1
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Toga K, Bono H. Meta-Analysis of Public RNA Sequencing Data Revealed Potential Key Genes Associated with Reproductive Division of Labor in Social Hymenoptera and Termites. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24098353. [PMID: 37176060 PMCID: PMC10179490 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24098353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Eusociality in insects has evolved independently many times. One of the most notable characteristics of eusociality is the reproductive division of labor. In social insects, the reproductive division of labor is accomplished by queens and workers. Transcriptome analyses of queens and workers have been conducted for various eusocial species. However, the genes that regulate the reproductive division of labor across all or multiple eusocial species have not yet been fully elucidated. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis using publicly available RNA-sequencing data from four major groups of social insects. In this meta-analysis, we collected 258 pairs (queen vs. worker) of RNA-sequencing data from 34 eusocial species. The meta-analysis identified a total of 20 genes that were differentially expressed in queens or workers. Out of these, 12 genes have not previously been reported to be involved in the reproductive division of labor. Functional annotation of these 20 genes in other organisms revealed that they could be regulators of behaviors and physiological states related to the reproductive division of labor. These 20 genes, revealed using massive datasets of numerous eusocial insects, may be key regulators of the reproductive division of labor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kouhei Toga
- Laboratory of BioDX, PtBio Co-Creation Research Center, Genome Editing Innovation Center, Hiroshima University, 3-10-23 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima City 739-0046, Hiroshima, Japan
- Laboratory of Genome Informatics, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, 3-10-23 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima City 739-0046, Hiroshima, Japan
| | - Hidemasa Bono
- Laboratory of BioDX, PtBio Co-Creation Research Center, Genome Editing Innovation Center, Hiroshima University, 3-10-23 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima City 739-0046, Hiroshima, Japan
- Laboratory of Genome Informatics, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, 3-10-23 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima City 739-0046, Hiroshima, Japan
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2
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Orr SE, Goodisman MA. Social insect transcriptomics and the molecular basis of caste diversity. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2023; 57:101040. [PMID: 37105497 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2023.101040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2022] [Revised: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Studies of gene expression provide fundamentally important information on the molecular mechanisms underlying variation in phenotype. Recent technological advances have allowed for the robust study of gene expression through analysis of whole transcriptomes. Here, we review current advances in social insect transcriptomics and discuss their implications in understanding phenotypic diversity. Recent transcriptomic studies provide detailed inventories of the genes involved in producing distinct phenotypes in social species. These investigations have identified key genes and networks involved in producing distinct social insect castes. Nevertheless, questions concerning the evolution of gene expression patterns remain. We suggest a path forward for studying gene expression in future studies of biological systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Orr
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, 310 Ferst Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Michael Ad Goodisman
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, 310 Ferst Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
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3
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Chang Y, Yang B, Zhang Y, Dong C, Liu L, Zhao X, Wang G. Identification of sex-biased and neurodevelopment genes via brain transcriptome in Ostrinia furnacalis. Front Physiol 2022; 13:953538. [PMID: 36003649 PMCID: PMC9393524 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.953538] [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: 05/26/2022] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Insect brains play important roles in the regulation of sex-biased behaviors such as mating and oviposition. The neural structure and function of brain differences between males and females have been identified, in which the antenna lobes (AL) showed the most discrepancy, however, the whole repertoire of the genes expressed in the brains and the molecular mechanism of neural signaling and structural development are still unclear. In this study, high-throughput transcriptome analysis of male and female brains was carried on in the Asia corn borer, Ostrinia furnacalis, and a total of 39.23 Gb data and 34,092 unigenes were obtained. Among them, 276 genes displayed sex-biased expression by DEG analysis, of which 125 genes were highly expressed in the males and 151 genes were highly expressed in the females. Besides, by homology analysis against genes that have been confirmed to be related to brain neurodevelopment, a total of 24 candidate genes were identified in O. furnacalis. In addition, to further screen the core genes that may be important for sex-biased nerve signaling and neurodevelopment, protein-protein interaction networks were constructed for the sex-biased genes and neurodevelopment genes. We identified 10 (Mhc, Mlc1, Mlc2, Prm, Mf, wupA, TpnC25D, fln, l(2)efl, and Act5C), 11 (PPO2, GNBP3, Spn77Ba, Ppn, yellow-d2, PGRP-LB, PGRP-SD, PGRP-SC2, Hml, Cg25C, and vkg) and 8 (dac, wg, hh, ci, run, Lim1, Rbp9, and Bx) core hub genes that may be related to brain neural development from male-biased, female-biased, and neurodevelopment gene groups. Our results provide a reference for further analysis of the dimorphism of male and female brain structures in agricultural pests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yajun Chang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Entomology, College of Plant Protection, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Bin Yang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Guirong Wang, ; Bin Yang,
