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Lin S, Elsner D, Ams L, Korb J, Rosengaus R. A genetic toolkit underlying the queen phenotype in termites with totipotent workers. Sci Rep 2024; 14:2214. [PMID: 38278833 PMCID: PMC10817970 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-51772-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 01/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Social insect castes (e.g., queens, workers) are prime examples of phenotypic plasticity (i.e., different phenotypes arising from the same genotype). Yet, the mechanisms that give rise to highly fertile, long-lived queens versus non-reproducing, short-lived workers are not well understood. Recently, a module of co-expressed genes has been identified that characterizes queens compared to workers of the termite Cryptotermes secundus (Kalotermitidae): the Queen Central Module (QCM). We tested whether the QCM is shared in termite species, in which queens gradually develop via early larval and late larval instars, the latter functioning as totipotent workers (linear development). Similar as in C. secundus, gene expression profiles revealed an enrichment of QCM genes in Zootermopsis angusticollis queens, a species from another termite family (Archotermopsidae). The expression of these QCM genes became gradually enriched during development from early larval instars via workers to queens. Thus, our results support the hypothesis of a conserved genetic toolkit that characterizes termite queens with gradual linear development. Our data also imply a strong caste-specific tissue specificity with the QCM signal being restricted to head-prothorax tissues in termite queens. This tissue-specific expression of key aging-related genes might have facilitated the evolution of a long lifespan in termite queens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silu Lin
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Freiburg, 79104, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Daniel Elsner
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Freiburg, 79104, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Leon Ams
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Freiburg, 79104, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Judith Korb
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Freiburg, 79104, Freiburg, Germany.
- Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Casuarina Campus, Darwin, NT, 0909, Australia.
| | - Rebeca Rosengaus
- Department of Marine and Environmental Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
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2
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Ruhland F, Gabant G, Toussaint T, Nemcic M, Cadène M, Lucas C. Reproductives signature revealed by protein profiling and behavioral bioassays in termite. Sci Rep 2023; 13:7070. [PMID: 37127756 PMCID: PMC10151321 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-33252-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2022] [Accepted: 04/10/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Proteins are known to be social interaction signals in many species in the animal kingdom. Common mediators in mammals and aquatic species, they have seldom been identified as such in insects' behaviors. Yet, they could represent an important component to support social signals in social insects, as the numerous physical contacts between individuals would tend to favor the use of contact compounds in their interactions. However, their role in social interactions is largely unexplored: are they rare or simply underestimated? In this preliminary study, we show that, in the termite Reticulitermes flavipes, polar extracts from reproductives trigger body-shaking of workers (a vibratory behavior involved in reproductives recognition) while extracts from workers do not. Molecular profiling of these cuticular extracts using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry reveals higher protein diversity in reproductives than in workers and a sex-specific composition exclusive to reproductives. While the effects observed with extracts are not as strong as with live termites, these results open up the intriguing possibility that social signaling may not be limited to cuticular hydrocarbons or other non-polar, volatile chemicals as classically accepted. Our results suggest that polar compounds, in particular some of the Cuticular Protein Compounds (CPCs) shown here by MALDI to be specific to reproductives, could play a significant role in insect societies. While this study is preliminary and further comprehensive molecular characterization is needed to correlate the body-shaking triggering effects with a given set of polar compounds, this exploratory study opens new perspectives for understanding the role of polar compounds such as proteins in caste discrimination, fertility signaling, or interspecific insect communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fanny Ruhland
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte (UMR7261), CNRS - University of Tours, Tours, France
| | - Guillaume Gabant
- Centre de Biophysique Moléculaire (UPR 4301), CNRS - University of Orléans, Orléans, France
| | - Timothée Toussaint
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte (UMR7261), CNRS - University of Tours, Tours, France
| | - Matej Nemcic
- Centre de Biophysique Moléculaire (UPR 4301), CNRS - University of Orléans, Orléans, France
| | - Martine Cadène
- Centre de Biophysique Moléculaire (UPR 4301), CNRS - University of Orléans, Orléans, France
| | - Christophe Lucas
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte (UMR7261), CNRS - University of Tours, Tours, France.
