1
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Chakroborty NK, Leboulle, Einspanier R, Menzel R. Behavioral and genetic correlates of heterogeneity in learning performance in individual honeybees, Apis mellifera. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0304563. [PMID: 38865313 PMCID: PMC11168654 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0304563] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/13/2024] [Indexed: 06/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Learning an olfactory discrimination task leads to heterogeneous results in honeybees with some bees performing very well and others at low rates. Here we investigated this behavioral heterogeneity and asked whether it was associated with particular gene expression patterns in the bee's brain. Bees were individually conditioned using a sequential conditioning protocol involving several phases of olfactory learning and retention tests. A cumulative score was used to differentiate the tested bees into high and low performers. The rate of CS+ odor learning was found to correlate most strongly with a cumulative performance score extracted from all learning and retention tests. Microarray analysis of gene expression in the mushroom body area of the brains of these bees identified a number of differentially expressed genes between high and low performers. These genes are associated with diverse biological functions, such as neurotransmission, memory formation, cargo trafficking and development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neloy Kumar Chakroborty
- Institute Biology, Neurobiology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin Luisestr, Berlin, Germany
| | - Leboulle
- Institute Biology, Neurobiology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin Luisestr, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ralf Einspanier
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Veterinary Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Oertzenweg, Berlin, Germany
| | - Randolf Menzel
- Institute Biology, Neurobiology, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin Luisestr, Berlin, Germany
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2
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Morammazi S, Shokrollahi B, Hassan FU. Genomic characterization, phylogenetic and expression analysis of foraging gene in Apis mellifera. Gene 2024; 910:148318. [PMID: 38408615 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.148318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/23/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
The genomic characterization of the foraging gene and its expression analysis are required to better understand the behavior of honey bees (Apis mellifera). The present study performed a genome-wide characterization of the foraging gene, analyzing its physicochemical properties, phylogenetic features, and expression. An in silico analysis was carried out to characterize the foraging gene and the motifs and conserved domains of the encoded protein to predict its physicochemical properties. Moreover, a phylogenetic analysis of the foraging gene was performed in different species using MEGAX. The relative expression of the foraging gene was determined using qRT-PCR in two groups of forager bee samples (incoming and outgoing bees) during two seasons (five times per day). In addition, the queen effect was evaluated in another experiment. The results revealed that foraging gene expression and bee traffic were influenced by the interaction of season and daytime. The daily foraging traffic and transcription level of the foraging gene were the same in both seasons. The traffic of bees and the transcription abundance of the foraging gene were the highest in the middle and at the end of the day in the first and second seasons, respectively. Furthermore, the mRNA expression of the foraging gene was relatively higher in incoming bees than in outgoing bees. The queen also had a significant effect on the outgoing bees. We conclude that gene-environment interactions affect the foraging behavior of bees through the modulation of the foraging gene transcription.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salim Morammazi
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agricultural and Natural Resources, Persian Gulf University, Bushehr 75169, Iran.
| | - Borhan Shokrollahi
- Hanwoo Research Institute, National Institute of Animal Science, Pyeongchang-gun 25340, Republic of Korea; Department of Animal Science, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran.
| | - Faiz-Ul Hassan
- Institute of Animal and Dairy Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
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3
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Fang Y, Feng M, Ma C, Rueppell O, Li J. Major royal jelly proteins influence the neurobiological regulation of the division of labor among honey bee workers. Int J Biol Macromol 2023; 225:848-860. [PMID: 36414079 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2022.11.150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2022] [Revised: 11/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Age-based division of labor among workers is a fundamental life-history trait of many social insects, including the Western honey bee, Apis mellifera L. Extensive studies of the causation of the most pronounced transition from performing tasks in the nest to outside foraging indicate hormonal regulation of complex physiological changes. However, the proximate neurobiological mechanisms that cause the behavioral repertoire to change are still not understood and require novel approaches to be fully characterized. Thus, we established the first comprehensive monoclonal antibody microarray in honey bees with 16,320 antibodies to directly identify proteins in the brain that regulate the transition to foraging. Major royal jelly protein (MRJP) 1 and MRJP3 were identified as potential protein effectors and further investigated. A series of experimental manipulations of the workers' behavioral transition led to changes in MRJP1 and MRJP3 quantities in accordance with their presumed functional role. Injection of MRJPs into the brain resulted in increased task-reversal from foraging to nursing and decreased task-progression from nursing to foraging, while the latter was increased by injection with MRJP antibodies. Finally, down-regulation of MRJP1 and MRJP3 expression via RNAi injection into the brain increased the transition from in-hive nursing to outside foraging, confirming a causal role of these two proteins in the proximate regulation of behavior and life-history of honey bee workers. Interaction partners of MRJP1 and MRJP3 in the honey bee brain included other regulators of honey bee behavior and life history. Thus, our transformative methodological advancement of proteome analysis in honey bees reveals novel regulators of honey bee behavior, extends our understanding of the functional pleiotropy of MRJPs, and supports a general nutrition-based model of the regulation of the age-based division of labor in honey bees.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Fang
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Mao Feng
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Chuan Ma
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Olav Rueppell
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G2L3, Canada
| | - Jianke Li
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China.
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4
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Awde DN, Skandalis A, Richards MH. Foraging gene expression patterns in queens, workers, and males in a eusocial insect. CAN J ZOOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2021-0124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Reproductive division of labour is based on biased expression of complementary parental behaviours, brood production (egg-laying) by queens and brood care (in particular, brood-provisioning) by workers. In many social insect species, queens provision brood when establishing colonies at the beginning of a breeding season and reproductive division of labour begins with the emergence of workers. In many social insect species, the expression of foraging (for) mRNA is associated with the intensity of foraging behaviour and therefore brood-provisioning. However, only two studies have compared queen and worker for expression levels and neither accounted for transcript splice variation. In this study, we compare the expression level of the for-α transcript variant across four life stages of the queen caste, two behavioural groups of workers, and males of a eusocial sweat bee Lasioglossum laevissimum (Smith, 1853). Foundresses collected prior to the onset of the foraging season and males had the highest for-α expression levels. All active (post-hibernatory) queens and workers had similar for-α expression levels independent of behaviour. These results suggest that the for gene in L. laevissimum acts as a primer before foraging activity and that caste-specific expression patterns correlate with the timing of foraging activity in queens and workers.
