Figure 3

Effects of infection on pH in ACP hemolymph. (a) The pH of infected and “Ca. L. asiaticus”-free ACPs were significantly different (two-sample t-test: t = 1.75, P = 0.0041). (b) There was a significant positive relationship between pH and infection level (pH versus log(GE/insect)). Slope = 2.95, SE = 0.57; linear regression: t = −5.2, P = 0.0012. “Ca. L. asiaticus” genomic equivalents (GE) per insect was calculated based on the standard curve, given that each “Ca. L. asiaticus” has three identical copies of the 16 S rRNA gene in its genome³⁰.