| | - Yu Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Biohazard Monitoring, Green Prevention and Control for Artificial Grassland, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Grassland Research of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot, China
| | - Chenxi Dong
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xincheng Zhao
- Department of Entomology, College of Plant Protection, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Guirong Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Guirong Wang, ; Bin Yang,
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4
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Li Q, Wang M, Zhang P, Liu Y, Guo Q, Zhu Y, Wen T, Dai X, Zhang X, Nagel M, Dethlefsen BH, Xie N, Zhao J, Jiang W, Han L, Wu L, Zhong W, Wang Z, Wei X, Dai W, Liu L, Xu X, Lu H, Yang H, Wang J, Boomsma JJ, Liu C, Zhang G, Liu W. A single-cell transcriptomic atlas tracking the neural basis of division of labour in an ant superorganism. Nat Ecol Evol 2022; 6:1191-1204. [PMID: 35711063 PMCID: PMC9349048 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-022-01784-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Ant colonies with permanent division of labour between castes and highly distinct roles of the sexes have been conceptualized to be superorganisms, but the cellular and molecular mechanisms that mediate caste/sex-specific behavioural specialization have remained obscure. Here we characterized the brain cell repertoire of queens, gynes (virgin queens), workers and males of Monomorium pharaonis by obtaining 206,367 single-nucleus transcriptomes. In contrast to Drosophila, the mushroom body Kenyon cells are abundant in ants and display a high diversity with most subtypes being enriched in worker brains, the evolutionarily derived caste. Male brains are as specialized as worker brains but with opposite trends in cell composition with higher abundances of all optic lobe neuronal subtypes, while the composition of gyne and queen brains remained generalized, reminiscent of solitary ancestors. Role differentiation from virgin gynes to inseminated queens induces abundance changes in roughly 35% of cell types, indicating active neurogenesis and/or programmed cell death during this transition. We also identified insemination-induced cell changes probably associated with the longevity and fecundity of the reproductive caste, including increases of ensheathing glia and a population of dopamine-regulated Dh31-expressing neurons. We conclude that permanent caste differentiation and extreme sex-differentiation induced major changes in the neural circuitry of ants. Using single-cell transcriptomics, the authors generate a brain cell atlas for the pharaoh ant including individuals of different sexes and castes and show changes in cell composition underlying division of labour and reproductive specialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiye Li
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | | | | | | | - Qunfei Guo
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | | | | | - Xueqin Dai
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.,Kunming College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China
| | - Xiafang Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.,Kunming College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China
| | - Manuel Nagel
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Bjarke Hamberg Dethlefsen
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Nianxia Xie
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jie Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China
| | | | - Lei Han
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Liang Wu
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wenjiang Zhong
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.,Kunming College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China
| | | | | | - Wei Dai
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Longqi Liu
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xun Xu
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Genome Read and Write, Shenzhen, China
| | - Haorong Lu
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Huanming Yang
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,James D. Watson Institute of Genome Science, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jian Wang
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.,James D. Watson Institute of Genome Science, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jacobus J Boomsma
- Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Guojie Zhang
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China. .,State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China. .,Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. .,Center for Excellence in Animal Evolution and Genetics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China. .,Evolutionary and Organismal Biology Research Center, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Weiwei Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.