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Affiliation(s)
- David N. Awde
- Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546-0091, USA
| | - Adonis Skandalis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON L2S 3A1, Canada
| | - Miriam H. Richards
- Department of Biological Sciences, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON L2S 3A1, Canada
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5
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Thamm M, Wagler K, Brockmann A, Scheiner R. Tyramine 1 Receptor Distribution in the Brain of Corbiculate Bees Points to a Conserved Function. BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2021; 96:13-25. [PMID: 34265763 DOI: 10.1159/000517014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Sucrose represents an important carbohydrate source for most bee species. In the Western honeybee (Apis mellifera) it was shown that individual sucrose responsiveness correlates with the task performed in the colony, supporting the response threshold theory which states that individuals with the lowest threshold for a task-associated stimuli will perform the associated task. Tyramine was shown to modulate sucrose responsiveness, most likely via the tyramine 1 receptor. This receptor is located in brain areas important for the processing of gustatory stimuli. We asked whether the spatial expression pattern of the tyramine 1 receptor is a unique adaptation of honeybees or if its expression represents a conserved trait. Using a specific tyramine receptor 1 antibody, we compared the spatial expression of this receptor in the brain of different corbiculate bee species, including eusocial honeybees, bumblebees, stingless bees, and the solitary bee Osmia bicornis as an outgroup. We found a similar labeling pattern in the mushroom bodies, the central complex, the dorsal lobe, and the gnathal ganglia, indicating a conserved receptor expression. With respect to sucrose responsiveness this result is of special importance. We assume that the tyramine 1 receptor expression in these neuropiles provides the basis for modulation of sucrose responsiveness. Furthermore, the tyramine 1 receptor expression seems to be independent of size, as labeling is similar in bee species that differ greatly in their body size. However, the situation in the optic lobes appears to be different. Here, the lobula of stingless bees is clearly labeled by the tyramine receptor 1 antibody, whereas this labeling is absent in other species. This indicates that the regulation of this receptor is different in the optic lobes, while its function in this neuropile remains unclear.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Thamm
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Katharina Wagler
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Axel Brockmann
- National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore, India
| | - Ricarda Scheiner
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
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6
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Lucas C, Ben-Shahar Y. The foraging gene as a modulator of division of labour in social insects. J Neurogenet 2021; 35:168-178. [PMID: 34151702 DOI: 10.1080/01677063.2021.1940173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The social ants, bees, wasps, and termites include some of the most ecologically-successful groups of animal species. Their dominance in most terrestrial environments is attributed to their social lifestyle, which enable their colonies to exploit environmental resources with remarkable efficiency. One key attribute of social insect colonies is the division of labour that emerges among the sterile workers, which represent the majority of colony members. Studies of the mechanisms that drive division of labour systems across diverse social species have provided fundamental insights into the developmental, physiological, molecular, and genomic processes that regulate sociality, and the possible genetic routes that may have led to its evolution from a solitary ancestor. Here we specifically discuss the conserved role of the foraging gene, which encodes a cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PKG). Originally identified as a behaviourally polymorphic gene that drives alternative foraging strategies in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, changes in foraging expression and kinase activity were later shown to play a key role in the division of labour in diverse social insect species as well. In particular, foraging appears to regulate worker transitions between behavioural tasks and specific behavioural traits associated with morphological castes. Although the specific neuroethological role of foraging in the insect brain remains mostly unknown, studies in genetically tractable insect species indicate that PKG signalling plays a conserved role in the neuronal plasticity of sensory, cognitive and motor functions, which underlie behaviours relevant to division of labour, including appetitive learning, aggression, stress response, phototaxis, and the response to pheromones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christophe Lucas
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte (UMR7261), CNRS - University of Tours, Tours, France
| | - Yehuda Ben-Shahar
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
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7
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Chen YJ, Li YJ, Wu S, Yang WC, Miao J, Gu SH, Li JH, Miao XQ, Li X. Transcriptional identification of differentially expressed genes associated with division of labor in Apis cerana cerana. INSECT SCIENCE 2021; 28:457-471. [PMID: 32112590 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.12773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2019] [Revised: 01/02/2020] [Accepted: 02/18/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Workers of Apis cerana cerana undergo an in-hive nursing to outdoor foraging transition, but the genes underlying this age-related transition remain largely unknown. Here, we sequenced the head transcriptomes of its 7-day-old normal nurses, 18- and 22-day-old normal foragers, 7-day-old precocious foragers and 22-day-old over-aged nurses to unravel the genes associated with this transition. Mapping of the sequence reads to Apis mellifera genome showed that the three types of foragers had a greater percentage of reads from annotated exons and intergenic regions, whereas the two types of nurses had a greater percentage of reads from introns. Pair- and group-wise comparisons of the five transcriptomes revealed 59 uniquely expressed genes (18 in nurses and 41 in foragers) and 14 nurse- and 15 forager-upregulated genes. The uniquely expressed genes are usually low-abundance long noncoding RNAs, transcription factors, transcription coactivators, RNA-binding proteins, kinases or phosphatases that are involved in signaling and/or regulation, whereas the nurse- or forager-upregulated genes are often high-abundance downstream genes that directly perform the tasks of nurses or foragers. Taken together, these results suggest that the nurse-forager transition is coordinated by a social signal-triggered epigenetic shift from introns to exons/intergenic regions and the resulting transcriptional shift between the nurse- and forager-associated genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Jie Chen
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ying-Jiao Li
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Shuang Wu
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wen-Chao Yang
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Jing Miao
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Shao-Hua Gu
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jiang-Hong Li
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Xiao-Qing Miao
- College of Bee Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Xianchun Li
- Department of Entomology and BIO5 Institute, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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8
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Miyazaki S, Shimoji H, Suzuki R, Chinushi I, Takayanagi H, Yaguchi H, Miura T, Maekawa K. Expressions of conventional vitellogenin and vitellogenin-like A in worker brains are associated with a nursing task in a ponerine ant. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2021; 30:113-121. [PMID: 33150669 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2020] [Revised: 10/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
In eusocial insect colonies, non-reproductive workers often perform different tasks. Tasks of an individual worker are shifted depending on various factors, e.g., age and colony demography. Although a vitellogenin (Vg) gene play regulatory roles in both reproductive and non-reproductive division of labours in a honeybee, it has been shown that the insect Vg underwent multiple gene duplications and sub-functionalisation, especially in apical ant lineages. The regulatory roles of duplicated Vgs were suggested to change evolutionarily among ants, whereas such roles in phylogenetically basal ants remain unclear. Here, we examined the expression patterns of conventional Vg (CVg), Vg-like A, Vg-like B and Vg-like C, as well as Vg receptor, during the task shift in an age-dependent manner and under experimental manipulation of colony demography in a primitive ant Diacamma sp. Expressions of CVg and Vg-like A in a brain were associated with a nursing task. It is suggested that associations of brain expressions of these Vgs with worker tasks were acquired in the basal ant lineage, and that such Vg functions could have sub-functionalised in the derived ant lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Miyazaki
- Graduate School of Agriculture, Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - H Shimoji
- Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- School of Science and Technology, Kwansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Japan
| | - R Suzuki
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - I Chinushi
- Graduate School of Agriculture, Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - H Takayanagi
- Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - H Yaguchi
- School of Science and Technology, Kwansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Japan
