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Cardoso-Júnior CAM, Silva RP, Borges NA, de Carvalho WJ, Walter SL, Simões ZLP, Bitondi MMG, Ueira Vieira C, Bonetti AM, Hartfelder K. Methyl farnesoate epoxidase (mfe) gene expression and juvenile hormone titers in the life cycle of a highly eusocial stingless bee, Melipona scutellaris. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2017; 101:185-194. [PMID: 28800885 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2017.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2017] [Revised: 08/02/2017] [Accepted: 08/03/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
In social insects, juvenile hormone (JH) has acquired novel functions related to caste determination and division of labor among workers, and this is best evidenced in the honey bee. In contrast to honey bees, stingless bees are a much more diverse group of highly eusocial bees, and the genus Melipona has long called special attention due to a proposed genetic mechanism of caste determination. Here, we examined methyl farnesoate epoxidase (mfe) gene expression, encoding an enzyme relevant for the final step in JH biosynthesis, and measured the hemolymph JH titers for all life cycle stages of Melipona scutellaris queens and workers. We confirmed that mfe is exclusively expressed in the corpora allata. The JH titer is high in the second larval instar, drops in the third, and rises again as the larvae enter metamorphosis. During the pupal stage, mfe expression is initialy elevated, but then gradually drops to low levels before adult emergence. No variation was, however, seen in the JH titer. In adult virgin queens, mfe expression and the JH titer are significantly elevated, possibly associated with their reproductive potential. For workers we found that JH titers are lower in foragers than in nurse bees, while mfe expression did not differ. Stingless bees are, thus, distinct from honey bee workers, suggesting that they have maintained the ancestral gonadotropic function for JH. Hence, the physiological circuitries underlying a highly eusocial life style may be variable, even within a monophyletic clade such as the corbiculate bees.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Antônio Mendes Cardoso-Júnior
- Departamento de Biologia Celular, Molecular e Bioagentes Patogênicos, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes 3900, 14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
| | - Renato Pereira Silva
- Departmento de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Av. Pará 1720, 38400-902 Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.
| | - Naiara Araújo Borges
- Departmento de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Av. Pará 1720, 38400-902 Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.
| | - Washington João de Carvalho
- Departmento de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Av. Pará 1720, 38400-902 Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.
| | - S Leal Walter
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, College of Biological Sciences University of California at Davis, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616, USA.
| | - Zilá Luz Paulino Simões
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirãp Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes 3900, 14040-901 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
| | - Marcia Maria Gentile Bitondi
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirãp Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes 3900, 14040-901 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
| | - Carlos Ueira Vieira
- Departmento de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Av. Pará 1720, 38400-902 Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.
| | - Ana Maria Bonetti
- Departmento de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Av. Pará 1720, 38400-902 Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.
| | - Klaus Hartfelder
- Departamento de Biologia Celular, Molecular e Bioagentes Patogênicos, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes 3900, 14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
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Bomtorin AD, Mackert A, Rosa GCC, Moda LM, Martins JR, Bitondi MMG, Hartfelder K, Simões ZLP. Juvenile hormone biosynthesis gene expression in the corpora allata of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) female castes. PLoS One 2014; 9:e86923. [PMID: 24489805 PMCID: PMC3906101 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0086923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2013] [Accepted: 12/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Juvenile hormone (JH) controls key events in the honey bee life cycle, viz. caste development and age polyethism. We quantified transcript abundance of 24 genes involved in the JH biosynthetic pathway in the corpora allata-corpora cardiaca (CA-CC) complex. The expression of six of these genes showing relatively high transcript abundance was contrasted with CA size, hemolymph JH titer, as well as JH degradation rates and JH esterase (jhe) transcript levels. Gene expression did not match the contrasting JH titers in queen and worker fourth instar larvae, but jhe transcript abundance and JH degradation rates were significantly lower in queen larvae. Consequently, transcriptional control of JHE is of importance in regulating larval JH titers and caste development. In contrast, the same analyses applied to adult worker bees allowed us inferring that the high JH levels in foragers are due to increased JH synthesis. Upon RNAi-mediated silencing of the methyl farnesoate epoxidase gene (mfe) encoding the enzyme that catalyzes methyl farnesoate-to-JH conversion, the JH titer was decreased, thus corroborating that JH titer regulation in adult honey bees depends on this final JH biosynthesis step. The molecular pathway differences underlying JH titer regulation in larval caste development versus adult age polyethism lead us to propose that mfe and jhe genes be assayed when addressing questions on the role(s) of JH in social evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Durvalina Bomtorin
- Departamento de Genética, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Aline Mackert
- Departamento de Genética, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
- Departamento de Ciências do Ambiente, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campus do Pantanal, Corumbá, Brazil
| | - Gustavo Conrado Couto Rosa
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Livia Maria Moda
