Characterization of Wolbachia endosymbiont titer regulation in Nasonia parasitoid wasps

Maternally-transmitted bacterial symbionts are widely distributed in a vast array of invertebrate species, yet little is known on a genetic or molecular level about the mechanisms by which host species regulate the densities of their symbionts. The intracellular bacteria Wolbachia is present in approximately 66% of all insect species, making it the most prolific bacterial infection in the world and an excellent model system for studying host-symbiont interactions. Our lab has previously shown that two species of closely-related Nasonia parasitoid wasps that harbor the same Wolbachia infection consistently display Wolbachia titers that differ by two orders of magnitude. The goal of this project is to identify the Nasonia host genetic factors that regulate this Wolbachia density phenotype, which may shed light on a conserved mechanism by which invertebrate hosts control intracellular bacterial titers.