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - T Miura
- Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Misaki Marine Biological Station, School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Miura, Japan
| | - K Maekawa
- Faculty of Science, Academic Assembly, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
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9
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Abstract
The Drosophila melanogaster foraging (for) gene is a well-established example of a gene with major effects on behavior and natural variation. This gene is best known for underlying the behavioral strategies of rover and sitter foraging larvae, having been mapped and named for this phenotype. Nevertheless, in the last three decades an extensive array of studies describing for's role as a modifier of behavior in a wide range of phenotypes, in both Drosophila and other organisms, has emerged. Furthermore, recent work reveals new insights into the genetic and molecular underpinnings of how for affects these phenotypes. In this article, we discuss the history of the for gene and its role in natural variation in behavior, plasticity, and behavioral pleiotropy, with special attention to recent findings on the molecular structure and transcriptional regulation of this gene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ina Anreiter
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3B2, Canada;
| | - Marla B Sokolowski
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3B2, Canada;
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10
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George EA, Bröger A, Thamm M, Brockmann A, Scheiner R. Inter‐individual variation in honey bee dance intensity correlates with expression of the
foraging
gene. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2019; 19:e12592. [DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2018] [Revised: 05/14/2019] [Accepted: 05/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ebi A. George
- National Centre for Biological Sciences Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Bangalore India
| | - Ann‐Kathrin Bröger
- Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter University of Würzburg Würzburg Germany
| | - Markus Thamm
- Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter University of Würzburg Würzburg Germany
| | - Axel Brockmann
- National Centre for Biological Sciences Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Bangalore India
| | - Ricarda Scheiner
- Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter University of Würzburg Würzburg Germany
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11
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Jeanson R. Within-individual behavioural variability and division of labour in social insects. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 222:222/10/jeb190868. [PMID: 31127006 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.190868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Division of labour, whereby individuals divide the workload in a group, is a recurrent property of social living. The current conceptual framework for division of labour in social insects is provided by the response-threshold model. This model posits that the differences between individuals (i.e. between-individual variability) in responsiveness to task-associated stimuli is a key feature for task specialisation. The consistency of individual behaviours (i.e. within-individual variability) in task performance represents an additional but little-considered component driving robust patterns of division of labour. On the one hand, the presence of workers with a high level of within-individual variability presumably allows colonies to rapidly adapt to external fluctuations. On the other hand, a reduced degree of within-individual variability promotes a stricter specialisation in task performance, thereby limiting the costs of task switching. The ideal balance between flexibility and canalisation probably varies depending on the developmental stage of the colony to satisfy its changing needs. Here, I introduce the main sources of within-individual variability in behaviours in social insects and I review neural correlates accompanying the changes in behavioural flexibility. I propose the hypothesis that the positive scaling between group size and the intensity of task specialisation, a relationship consistently reported both within and between taxa, may rely on reduced within-individual variability via self-organised processes linked to the quality of brood care. Overall, I emphasise the need for a more comprehensive characterisation of the response dynamics of individuals to better understand the mechanisms shaping division of labour in social insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raphaël Jeanson
- Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, UPS, 31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France
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12
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Grüter C, Czaczkes TJ. Communication in social insects and how it is shaped by individual experience. Anim Behav 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.01.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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13
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Finkelstein AB, Brent CS, Giurfa M, Amdam GV. Foraging Experiences Durably Modulate Honey Bees' Sucrose Responsiveness and Antennal Lobe Biogenic Amine Levels. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5393. [PMID: 30931967 PMCID: PMC6443788 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41624-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2018] [Accepted: 03/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Foraging exposes organisms to rewarding and aversive events, providing a selective advantage for maximizing the former while minimizing the latter. Honey bees (Apis mellifera) associate environmental stimuli with appetitive or aversive experiences, forming preferences for scents, locations, and visual cues. Preference formation is influenced by inter-individual variation in sensitivity to rewarding and aversive stimuli, which can be modulated by pharmacological manipulation of biogenic amines. We propose that foraging experiences act on biogenic amine pathways to induce enduring changes to stimulus responsiveness. To simulate varied foraging conditions, freely-moving bees were housed in cages where feeders offered combinations of sucrose solution, floral scents, and aversive electric shock. Transient effects were excluded by providing bees with neutral conditions for three days prior to all subsequent assays. Sucrose responsiveness was reduced in bees that had foraged for scented rather than unscented sucrose under benign conditions. This was not the case under aversive foraging conditions, suggesting an adaptive tuning process which maximizes preference for high quality, non-aversive floral sites. Foraging conditions also influenced antennal lobe octopamine and serotonin, neuromodulators involved in stimulus responsiveness and foraging site evaluation. Our results suggest that individuals’ foraging experiences durably modify neurochemistry and shape future foraging behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Colin S Brent
- United States Department of Agriculture, Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, USA
| | - Martin Giurfa
- Research Centre on Animal Cognition, Center for Integrative Biology, CNRS, University of Toulouse, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, Cedex 09, France
| | - Gro V Amdam
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, USA.,Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway
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14
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George EA, Brockmann A. Social modulation of individual differences in dance communication in honey bees. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2649-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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15
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Kohlmeier P, Alleman AR, Libbrecht R, Foitzik S, Feldmeyer B. Gene expression is more strongly associated with behavioural specialization than with age or fertility in ant workers. Mol Ecol 2019; 28:658-670. [PMID: 30525254 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2018] [Revised: 11/09/2018] [Accepted: 11/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The ecological success of social insects is based on division of labour, not only between queens and workers, but also among workers. Whether a worker tends the brood or forages is influenced by age, fertility and nutritional status, with brood carers being younger, more fecund and more corpulent. Here, we experimentally disentangle behavioural specialization from age and fertility in Temnothorax longispinosus ant workers and analyse how these parameters are linked to whole-body gene expression. A total of 3,644 genes were associated with behavioural specialization which is ten times more than associated with age and 50 times more than associated with fertility. Brood carers were characterized by an upregulation of three Vitellogenin (Vg) genes, one of which, Vg-like A, was the most differentially expressed gene that was recently shown experimentally to control the switch from brood to worker care. The expression of Conventional Vg was unlinked to behavioural specialization, age or fertility, which contrasts to studies on bees and some ants. Diversity in Vg/Vg-like copy number and expression bias across ants supports subfunctionalization of Vg genes and indicates that some regulatory mechanisms of division of labour diverged in different ant lineages. Simulations revealed that our experimental dissociation of co-varying factors reduced transcriptomic noise, suggesting that confounding factors could potentially explain inconsistencies across transcriptomic studies of behavioural specialization in ants. Thus, our study reveals that worker gene expression is mainly linked to the worker's function for the colony and provides novel insights into the evolution of sociality in ants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip Kohlmeier
