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DGIMI - Diversity, Genomes and Insects-Microorganisms Interactions

DGIMI is a joint research unit supervised by INRAE and the University of Montpellier. It is located on the Triolet campus of the University of Montpellier, and houses staff from both INRAE and UM.

The research carried out by UMR DGIMI is devoted to the study of interaction mechanisms between insect crop pests, their pathogens and parasites, and their host plants. This research takes into account the diversity of the partners and is based on knowledge of their genomes.

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HAL : Dernières publications

  • [hal-05595327] Poly-immunity arrays associated with Rhs toxins confer wide protection against competitors

    Bacterial genomes evolve under intense competition with diverse microorganisms. Polymorphic toxins are one of the best examples for demonstrating the intensity of this process. They comprise hypervariable C-terminal domains, encoding a broad range of toxic activities. These toxins are typically accompanied by highly specific immunity proteins encoded immediately downstream, which protect the producing bacteria from self-intoxication or fratricide. Here, we show that Photorhabdus and Xenorhabdus spp. genomes harbor extensive arrays of clustered immunity genes encoding proteins that neutralize type VI secretion system (T6SS) rearrangement hot spot (Rhs) polymorphic toxins secreted by closely related species. These immunity genes derive from ancient toxin-immunity pairs, yet only the immunity components are conserved, highlighting their protective role. Consistent with this, many of these immunity genes are expressed under steady-state conditions. Finally, we identify novel genetic elements conserved in several bacterial genera, termed Xer passenger cassettes (XPCs), which associate with both Rhs and the contact-dependent growth inhibition (CDI) polymorphic toxins, suggesting a potential role in their diversification and horizontal dissemination.

    ano.nymous@ccsd.cnrs.fr.invalid (Julius Martinkus) 17 Apr 2026

    https://hal.science/hal-05595327v1
  • [hal-05495582] Identification of differential metabolic properties potentially involved in the expansion of Enterobacteriaceae in the dysbiotic gut of patients suffering from Crohn’s Disease or Rheumatoid Arthritis.

    [...]

    ano.nymous@ccsd.cnrs.fr.invalid (Maria Ines Moreira de Gouveia) 05 Feb 2026

    https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05495582v1
  • [hal-05534918] Is the extreme within-population genome size variation real in Spodoptera frugiperda?

    Genome size variation is one of the main topics in evolutionary genomics. Recent studies in Spodoptera frugiperda (Insect; Lepidoptera) reported very striking results, including large genome size differences, up to a twofold variation within populations, with the existence of 1.37 Gb of non-reference genome sequences, which is 2.5 times larger than the reference genome, 544 Mb in size. These reports raise the question of whether such extreme genome size variations within populations can be biologically realistic. To evaluate these results, we analyzed reference genome assemblies and resequencing datasets from multiple independent studies, including those from the original research. We observed that high-quality reference genomes consistently range from 380 Mb to 390 Mb, aligning closely with flow cytometry measurements. The genome size estimates using k-mer-based approaches from field-collected samples across four independent studies suggest that extensive genome size variation within S. frugiperda is unlikely to occur. Additionally, genome size appears to have remained stable for at least 15.89 million years in the ancestral lineage of S. frugiperda . Taken together, these results do not support the existence of extreme genome size variation in S. frugiperda , emphasizing the need for careful validation.

    ano.nymous@ccsd.cnrs.fr.invalid (Karine Durand) 03 Mar 2026

    https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05534918v1

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