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3
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Yaguchi H, Suzuki S, Kanasaki N, Masuoka Y, Suzuki R, Suzuki RH, Hayashi Y, Shigenobu S, Maekawa K. Evolution and functionalization of vitellogenin genes in the termite Reticulitermes speratus. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY. PART B, MOLECULAR AND DEVELOPMENTAL EVOLUTION 2023; 340:68-80. [PMID: 35485990 DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.23141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2021] [Revised: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Eusociality has been commonly observed in distinct animal lineages. The reproductive division of labor is a particular feature, achieved by the coordination between fertile and sterile castes within the same nest. The sociogenomic approach in social hymenopteran insects indicates that vitellogenin (Vg) has undergone neo-functionalization in sterile castes. Here, to know whether Vgs have distinct roles in nonreproductive castes in termites, we investigated the unique characteristics of Vgs in the rhinotermitid termite Reticulitermes speratus. The four Vgs were identified from R. speratus (RsVg1-4), and RsVg3 sequences were newly identified using the RACE method. Molecular phylogenetic analysis supported the monophyly of the four termite Vgs. Moreover, the termites Vg1-3 and Vg4 were positioned in two different clades. The dN/dS ratios indicated that the branch leading to the common ancestor of termite Vg4 was under weak purifying selection. Expression analyses among castes (reproductives, workers, and soldiers) and females (nymphs, winged alates, and queens) showed that RsVg1-3 was highly expressed in fertile queens. In contrast, RsVg4 was highly expressed in workers and female nonreproductives (nymphs and winged adults). Localization of RsVg4 messenger RNA was confirmed in the fat body of worker heads and abdomens. These results suggest that Vg genes are functionalized after gene duplication during termite eusocial transition and that Vg4 is involved in nonreproductive roles in termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hajime Yaguchi
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan.,Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, Japan.,Department of Bioscience, School of Science and Technology, Kwansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Hyogo, Japan
| | - Shogo Suzuki
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
| | - Naoto Kanasaki
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
| | - Yudai Masuoka
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan.,Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, NARO (National Agriculture and Food Research Organization), Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Ryutaro Suzuki
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
| | - Ryouhei H Suzuki
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
| | | | - Shuji Shigenobu
- NIBB Research Core Facilities, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan
| | - Kiyoto Maekawa
- Faculty of Science, Academic Assembly, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
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4
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He S, Jiang B, Chakraborty A, Yu G. The Evolution of Glycoside Hydrolase Family 1 in Insects Related to Their Adaptation to Plant Utilization. INSECTS 2022; 13:786. [PMID: 36135486 PMCID: PMC9500737 DOI: 10.3390/insects13090786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2022] [Revised: 08/20/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Insects closely interact with plants with multiple genes involved in their interactions. β-glucosidase, constituted mainly by glycoside hydrolase family 1 (GH1), is a crucial enzyme in insects to digest plant cell walls and defend against natural enemies with sequestered plant metabolites. To gain more insights into the role of this enzyme in plant-insect interactions, we analyzed the evolutionary history of the GH1 gene family with publicly available insect genomes. We found that GH1 is widely present in insects, while the gene numbers are significantly higher in insect herbivores directly feeding on plant cell walls than in other insects. After reconciling the insect GH1 gene tree with a species tree, we found that the patterns of duplication and loss of GH1 genes differ among insect orders, which may be associated with the evolution of their ecology. Furthermore, the majority of insects' GH1 genes were tandem-duplicated and subsequently went through neofunctionalization. This study shows the evolutionary history of an important gene family GH1 in insects and facilitates our understanding of the evolution of insect-plant interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shulin He
- College of Life Science, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Bin Jiang
- College of Life Science, Anhui Normal University, Beijing Rd. 1, Wuhu 241000, China