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Austin R Alleman
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Romain Libbrecht
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Susanne Foitzik
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Barbara Feldmeyer
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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16
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Sequence and structural properties of circular RNAs in the brain of nurse and forager honeybees (Apis mellifera). BMC Genomics 2019; 20:88. [PMID: 30683059 PMCID: PMC6347836 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-018-5402-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2018] [Accepted: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The honeybee (Apis mellifera) represents a model organism for social insects displaying behavioral plasticity. This is reflected by an age-dependent task allocation. The most protruding tasks are performed by young nurse bees and older forager bees that take care of the brood inside the hive and collect food from outside the hive, respectively. The molecular mechanism leading to the transition from nurse bees to foragers is currently under intense research. Circular RNAs, however, were not considered in this context so far. As of today, this group of non-coding RNAs was only known to exist in two other insects, Drosophila melanogaster and Bombyx mori. Here we complement the state of circular RNA research with the first characterization in a social insect. Results We identified numerous circular RNAs in the brain of A. mellifera nurse bees and forager bees using RNA-Seq with exonuclease enrichment. Presence and circularity were verified for the most abundant representatives. Back-splicing in honeybee occurs further towards the end of transcripts and in transcripts with a high number of exons. The occurrence of circularized exons is correlated with length and CpG-content of their flanking introns. The latter coincides with increased DNA-methylation in the respective loci. For two prominent circular RNAs the abundance in worker bee brains was quantified in TaqMan assays. In line with previous findings of circular RNAs in Drosophila, circAmrsmep2 accumulates with increasing age of the insect. In contrast, the levels of circAmrad appear age-independent and correlate with the bee’s task. Its parental gene is related to amnesia-resistant memory. Conclusions We provide the first characterization of circRNAs in a social insect. Many of the RNAs identified here show homologies to circular RNAs found in Drosophila and Bombyx, indicating that circular RNAs are a common feature among insects. We find that exon circularization is correlated to DNA-methylation at the flanking introns. The levels of circAmrad suggest a task-dependent abundance that is decoupled from age. Moreover, a GO term analysis shows an enrichment of task-related functions. We conclude that circular RNAs could be relevant for task allocation in honeybee and should be investigated further in this context. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12864-018-5402-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Thamm M, Sturm K, Schlossmann J, Scheiner R. Levels and activity of cyclic guanosine monophosphate-dependent protein kinase in nurse and forager honeybees. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2018; 27:815-823. [PMID: 30040150 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Age-dependent division of labour in honeybees was shown to be connected to sensory response thresholds. Foragers show a higher gustatory responsiveness than nurse bees. It is generally assumed that nutrition-related signalling pathways underlie this behavioural plasticity. Here, one important candidate gene is the foraging gene, which encodes a cyclic guanosine monophosphate-dependent protein kinase (PKG). Several roles of members of this enzyme family were analysed in vertebrates. They own functions in important processes such as growth, secretion and neuronal adaptation. Honeybee foraging messenger RNA expression is upregulated in the brain of foragers. In vivo activation of PKG can modulate gustatory responsiveness. We present for the first time PKG protein level and activity data in the context of social behaviour and feeding. Protein level was significantly higher in brains of foragers than in those of nurse bees, substantiating the role of PKG in behavioural plasticity. However, enzyme activity did not differ between behavioural roles. The mediation of feeding status appears independent of PKG signalling. Neither PKG content nor enzyme activity differed between starved and satiated individuals. We suggest that even though nutrition-related pathways are surely involved in controlling behavioural plasticity, which involves changes in PKG signalling, mediation of satiety itself is independent of PKG.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Thamm
- Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - K Sturm
- Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - J Schlossmann
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Universität Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - R Scheiner
- Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
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Faragalla KM, Chernyshova AM, Gallo AJ, Thompson GJ. From gene list to gene network: Recognizing functional connections that regulate behavioral traits. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY PART B-MOLECULAR AND DEVELOPMENTAL EVOLUTION 2018; 330:317-329. [DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.22829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2018] [Accepted: 09/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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19
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Suenami S, Miyazaki R, Kubo T. Detection of Phospholipase C Activity in the Brain Homogenate from the Honeybee. J Vis Exp 2018. [PMID: 30272662 DOI: 10.3791/58173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The honeybee is a model organism for evaluating complex behaviors and higher brain function, such as learning, memory, and division of labor. The mushroom body (MB) is a higher brain center proposed to be the neural substrate of complex honeybee behaviors. Although previous studies identified genes and proteins that are differentially expressed in the MBs and other brain regions, the activities of the proteins in each region are not yet fully understood. To reveal the functions of these proteins in the brain, pharmacologic analysis is a feasible approach, but it is first necessary to confirm that pharmacologic manipulations indeed alter the protein activity in these brain regions. We previously identified a higher expression of genes encoding phospholipase C (PLC) in the MBs than in other brain regions, and pharmacologically assessed the involvement of PLC in honeybee behavior. In that study, we biochemically tested two pharmacologic agents and confirmed that they decreased PLC activity in the MBs and other brain regions. Here, we present a detailed description of how to detect PLC activity in honeybee brain homogenate. In this assay system, homogenates derived from different brain regions are reacted with a synthetic fluorogenic substrate, and fluorescence resulting from PLC activity is quantified and compared between brain regions. We also describe our evaluation of the inhibitory effects of certain drugs on PLC activity using the same system. Although this system is likely affected by other endogenous fluorescence compounds and/or the absorbance of the assay components and tissues, the measurement of PLC activity using this system is safer and easier than that using the traditional assay, which requires radiolabeled substrates. The simple procedure and manipulations allow us to examine PLC activity in the brains and other tissues of honeybees involved in different social tasks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shota Suenami
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology; Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo;
| | - Ryo Miyazaki
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology
| | - Takeo Kubo
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo
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Zanni V, Değirmenci L, Annoscia D, Scheiner R, Nazzi F. The reduced brood nursing by mite-infested honey bees depends on their accelerated behavioral maturation. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2018; 109:47-54. [PMID: 29932950 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2018.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2018] [Revised: 06/04/2018] [Accepted: 06/13/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
The parasitic mite Varroa destructor is regarded as the most important parasite of honey bees and plays a fundamental role in the decline of bee colonies observed in the last decade in the Northern hemisphere. Parasitization has a number of detrimental effects on bees, including reduced nursing, which can have important impacts on colony balance. In this work we investigated at the individual level the causes of this abnormal behavior and found that the reduced nursing activity in mite-infested workers is associated with impaired learning performance and a series of physiological traits that are typical of foragers, including reduced response to brood pheromone, limited development of hypopharyngeal glands and higher juvenile hormone titre in the haemolymph. Altogether our data confirm the premature transition to foraging already postulated based on previous genomics studies, from a physiological point of view.
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Affiliation(s)
- V Zanni
- Dipartimento di Scienze AgroAlimentari, Ambientali e Animali, Università degli Studi di Udine, via delle Scienze 206, 33100 Udine, Italy
| | - L Değirmenci
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - D Annoscia
- Dipartimento di Scienze AgroAlimentari, Ambientali e Animali, Università degli Studi di Udine, via delle Scienze 206, 33100 Udine, Italy
| | - R Scheiner
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - F Nazzi
- Dipartimento di Scienze AgroAlimentari, Ambientali e Animali, Università degli Studi di Udine, via delle Scienze 206, 33100 Udine, Italy.