- Departamento de Genética, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Juliana Ramos Martins
- Departamento de Genética, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Márcia Maria Gentile Bitondi
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Klaus Hartfelder
- Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular e Bioagentes Patogênicos, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Zilá Luz Paulino Simões
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
- * E-mail:
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REGINATO RD, CRUZ-LANDIM C. Differentiation of the worker's ovary inApis melliferaL. (Hymenoptera, Apidae) during life of the larvae. INVERTEBR REPROD DEV 2001. [DOI: 10.1080/07924259.2001.9652475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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Rachinsky A, Tobe SS, Feldlaufer MF. Terminal steps in JH biosynthesis in the honey bee (Apis mellifera L. ): developmental changes in sensitivity to JH precursor and allatotropin. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2000; 30:729-737. [PMID: 10876116 DOI: 10.1016/s0965-1748(00)00044-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Juvenile hormone (JH) is considered the prime endogenous signal for the induction of queen development in honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). At the beginning of the last (5th) larval stadium, worker corpora allata synthesize less JH than queen corpora allata as a consequence of a limited production of JH precursors and a caste- and stage-specific block of the terminal step in JH biosynthesis. As previously shown, the Manduca sexta allatotropin stimulates JH biosynthesis in honey bee corpora allata in a dose-dependent and reversible manner, but can not overcome the stage-specific block in the terminal step of JH biosynthesis that is typical for worker early 5th instars. In experiments with M. sexta allatotropin and with the JH precursor farnesoic acid, we found characteristic stage-specific differences in their effects on JH biosynthesis. From the end of the spinning stage on, corpora allata could be stimulated by farnesoic acid to a much higher extent than in earlier developmental stages, suggesting a sudden increase in epoxidase activity. Manduca sexta allatotropin, however, stimulated corpora allata activity until the end of the spinning stage, at which time the corpora allata become suddenly insensitive. These data suggest that in worker larvae, important changes in the regulation of the terminal enzymatic steps in JH biosynthesis occur at the transition from the spinning stage to the prepupal stage. However, the analysis of in vitro activities of the involved enzymes, O-methyltransferase and methyl farnesoate epoxidase, remained inconclusive.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Rachinsky
- Bee Research Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Bldg. 476, BARC-East, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.
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Rachinsky A, Feldlaufer MF. Responsiveness of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) corpora allata to allatoregulatory peptides from four insect species. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2000; 46:41-46. [PMID: 12770257 DOI: 10.1016/s0022-1910(99)00100-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Five neuropeptides with known allatotropic or allatostatic activity in other insect species were examined for their effects on honey bee corpora allata. Using an in vitro radiochemical assay, we assessed the ability of these peptides to affect the biosynthesis of juvenile hormone III and its immediate precursor methyl farnesoate, as well as their effects on the conversion of methyl farnesoate into juvenile hormone. None of the allatostatins tested affected JH biosynthesis during the last larval instar of honey bee workers. Manduca sexta allatotropin, however, stimulated JH biosynthesis in a stage-specific and dose-dependent manner. Analysis of intraglandular contents of juvenile hormone and its precursor revealed that the allatotropin significantly increased JH precursor but did not overcome the stage-specific block in the terminal step of JH biosynthesis that is typical for early fifth-instar worker larvae. Studies also indicated that the allatotropic effect was reversible at the level of methyl farnesoate production.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Rachinsky
- Bee Research Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Bldg. 476, BARC-East, Beltsville, MD, USA
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Evans JD, Wheeler DE. Differential gene expression between developing queens and workers in the honey bee, Apis mellifera. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1999; 96:5575-80. [PMID: 10318926 PMCID: PMC21902 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.96.10.5575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 241] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Many insects show polyphenisms, or alternative morphologies, which are based on differential gene expression rather than genetic polymorphism. Queens and workers are alternative forms of the adult female honey bee and represent one of the best known examples of insect polyphenism. Hormonal regulation of caste determination in honey bees has been studied in detail, but little is known about the proximate molecular mechanisms underlying this process, or any other such polyphenism. We report the success of a molecular-genetic approach for studying queen- and worker-specific gene expression in the development of the honey bee (Apis mellifera). Numerous genes appear to be differentially expressed between the two castes. Seven differentially expressed loci described here belong to at least five distinctly different evolutionary and functional groups. Two are particularly promising as potential regulators of caste differentiation. One is homologous to a widespread class of proteins that bind lipids and other hydrophobic ligands, including retinoic acid. The second locus shows sequence similarity to a DNA-binding domain in the Ets family of transcription factors. The remaining loci appear to be involved with downstream changes inherent to queen- or worker-specific developmental pathways. Caste determination in honey bees is typically thought of as primarily queen determination; our results make it clear that the process involves specific activation of genes in workers as well as in queens.