| | - Amrita Chakraborty
- Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Guozhi Yu
- College of Life Science, Sichuan Agricultural University, Xinkang Rd. 46, Ya’an 625014, China
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5
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Zhao F, Morandin C, Jiang K, Su T, He B, Lin G, Huang Z. Molecular evolution of bumble bee vitellogenin and vitellogenin-like genes. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:8983-8992. [PMID: 34257940 PMCID: PMC8258195 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2020] [Revised: 05/11/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Vitellogenin (Vg), a storage protein, has been significantly studied for its egg yolk precursor role in oviparous animals. Recent studies found that vitellogenin and its Vg-like homologs were fundamentally involved in many other biological processes in social insects such as female caste differences and oxidative stress resilience. In this study, we conducted the first large-scale molecular evolutionary analyses of vitellogenin coding genes (Vg) and Vg-like genes of bumble bees, a primitively eusocial insect belonging to the genus Bombus. We obtained sequences for each of the four genes (Vg, Vg-like-A, Vg-like-B, and Vg-like-C) from 27 bumble bee genomes (nine were newly sequenced in this study), and sequences from the two closest clades of Bombus, including five Apis species and five Tetragonula species. Our molecular evolutionary analyses show that in bumble bee, the conventional Vg experienced strong positive selection, while the Vg-like genes showed overall relaxation of purifying selection. In Apis and Tetragonula; however, all four genes were found under purifying selection. Furthermore, the conventional Vg showed signs of strong positive selection in most subgenera in Bombus, apart from the obligate parasitic subgenus Psithyrus which has no caste differentiation. Together, these results indicate that the conventional Vg, a key pleiotropic gene in social insects, is the most rapidly evolving copy, potentially due to its multiple known social functions for both worker and queen castes. This study shows that concerted evolution and purifying selection shaped the evolution of the Vg gene family following their ancient gene duplication and may be the leading forces behind the evolution of new potential protein function enabling functional social pleiotropy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fang Zhao
- School of Life SciencesJinggangshan UniversityJi’anChina
| | - Claire Morandin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, BiophoreUniversity of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
| | - Kai Jiang
- School of Life SciencesJinggangshan UniversityJi’anChina
| | - Tianjuan Su
- School of Life SciencesJinggangshan UniversityJi’anChina
| | - Bo He
- School of Life SciencesJinggangshan UniversityJi’anChina
| | - Gonghua Lin
- School of Life SciencesJinggangshan UniversityJi’anChina
| | - Zuhao Huang
- School of Life SciencesJinggangshan UniversityJi’anChina
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6
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Harrison MC, Chernyshova AM, Thompson GJ. No obvious transcriptome-wide signature of indirect selection in termites. J Evol Biol 2020; 34:403-415. [PMID: 33290587 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2020] [Revised: 11/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The evolution of sterile helper castes in social insects implies selection on genes that underlie variation in this nonreproductive phenotype. These focal genes confer no direct fitness and are presumed to evolve through indirect fitness effects on the helper's reproducing relatives. This separation of a gene's phenotypic effect on one caste and its fitness effect on another suggests that genes for this and other forms of reproductive altruism are buffered from selection and will thus evolve closer to the neutral rate than genes directly selected for selfish reproduction. We test this hypothesis by comparing the strength of selection at loci associated in their expression with reproductive versus sterile castes in termites. Specifically, we gather caste-biased gene expression data from four termite transcriptomes and measure the global dN/dS ratio across gene sets and phylogenetic lineages. We find that the majority of examined orthologous gene groups show patterns of nucleotide substitution that are consistent with strong purifying selection and display little evidence for distinct signatures of direct versus indirect selection in reproductive and sterile castes. For one particular species (Reticulitermes flavipes), the strength of purifying selection is relaxed in a reproductive nymph-biased gene set, which opposes the nearly neutral idea. In other species, the synonymous rate (dS) alone was often found to be the highest in the sterile worker caste, suggesting a more subtle signature of indirect selection or an altogether different relationship between caste-biased expression and rates of molecular evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark C Harrison
