UC San Diego

Animals often acquire their microbial symbionts from the environment, but the mechanisms underlying how specificity of the association is achieved are poorly understood. We demonstrate that the conserved proton pump, V-type ATPase (VHA), plays a key role in the establishment of the model light-organ symbiosis between the squid Euprymna scolopes and its bacterial partner, Vibrio fischeri. Recruitment of V. fischeri from the surrounding seawater is mediated by juvenile-specific ciliated fields on the organs surface. These epithelia produce acidic mucus containing antimicrobials with low-pH optima, creating a chemical environment fostering specific recruitment of V. fischeri. We provide evidence that this critical acidic landscape is created by activity of VHA. VHA inhibition abolished epithelial-cell acidity, resulting in increased mucus pH and inefficient symbiont colonization. Thus, VHA provides a mechanistic link between host modulation of microenvironmental acidity, immune function, and selection of microbial symbionts, a strategy for specificity that may govern other symbioses.