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21
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Shah AK, Kreibich CD, Amdam GV, Münch D. Metabolic enzymes in glial cells of the honeybee brain and their associations with aging, starvation and food response. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0198322. [PMID: 29927967 PMCID: PMC6013123 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0198322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2017] [Accepted: 05/17/2018] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The honey bee has been extensively studied as a model for neuronal circuit and memory function and more recently has emerged as an unconventional model in biogerontology. Yet, the detailed knowledge of neuronal processing in the honey bee brain contrasts with the very sparse information available on glial cells. In other systems glial cells are involved in nutritional homeostasis, detoxification, and aging. These glial functions have been linked to metabolic enzymes, such as glutamine synthetase and glycogen phosphorylase. As a step in identifying functional roles and potential differences among honey bee glial types, we examined the spatial distribution of these enzymes and asked if enzyme abundance is associated with aging and other processes essential for survival. Using immunohistochemistry and confocal laser microscopy we demonstrate that glutamine synthetase and glycogen phosphorylase are abundant in glia but appear to co-localize with different glial sub-types. The overall spatial distribution of both enzymes was not homogenous and differed markedly between different neuropiles and also within each neuropil. Using semi-quantitative Western blotting we found that rapid aging, typically observed in shortest-lived worker bees (foragers), was associated with declining enzyme levels. Further, we found enzyme abundance changes after severe starvation stress, and that glutamine synthetase is associated with food response. Together, our data indicate that aging and nutritional physiology in bees are linked to glial specific metabolic enzymes. Enzyme specific localization patterns suggest a functional differentiation among identified glial types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashish K. Shah
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway
| | - Claus D. Kreibich
- Faculty of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway
| | - Gro V. Amdam
- Faculty of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America
| | - Daniel Münch
- Faculty of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway
- * E-mail:
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Kohlmeier P, Feldmeyer B, Foitzik S. Vitellogenin-like A-associated shifts in social cue responsiveness regulate behavioral task specialization in an ant. PLoS Biol 2018; 16:e2005747. [PMID: 29874231 PMCID: PMC5991380 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2005747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2018] [Accepted: 05/03/2018] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Division of labor and task specialization explain the success of human and insect societies. Social insect colonies are characterized by division of labor, with workers specializing in brood care early and foraging later in life. Theory posits that this task switching requires shifts in responsiveness to task-related cues, yet experimental evidence is weak. Here, we show that a Vitellogenin (Vg) ortholog identified in an RNAseq study on the ant T. longispinosus is involved in this process: using phylogenetic analyses of Vg and Vg-like genes, we firstly show that this candidate gene does not cluster with the intensively studied honey bee Vg but falls into a separate Vg-like A cluster. Secondly, an experimental knockdown of Vg-like A in the fat body caused a reduction in brood care and an increase in nestmate care in young ant workers. Nestmate care is normally exhibited by older workers. We demonstrate experimentally that this task switch is at least partly based on Vg-like A-associated shifts in responsiveness from brood to worker cues. We thus reveal a novel mechanism leading to early behavioral maturation via changes in social cue responsiveness mediated by Vg-like A and associated pathways, which proximately play a role in regulating division of labor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip Kohlmeier
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular and Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Barbara Feldmeyer
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Susanne Foitzik
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular and Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
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23
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Değirmenci L, Thamm M, Scheiner R. Responses to sugar and sugar receptor gene expression in different social roles of the honeybee (Apis mellifera). JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2018; 106:65-70. [PMID: 28935437 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2017.09.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2017] [Revised: 09/11/2017] [Accepted: 09/17/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Honeybees (Apis mellifera) are well-known for their sophisticated division of labor with each bee performing sequentially a series of social tasks. Colony organization is largely based on age-dependent division of labor. While bees perform several tasks inside the hive such as caring for brood ("nursing"), cleaning or sealing brood cells or producing honey, older bees leave to colony to collect pollen (proteins) and nectar (carbohydrates) as foragers. The most pronounced behavioral transition occurs when nurse bees become foragers. For both social roles, the detection and evaluation of sugars is decisive for optimal task performance. Nurse bees rely on their gustatory senses to prepare brood food, while foragers evaluate a nectar source before starting to collect food from it. To test whether social organization is related to differential sensing of sugars we compared the taste of nurse bees and foragers for different sugars. Searching for molecular correlates for differences in sugar perception, we further quantified expression of gustatory receptor genes in both behavioral groups. Our results demonstrate that nurse bees and foragers perceive and evaluate different sugars differently. Both groups, however, prefer sucrose over fructose. At least part of the taste differences between social roles could be related to a differential expression of taste receptors in the antennae and brain. Our results suggest that differential expression of sugar receptor genes might be involved in regulating division of labor through nutrition-related signaling pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Değirmenci
- University of Würzburg, Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Markus Thamm
- University of Würzburg, Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Ricarda Scheiner
- University of Würzburg, Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany.
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24
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Ma W, Jiang Y, Meng J, Zhao H, Song H, Shen J. Expression Characterization and Localization of the foraging Gene in the Chinese Bee, Apis cerana cerana (Hymenoptera: Apidae). JOURNAL OF INSECT SCIENCE (ONLINE) 2018; 18:4986474. [PMID: 29718508 PMCID: PMC5917781 DOI: 10.1093/jisesa/iey034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
In social insects, the foraging gene (for) regulates insect age- and task-based foraging behaviors. We studied the expression and localization of the for gene (Acfor) in Apis cerana cerana workers to explore whether the differential regulation of this gene is associated with the behaviors of nurses and foragers. The expression profiles of Acfor in different tissues and at different ages were examined using real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Cellular localization in the brain was detected using in situ hybridization. Acfor transcripts in different ages workers showed that Acfor expression was detected in all the heads of 1- to 30-d-old worker bees. Acfor expression reached a peak at 25 d of age, and then declined with increasing age. The results showed that Acfor gene expression in five tissues was respectively significantly higher in foragers than in nurses. In nurses, the relative expression of Acfor was the highest in the antennae. There was a highly significant difference in expression between antennae, legs, and the other three tissues. In foragers, Acfor expression was the highest in the thorax, which was significantly different from all other tissues. In situ hybridization showed that Acfor was highly expressed in the lamina of the optic lobes, in a central column of Kenyon cells in the mushroom bodies of the brain of workers, and in the antennal lobes. This suggested that Acfor expression affects age-related foraging behavior in Apis cerana cerana, and that it may be related to flight activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- WeiHua Ma
- Institute of Horticulture, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China
- College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, China
| | - YuSuo Jiang
- College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, China
| | - Jiao Meng
- College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, China
| | - HuiTing Zhao
- College of Life Science, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, China
| | - HuaiLei Song
- Institute of Horticulture, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China
| | - JinShan Shen
- Institute of Horticulture, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China
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25
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Malé PJG, Turner KM, Doha M, Anreiter I, Allen AM, Sokolowski MB, Frederickson ME. An ant-plant mutualism through the lens of cGMP-dependent kinase genes. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.0896. [PMID: 28904134 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2017] [Accepted: 08/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In plant-animal mutualisms, how an animal forages often determines how much benefit its plant partner receives. In many animals, foraging behaviour changes in response to foraging gene expression or activation of the cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PKG) that foraging encodes. Here, we show that this highly conserved molecular mechanism affects the outcome of a plant-animal mutualism. We studied the two PKG genes of Allomerus octoarticulatus, an Amazonian ant that defends the ant-plant Cordia nodosa against herbivores. Some ant colonies are better 'bodyguards' than others. Working in the field in Peru, we found that colonies fed with a PKG activator recruited more workers to attack herbivores than control colonies. This resulted in less herbivore damage. PKG gene expression in ant workers correlated with whether an ant colony discovered an herbivore and how much damage herbivores inflicted on leaves in a complex way; natural variation in expression levels of the two genes had significant interaction effects on ant behaviour and herbivory. Our results suggest a molecular basis for ant protection of plants in this mutualism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierre-Jean G Malé
