Microbiomes as modulators of Drosophila melanogaster homeostasis and disease

Abstract

Drosophila melanogaster harbors a simple gut microbial community, or microbiome, that regulates several facets of its physiology. As a result, the host employs multiple mechanisms of maintaining control over its microbiome in an effort to promote overall organismal homeostasis. Perturbations to the balance between microbiome and host can result in states of instability or disease, making maintenance of microbial homeostasis a fundamental physiologic aspect of D. melanogaster biology. While the interactions between microbes and their hosts can be direct, particularly in the context of immunity and gut renewal, effects resulting from indirect interactions, such as those between microbiota members, can be equally as important. This review highlights the major ways, in which D. melanogaster regulates microbial homeostasis, the consequences of disruptions to homeostasis, and the different mechanisms, by which the microbiome interacts with its host.