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Affiliation(s)
- J D Evans
- Department of Entomology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA.
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Rachinsky A, Hartfelder K. In vitro biosynthesis of juvenile hormone in larval honey bees: comparison of six media. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Anim 1998; 34:646-8. [PMID: 9769150 DOI: 10.1007/s11626-996-0014-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
We have formulated a tissue culture medium based on the components of larval honey bee hemolymph. Using an in vitro radiochemical assay to measure juvenile hormone biosynthesis, we compared our larval-based medium to four commercially available media (Grace's, Medium-199; Shields and Sang M3, and Minimum Essential Medium), and a medium based on adult honey bee hemolymph. All media were formulated without methionine. There was no significant difference in the amounts of juvenile hormone produced by the larval medium and Grace's; both of these media, however, were more suitable than the remaining four. Our larval-based tissue culture medium should prove useful in studies aimed at elucidating the underlying hormonal mechanism(s) of caste development in honey bees.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Rachinsky
- USDA Bee Research Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland 20705, USA
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Hartfelder K, Engels W. Social insect polymorphism: hormonal regulation of plasticity in development and reproduction in the honeybee. Curr Top Dev Biol 1998; 40:45-77. [PMID: 9673848 DOI: 10.1016/s0070-2153(08)60364-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 205] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- K Hartfelder
- Zoologisches Institut, Universität Tübingen, Germany
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HARTFELDER KLAUS. Structure and function of the prothoracic gland in honey bee (Apis melliferaL.) development. INVERTEBR REPROD DEV 1993. [DOI: 10.1080/07924259.1993.9672294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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Hartfelder K, de Oliveira Tozetto S, Rachinsky A. Sex-specific developmental profiles of juvenile hormone synthesis in honey bee larvae. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1993; 202:176-180. [PMID: 28305995 DOI: 10.1007/bf00365308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/1992] [Accepted: 09/13/1992] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Juvenile hormone synthesis in drone larvae of the honey bee was measured by an in vitro radiochemical assay. The developmental profile of corpora allata activity in male larvae showed considerable differences from queen larvae, the presumptive reproductive females, and was comparable to workers, the sterile female morph. Drone and worker larvae, however, differed drastically in the regulation of juvenile hormone biosynthesis, as revealed by the addition of farnesoic acid to the culture medium. This precursor stimulated juvenile hormone synthesis of drone glands nearly eightfold, whereas in worker larvae it is known to lead to an accumulation of methyl farnesoate. The sex-specific differences in endocrine activity indicate a role for juvenile hormone in the expression of genetically determined sexually dimorphic characters during metamorphosis, a role not currently accounted for in models describing endocrine regulation of insect development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klaus Hartfelder
- Zoologisches Institut, Universität Tübingen, LS Entwicklungsphysiologie, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, W-7400, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sibele de Oliveira Tozetto
- Zoologisches Institut, Universität Tübingen, LS Entwicklungsphysiologie, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, W-7400, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Anna Rachinsky
- Zoologisches Institut, Universität Tübingen, LS Entwicklungsphysiologie, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, W-7400, Tübingen, Germany
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Kaatz HH, Hildebrandt H, Engels W. Primer effect of queen pheromone on juvenile hormone biosynthesis in adult worker honey bees. J Comp Physiol B 1992. [DOI: 10.1007/bf00296638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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