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5
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Gospocic J, Glastad KM, Sheng L, Shields EJ, Berger SL, Bonasio R. Kr-h1 maintains distinct caste-specific neurotranscriptomes in response to socially regulated hormones. Cell 2021; 184:5807-5823.e14. [PMID: 34739833 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Behavioral plasticity is key to animal survival. Harpegnathos saltator ants can switch between worker and queen-like status (gamergate) depending on the outcome of social conflicts, providing an opportunity to study how distinct behavioral states are achieved in adult brains. Using social and molecular manipulations in live ants and ant neuronal cultures, we show that ecdysone and juvenile hormone drive molecular and functional differences in the brains of workers and gamergates and direct the transcriptional repressor Kr-h1 to different target genes. Depletion of Kr-h1 in the brain caused de-repression of "socially inappropriate" genes: gamergate genes were upregulated in workers, whereas worker genes were upregulated in gamergates. At the phenotypic level, loss of Kr-h1 resulted in the emergence of worker-specific behaviors in gamergates and gamergate-specific traits in workers. We conclude that Kr-h1 is a transcription factor that maintains distinct brain states established in response to socially regulated hormones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janko Gospocic
- Epigenetics Institute and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Urology and Institute of Neuropathology, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Karl M Glastad
- Epigenetics Institute and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Lihong Sheng
- Epigenetics Institute and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Emily J Shields
- Epigenetics Institute and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Urology and Institute of Neuropathology, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Shelley L Berger
- Epigenetics Institute and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
| | - Roberto Bonasio
- Epigenetics Institute and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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6
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Sieriebriennikov B, Reinberg D, Desplan C. A molecular toolkit for superorganisms. Trends Genet 2021; 37:846-859. [PMID: 34116864 PMCID: PMC8355152 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2021.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Revised: 05/14/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Social insects, such as ants, bees, wasps, and termites, draw biologists' attention due to their distinctive lifestyles. As experimental systems, they provide unique opportunities to study organismal differentiation, division of labor, longevity, and the evolution of development. Ants are particularly attractive because several ant species can be propagated in the laboratory. However, the same lifestyle that makes social insects interesting also hampers the use of molecular genetic techniques. Here, we summarize the efforts of the ant research community to surmount these hurdles and obtain novel mechanistic insight into the biology of social insects. We review current approaches and propose novel ones involving genomics, transcriptomics, chromatin and DNA methylation profiling, RNA interference (RNAi), and genome editing in ants and discuss future experimental strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bogdan Sieriebriennikov
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Danny Reinberg
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Claude Desplan
- Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
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7
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Sieber KR, Dorman T, Newell N, Yan H. (Epi)Genetic Mechanisms Underlying the Evolutionary Success of Eusocial Insects. INSECTS 2021; 12:498. [PMID: 34071806 PMCID: PMC8229086 DOI: 10.3390/insects12060498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Eusocial insects, such as bees, ants, and wasps of the Hymenoptera and termites of the Blattodea, are able to generate remarkable diversity in morphology and behavior despite being genetically uniform within a colony. Most eusocial insect species display caste structures in which reproductive ability is possessed by a single or a few queens while all other colony members act as workers. However, in some species, caste structure is somewhat plastic, and individuals may switch from one caste or behavioral phenotype to another in response to certain environmental cues. As different castes normally share a common genetic background, it is believed that much of this observed within-colony diversity results from transcriptional differences between individuals. This suggests that epigenetic mechanisms, featured by modified gene expression without changing genes themselves, may play an important role in eusocial insects. Indeed, epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation, histone modifications and non-coding RNAs, have been shown to influence eusocial insects in multiple aspects, along with typical genetic regulation. This review summarizes the most recent findings regarding such mechanisms and their diverse roles in eusocial insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayli R. Sieber
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; (K.R.S.); (T.D.); (N.N.)
| | - Taylor Dorman
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; (K.R.S.); (T.D.); (N.N.)
| | - Nicholas Newell
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; (K.R.S.); (T.D.); (N.N.)
| | - Hua Yan
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; (K.R.S.); (T.D.); (N.N.)
- Center for Smell and Taste, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
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