulator, and nutritional source, with both direct effects on the host as well as indirect ones through the microbiome. Here, we developed a model for chronic, non-intoxicating ethanol ingestion in the adult fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, and paired this with the tractability of the fly gut microbiota, which can be experimentally removed. We linked numerous physiological, behavioral, and transcriptional variables to fly fitness, including a combination of intestinal barrier integrity, stored triglyceride levels, feeding behavior, and the immunodeficiency pathway. Our results reveal a complex tradeoff between lifespan and fecundity that is microbiome-dependent and modulated by dietary ethanol and feeding behavior.