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
| | - Kyle M Turner
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
| | - Manjima Doha
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
| | - Ina Anreiter
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2.,Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), MaRS Centre, West Tower, 661 University Avenue, Suite 505, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 1M1
| | - Aaron M Allen
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3G5
| | - Marla B Sokolowski
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2.,Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), MaRS Centre, West Tower, 661 University Avenue, Suite 505, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 1M1
| | - Megan E Frederickson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
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Kapheim KM, Johnson MM. Support for the reproductive ground plan hypothesis in a solitary bee: links between sucrose response and reproductive status. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2016.2406. [PMID: 28100820 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2016] [Accepted: 12/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
In social bees, foraging behaviour is correlated with reproductive status and sucrose sensitivity via endocrine pathways. This association led to the hypothesis that division of labour in social insect societies is derived from an ancestral ground plan that functions to synchronize dietary preferences with reproductive needs in solitary insects. However, the relationship between these traits is unknown for solitary bees, which represent the ancestral state of social bees. We used the proboscis extension response assay to measure sucrose response among reproductive females of the solitary alkali bee (Nomia melanderi) as a function of acute juvenile hormone (JH) treatments and reproductive physiology. We also tested long-term effects of JH on reproductive development in newly emerged females. JH did not have short-term effects on reproductive physiology or sucrose response, but did have significant long-term effects on ovary and Dufour's gland development. Dufour's gland size, not ovary development, was a significant predictor of sucrose response. This provides support for the reproductive ground plan hypothesis, because the Dufour's gland has conserved reproductive functions in bees. Differing results from this study and honeybees suggest independent origins of division of labour may have evolved via co-option of different components of a conserved ground plan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen M Kapheim
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Makenna M Johnson
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
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27
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Shi TF, Wang YF, Liu F, Qi L, Yu LS. Influence of the Neonicotinoid Insecticide Thiamethoxam on miRNA Expression in the Honey Bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae). JOURNAL OF INSECT SCIENCE (ONLINE) 2017; 17:4209567. [PMID: 29117371 PMCID: PMC7206646 DOI: 10.1093/jisesa/iex074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2017] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small endogenous noncoding single-stranded RNAs regulating gene expression in eukaryotes. They play important roles in regulating caste differentiation, behavior development, and immune defences in the honey bee, Apis mellifera (Linnaeus) (Hymenoptera: Apidae). In this study, we explored the effect of the neonicotinoid insecticide, thiamethoxam, on miRNA expression in this species using deep small RNA sequencing. The results showed that seven miRNAs were significantly differentially expressed (q-value <0.01 and |log2(fold-change)| >1) upon exposure to 10 ppb thiamethoxam over 10 d. Some candidate target genes were related to behavior, immunity, and neural function. Several miRNAs, including ame-miR-124, ame-miR-981, ame-miR-3791, and ame-miR-6038, were selected and further validated using real-time quantitative PCR analysis. The findings expand our understanding of the effects of neonicotinoid insecticides on honey bees at the molecular level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teng-Fei Shi
- School of Plant Protection, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China
- School of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China, and
| | - Yu-Fei Wang
- School of Plant Protection, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China, and
| | - Lei Qi
- School of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China, and
| | - Lin-Sheng Yu
- School of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China, and
- Corresponding author, e-mail:
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28
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Scheiner R, Entler BV, Barron AB, Scholl C, Thamm M. The Effects of Fat Body Tyramine Level on Gustatory Responsiveness of Honeybees ( Apis mellifera) Differ between Behavioral Castes. Front Syst Neurosci 2017; 11:55. [PMID: 28848405 PMCID: PMC5550709 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2017.00055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2017] [Accepted: 07/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Division of labor is a hallmark of social insects. In the honeybee (Apis mellifera) each sterile female worker performs a series of social tasks. The most drastic changes in behavior occur when a nurse bee, who takes care of the brood and the queen in the hive, transitions to foraging behavior. Foragers provision the colony with pollen, nectar or water. Nurse bees and foragers differ in numerous behaviors, including responsiveness to gustatory stimuli. Differences in gustatory responsiveness, in turn, might be involved in regulating division of labor through differential sensory response thresholds. Biogenic amines are important modulators of behavior. Tyramine and octopamine have been shown to increase gustatory responsiveness in honeybees when injected into the thorax, thereby possibly triggering social organization. So far, most of the experiments investigating the role of amines on gustatory responsiveness have focused on the brain. The potential role of the fat body in regulating sensory responsiveness and division of labor has large been neglected. We here investigated the role of the fat body in modulating gustatory responsiveness through tyramine signaling in different social roles of honeybees. We quantified levels of tyramine, tyramine receptor gene expression and the effect of elevating fat body tyramine titers on gustatory responsiveness in both nurse bees and foragers. Our data suggest that elevating the tyramine titer in the fat body pharmacologically increases gustatory responsiveness in foragers, but not in nurse bees. This differential effect of tyramine on gustatory responsiveness correlates with a higher natural gustatory responsiveness of foragers, with a higher tyramine receptor (Amtar1) mRNA expression in fat bodies of foragers and with lower baseline tyramine titers in fat bodies of foragers compared to those of nurse bees. We suggest that differential tyramine signaling in the fat body has an important role in the plasticity of division of labor through changing gustatory responsiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricarda Scheiner
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology, Biocenter, University of WürzburgWürzburg, Germany
| | - Brian V Entler
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie UniversitySydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Andrew B Barron
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie UniversitySydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Christina Scholl
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology, Biocenter, University of WürzburgWürzburg, Germany
| | - Markus Thamm
- Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology, Biocenter, University of WürzburgWürzburg, Germany
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29
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Thamm M, Scholl C, Reim T, Grübel K, Möller K, Rössler W, Scheiner R. Neuronal distribution of tyramine and the tyramine receptor AmTAR1 in the honeybee brain. J Comp Neurol 2017; 525:2615-2631. [DOI: 10.1002/cne.24228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2017] [Revised: 04/19/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Markus Thamm
- Behavioral Physiology & SociobiologyBiocenter, University of WürzburgAm Hubland Würzburg Germany
| | - Christina Scholl
- Behavioral Physiology & SociobiologyBiocenter, University of WürzburgAm Hubland Würzburg Germany
| | - Tina Reim
- Animal Physiology, Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University of PotsdamPotsdam Germany
| | - Kornelia Grübel
- Behavioral Physiology & SociobiologyBiocenter, University of WürzburgAm Hubland Würzburg Germany
| | - Karin Möller
- Behavioral Physiology & SociobiologyBiocenter, University of WürzburgAm Hubland Würzburg Germany
| | - Wolfgang Rössler
- Behavioral Physiology & SociobiologyBiocenter, University of WürzburgAm Hubland Würzburg Germany
| | - Ricarda Scheiner
- Behavioral Physiology & SociobiologyBiocenter, University of WürzburgAm Hubland Würzburg Germany
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Scheiner R, Reim T, Søvik E, Entler BV, Barron AB, Thamm M. Learning, gustatory responsiveness and tyramine differences across nurse and forager honeybees. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 220:1443-1450. [PMID: 28167800 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.152496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2016] [Accepted: 01/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Honeybees are well known for their complex division of labor. Each bee sequentially performs a series of social tasks during its life. The changes in social task performance are linked to gross differences in behavior and physiology. We tested whether honeybees performing different social tasks (nursing versus foraging) would differ in their gustatory responsiveness and associative learning behavior in addition to their daily tasks in the colony. Further, we investigated the role of the biogenic amine tyramine and its receptors in the behavior of nurse bees and foragers. Tyramine is an important insect neurotransmitter, which has long been neglected in behavioral studies as it was believed to only act as the metabolic precursor of the better-known amine octopamine. With the increasing number of characterized tyramine receptors in diverse insects, we need to understand the functions of tyramine on its own account. Our findings suggest an important role for tyramine and its two receptors in regulating honeybee gustatory responsiveness, social organization and learning behavior. Foragers, which were more responsive to gustatory stimuli than nurse bees and performed better in appetitive learning, also differed from nurse bees in their tyramine brain titers and in the mRNA expression of a tyramine receptor in the brain. Pharmacological activation of tyramine receptors increased gustatory responsiveness of nurse bees and foragers and improved appetitive learning in nurse bees. These data suggest that a large part of the behavioral differences between honeybees may be directly linked to tyramine signaling in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricarda Scheiner
