Biomineral armor in leaf-cutter ants

Hongjie Li, Chang-Yu Sun, Yihang Fang, Caitlin M. Carlson, Huifang Xu, Ana Ješovnik, Jeffrey Sosa-Calvo, Robert Zarnowski, Hans A. Bechtel, John H. Fournelle, David R. Andes, Ted R. Schultz, Pupa U. P. A. Gilbert () and Cameron R. Currie ()
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Hongjie Li: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Chang-Yu Sun: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Yihang Fang: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Caitlin M. Carlson: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Huifang Xu: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Ana Ješovnik: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
Jeffrey Sosa-Calvo: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
Robert Zarnowski: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Hans A. Bechtel: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
John H. Fournelle: University of Wisconsin-Madison
David R. Andes: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Ted R. Schultz: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
Pupa U. P. A. Gilbert: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Cameron R. Currie: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Although calcareous anatomical structures have evolved in diverse animal groups, such structures have been unknown in insects. Here, we report the discovery of high-magnesium calcite [CaMg(CO3)2] armor overlaying the exoskeletons of major workers of the leaf-cutter ant Acromyrmex echinatior. Live-rearing and in vitro synthesis experiments indicate that the biomineral layer accumulates rapidly as ant workers mature, that the layer is continuously distributed, covering nearly the entire integument, and that the ant epicuticle catalyzes biomineral nucleation and growth. In situ nanoindentation demonstrates that the biomineral layer significantly hardens the exoskeleton. Increased survival of ant workers with biomineralized exoskeletons during aggressive encounters with other ants and reduced infection by entomopathogenic fungi demonstrate the protective role of the biomineral layer. The discovery of biogenic high-magnesium calcite in the relatively well-studied leaf-cutting ants suggests that calcareous biominerals enriched in magnesium may be more common in metazoans than previously recognized.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19566-3

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