The microbial symbionts of eukaryotes influence disease resistance in many host-parasite
systems. Symbionts show substantial variation in both genotype and phenotype, but it is …

Defensive symbionts in the host microbiome can confer protection from infection or reduce
the harms of being infected by a parasite. Defensive symbionts are therefore promising …

Coevolution between hosts and parasites may promote the maintenance of genetic variation
in both antagonists by negative frequency‐dependence if the host–parasite interaction is …

Aphids may harbor a wide variety of facultative bacterial endosymbionts. These symbionts
are transmitted maternally with high fidelity and they show horizontal transmission as well …

Understanding the coevolution of hosts and parasites is a long‐standing goal of
evolutionary biology. There is a well‐developed theoretical framework to describe the …

Background Facultative symbionts are common in eukaryotes and can provide their hosts
with significant fitness benefits. Despite the advantage of carrying these microbes, they are …

Host-parasitoid interactions may lead to strong reciprocal selection for traits involved in host
defense and parasitoid counterdefense. In aphids, individuals harboring the facultative …

Many insects host vertically transmitted microbes, which can confer benefits to their hosts but
are costly to maintain and regulate. A key feature of these symbioses is variation: for …

Symbiosis with microbes is a ubiquitous phenomenon with a massive impact on all living
organisms, shaping the world around us today. Theoretical and experimental studies show …

Host genetic variation plays an important role in the structure and function of heritable
microbial communities. Recent studies have shown that insects use immune mechanisms to …