- University of Würzburg, Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, Am Hubland, Würzburg 97074, Germany .,University of Potsdam, Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, Potsdam 14476, Germany
| | - Tina Reim
- University of Potsdam, Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, Potsdam 14476, Germany
| | - Eirik Søvik
- Macquarie University, Department of Biological Sciences, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia.,Volda University College, Department of Science and Mathematics, Volda 6100, Norway
| | - Brian V Entler
- Macquarie University, Department of Biological Sciences, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
| | - Andrew B Barron
- Macquarie University, Department of Biological Sciences, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
| | - Markus Thamm
- University of Würzburg, Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology, Biocenter, Am Hubland, Würzburg 97074, Germany
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31
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Reim T, Balfanz S, Baumann A, Blenau W, Thamm M, Scheiner R. AmTAR2: Functional characterization of a honeybee tyramine receptor stimulating adenylyl cyclase activity. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2017; 80:91-100. [PMID: 27939988 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2016.12.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2016] [Revised: 12/02/2016] [Accepted: 12/06/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
The biogenic monoamines norepinephrine and epinephrine regulate important physiological functions in vertebrates. Insects such as honeybees do not synthesize these neuroactive substances. Instead, they employ octopamine and tyramine for comparable physiological functions. These biogenic amines activate specific guanine nucleotide-binding (G) protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Based on pharmacological data obtained on heterologously expressed receptors, α- and β-adrenergic-like octopamine receptors are better activated by octopamine than by tyramine. Conversely, GPCRs forming the type 1 tyramine receptor clade (synonymous to octopamine/tyramine receptors) are better activated by tyramine than by octopamine. More recently, receptors were characterized which are almost exclusively activated by tyramine, thus forming an independent type 2 tyramine receptor clade. Functionally, type 1 tyramine receptors inhibit adenylyl cyclase activity, leading to a decrease in intracellular cAMP concentration ([cAMP]i). Type 2 tyramine receptors can mediate Ca2+ signals or both Ca2+ signals and effects on [cAMP]i. We here provide evidence that the honeybee tyramine receptor 2 (AmTAR2), when heterologously expressed in flpTM cells, exclusively causes an increase in [cAMP]i. The receptor displays a pronounced preference for tyramine over octopamine. Its activity can be blocked by a series of established antagonists, of which mianserin and yohimbine are most efficient. The functional characterization of two tyramine receptors from the honeybee, AmTAR1 (previously named AmTYR1) and AmTAR2, which respond to tyramine by changing cAMP levels in opposite direction, is an important step towards understanding the actions of tyramine in honeybee behavior and physiology, particularly in comparison to the effects of octopamine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina Reim
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Sabine Balfanz
- Institute of Complex Systems, ICS-4, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Arnd Baumann
- Institute of Complex Systems, ICS-4, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Blenau
- Zoological Institute, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Markus Thamm
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany; Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Ricarda Scheiner
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany; Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.
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32
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Sokolowski HM, Vasquez OE, Unternaehrer E, Sokolowski DJ, Biergans SD, Atkinson L, Gonzalez A, Silveira PP, Levitan R, O'Donnell KJ, Steiner M, Kennedy J, Meaney MJ, Fleming AS, Sokolowski MB. The Drosophila foraging gene human orthologue PRKG1 predicts individual differences in the effects of early adversity on maternal sensitivity. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2016; 42:62-73. [PMID: 28827895 DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2016.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
There is variation in the extent to which childhood adverse experience affects adult individual differences in maternal behavior. Genetic variation in the animal foraging gene, which encodes a cGMP-dependent protein kinase, contributes to variation in the responses of adult fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster, to early life adversity and is also known to play a role in maternal behavior in social insects. Here we investigate genetic variation in the human foraging gene (PRKG1) as a predictor of individual differences in the effects of early adversity on maternal behavior in two cohorts. We show that the PRKG1 genetic polymorphism rs2043556 associates with maternal sensitivity towards their infants. We also show that rs2043556 moderates the association between self-reported childhood adversity of the mother and her later maternal sensitivity. Mothers with the TT allele of rs2043556 appeared buffered from the effects of early adversity, whereas mothers with the presence of a C allele were not. Our study used the Toronto Longitudinal Cohort (N=288 mother-16 month old infant pairs) and the Maternal Adversity and Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment Cohort (N=281 mother-18 month old infant pairs). Our findings expand the literature on the contributions of both genetics and gene-environment interactions to maternal sensitivity, a salient feature of the early environment relevant for child neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Moriah Sokolowski
- Department of Psychology, Brain and Mind Institute, The University of Western Ontario, Westminster Hall, Room 325, London, Ontario, Canada, N6A 3K7
| | - Oscar E Vasquez
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 25 Wilcocks St. University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5S 3B2
| | - Eva Unternaehrer
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, 6875, Boulevard LaSalle, Montréal, Québec, Canada H4H 1R3
| | - Dustin J Sokolowski
- Department of Biology, University of Western, Ontario, Toronto, Canada, N6A 3K7
| | - Stephanie D Biergans
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 25 Wilcocks St. University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5S 3B2
| | - Leslie Atkinson
- Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5B2K3
| | - Andrea Gonzalez
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, McMaster University, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster Innovation Park, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, Canada, L8S 4K1
| | - Patricia P Silveira
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, 6875, Boulevard LaSalle, Montréal, Québec, Canada H4H 1R3
| | - Robert Levitan
- Women's Health Concerns Clinic, St. Joseph's Healthcare, 50 Charlton Avenue East, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, L8G 5E4
| | - Kieran J O'Donnell
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, 6875, Boulevard LaSalle, Montréal, Québec, Canada H4H 1R3.,Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), 180 Dundas St West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario Canada M5G 1Z8
| | - Meir Steiner
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, McMaster University, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster Innovation Park, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, Canada, L8S 4K1.,Women's Health Concerns Clinic, St. Joseph's Healthcare, 50 Charlton Avenue East, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, L8G 5E4
| | - James Kennedy
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto and Centre for Addiction an Mental Health, 33 Russell St, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3M1
| | - Michael J Meaney
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, 6875, Boulevard LaSalle, Montréal, Québec, Canada H4H 1R3.,Singapore Institute for Clinical Science, Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine 30 Medical Drive, Singapore 117609.,Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), 180 Dundas St West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario Canada M5G 1Z8
| | - Alison S Fleming
- Department of Psychology, 100 St. George Street, Sidney Smith Hall Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3G3
| | - Marla B Sokolowski
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 25 Wilcocks St. University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5S 3B2.,Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), 180 Dundas St West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario Canada M5G 1Z8
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33
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McNeill MS, Kapheim KM, Brockmann A, McGill TAW, Robinson GE. Brain regions and molecular pathways responding to food reward type and value in honey bees. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2016; 15:305-17. [PMID: 26566901 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2015] [Revised: 10/27/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The ability of honey bees to evaluate differences in food type and value is crucial for colony success, but these assessments are made by individuals who bring food to the hive, eating little, if any, of it themselves. We tested the hypothesis that responses to food type (pollen or nectar) and value involve different subsets of brain regions, and genes responsive to food. mRNA in situ hybridization of c-jun revealed that brain regions responsive to differences in food type were mostly different from regions responsive to differences in food value, except those dorsal and lateral to the mushroom body calyces, which responded to all three. Transcriptomic profiles of the mushroom bodies generated by RNA sequencing gave the following results: (1) responses to differences in food type or value included a subset of molecular pathways involved in the response to food reward; (2) genes responsive to food reward, food type and food value were enriched for (the Gene Ontology categories) mitochondrial and endoplasmic reticulum activity; (3) genes responsive to only food and food type were enriched for regulation of transcription and translation; and (4) genes responsive to only food and food value were enriched for regulation of neuronal signaling. These results reveal how activities necessary for colony survival are channeled through the reward system of individual honey bees.
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Affiliation(s)
- M S McNeill
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - K M Kapheim
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Department of Biology, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | - A Brockmann
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore, India
| | - T A W McGill
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - G E Robinson
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
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34
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Shpigler HY, Robinson GE. Laboratory Assay of Brood Care for Quantitative Analyses of Individual Differences in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Affiliative Behavior. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0143183. [PMID: 26569402 PMCID: PMC4646683 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2015] [Accepted: 11/01/2015] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Care of offspring is a form of affiliative behavior that is fundamental to studies of animal social behavior. Insects do not figure prominently in this topic because Drosophila melanogaster and other traditional models show little if any paternal or maternal care. However, the eusocial honey bee exhibits cooperative brood care with larvae receiving intense and continuous care from their adult sisters, but this behavior has not been well studied because a robust quantitative assay does not exist. We present a new laboratory assay that enables quantification of group or individual honey bee brood “nursing behavior” toward a queen larva. In addition to validating the assay, we used it to examine the influence of the age of the larva and the genetic background of the adult bees on nursing performance. This new assay also can be used in the future for mechanistic analyses of eusociality and comparative analyses of affilative behavior with other animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hagai Y Shpigler
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United State of America
| | - Gene E Robinson
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United State of America.,Department of Entomology and Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United State of America
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35
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Tapia DH, Silva AX, Ballesteros GI, Figueroa CC, Niemeyer HM, Ramírez CC. Differences in learning and memory of host plant features between specialist and generalist phytophagous insects. Anim Behav 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.04.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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36
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Chardonnet F, Capdevielle-Dulac C, Chouquet B, Joly N, Harry M, Le Ru B, Silvain JF, Kaiser L. Food searching behaviour of a Lepidoptera pest species is modulated by the foraging gene polymorphism. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 217:3465-73. [PMID: 25274324 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.108258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The extent of damage to crop plants from pest insects depends on the foraging behaviour of the insect's feeding stage. Little is known, however, about the genetic and molecular bases of foraging behaviour in phytophagous pest insects. The foraging gene (for), a candidate gene encoding a PKG-I, has an evolutionarily conserved function in feeding strategies. Until now, for had never been studied in Lepidoptera, which includes major pest species. The cereal stem borer Sesamia nonagrioides is therefore a relevant species within this order with which to study conservation of and polymorphism in the for gene, and its role in foraging - a behavioural trait that is directly associated with plant injuries. Full sequencing of for cDNA in S. nonagrioides revealed a high degree of conservation with other insect taxa. Activation of PKG by a cGMP analogue increased larval foraging activity, measured by how frequently larvae moved between food patches in an actimeter. We found one non-synonymous allelic variation in a natural population that defined two allelic variants. These variants presented significantly different levels of foraging activity, and the behaviour was positively correlated to gene expression levels. Our results show that for gene function is conserved in this species of Lepidoptera, and describe an original case of a single nucleotide polymorphism associated with foraging behaviour variation in a pest insect. By illustrating how variation in this single gene can predict phenotype, this work opens new perspectives into the evolutionary context of insect adaptation to plants, as well as pest management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Floriane Chardonnet
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Claire Capdevielle-Dulac
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Bastien Chouquet
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Nicolas Joly
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Myriam Harry
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Bruno Le Ru
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France icipe - African Insect Science for Food and Health, Duduville Campus, Kasarani, PO Box 30772-00100, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Jean-François Silvain
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Laure Kaiser
- Laboratoire Evolution Génome et Spéciation, CNRS UPR 9034, IRD UR 072 and Université Paris Sud Orsay, 1 Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France INRA, UMR 1392, Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, France
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37
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Speth MT, Kreibich CD, Amdam GV, Münch D. Aging- and task-related resilience decline is linked to food responsiveness in highly social honey bees. Exp Gerontol 2015; 65:46-52. [DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2015.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2014] [Revised: 03/04/2015] [Accepted: 03/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
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38
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Reim T, Scheiner R. Division of labour in honey bees: age- and task-related changes in the expression of octopamine receptor genes. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2014; 23:833-841. [PMID: 25187440 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) has developed into an important ethological model organism for social behaviour and behavioural plasticity. Bees perform a complex age-dependent division of labour with the most pronounced behavioural differences occurring between in-hive bees and foragers. Whereas nurse bees, for example, stay inside the hive and provide the larvae with food, foragers leave the hive to collect pollen and nectar for the entire colony. The biogenic amine octopamine appears to play a major role in division of labour but the molecular mechanisms involved are unknown. We here investigated the role of two characterized octopamine receptors in honey bee division of labour. AmOctαR1 codes for a Ca(2+) -linked octopamine receptor. AmOctβR3/4 codes for a cyclic adenosine monophosphate-coupled octopamine receptor. Messenger RNA expression of AmOctαR1 in different brain neuropils correlates with social task, whereas expression of AmOctβR3/4 changes with age rather than with social role per se. Our results for the first time link the regulatory role of octopamine in division of labour to specific receptors and brain regions. They are an important step forward in our understanding of complex behavioural organization in social groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Reim
- Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
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