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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7
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Repellency, Toxicity, Gene Expression Profiling and In Silico Studies to Explore Insecticidal Potential of Melaleuca alternifolia Essential Oil against Myzus persicae. Toxins (Basel) 2018; 10:toxins10110425. [PMID: 30366370 PMCID: PMC6266121 DOI: 10.3390/toxins10110425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2018] [Revised: 10/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
In the current study, deterrent assay, contact bioassay, lethal concentration (LC) analysis and gene expression analysis were performed to reveal the repellent or insecticidal potential of M. alternifolia oil against M. persicae. M. alternifolia oil demonstrated an excellent deterrence index (0.8) at 2 g/L after 48 h. The oil demonstrated a pronounced contact mortality rate (72%) at a dose of 4 g/L after 24 h. Probit analysis was performed to estimate LC-values of M. alternifolia oil (40%) against M. persicae (LC30 = 0.115 g/L and LC50 = 0.37 g/L respectively) after 24 h. Furthermore, to probe changes in gene expression due to M. alternifolia oil contact in M. persicae, the expression of HSP 60, FPPS I, OSD, TOL and ANT genes were examined at doses of LC30 and LC50. Four out of the five selected genes—OSD, ANT, HSP 60 and FPPS I—showed upregulation at LC50, whereas, TOL gene showed maximum upregulation expression at LC30. Finally, the major components of M. alternifolia oil (terpinen-4-ol) were docked and MD simulated into the related proteins of the selected genes to explore ligand–protein modes of interactions and changes in gene expression. The results show that M. alternifolia oil has remarkable insecticidal and deterrent effects and also has the ability to affect the reproduction and development in M. persicae by binding to proteins.
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8
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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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9
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Dhaygude K, Trontti K, Paviala J, Morandin C, Wheat C, Sundström L, Helanterä H. Transcriptome sequencing reveals high isoform diversity in the ant Formica exsecta. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3998. [PMID: 29177112 PMCID: PMC5701548 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2017] [Accepted: 10/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Transcriptome resources for social insects have the potential to provide new insight into polyphenism, i.e., how divergent phenotypes arise from the same genome. Here we present a transcriptome based on paired-end RNA sequencing data for the ant Formica exsecta (Formicidae, Hymenoptera). The RNA sequencing libraries were constructed from samples of several life stages of both sexes and female castes of queens and workers, in order to maximize representation of expressed genes. We first compare the performance of common assembly and scaffolding software (Trinity, Velvet-Oases, and SOAPdenovo-trans), in producing de novo assemblies. Second, we annotate the resulting expressed contigs to the currently published genomes of ants, and other insects, including the honeybee, to filter genes that have annotation evidence of being true genes. Our pipeline resulted in a final assembly of altogether 39,262 mRNA transcripts, with an average coverage of >300X, belonging to 17,496 unique genes with annotation in the related ant species. From these genes, 536 genes were unique to one caste or sex only, highlighting the importance of comprehensive sampling. Our final assembly also showed expression of several splice variants in 6,975 genes, and we show that accounting for splice variants affects the outcome of downstream analyses such as gene ontologies. Our transcriptome provides an outstanding resource for future genetic studies on F. exsecta and other ant species, and the presented transcriptome assembly can be adapted to any non-model species that has genomic resources available from a related taxon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kishor Dhaygude
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Kalevi Trontti
- Department of Biosciences, Neurogenomics Laboratory, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Jenni Paviala
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Claire Morandin
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Christopher Wheat
- Department of Zoology Ecology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Liselotte Sundström
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Hanko, Finland
| | - Heikki Helanterä
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Hanko, Finland
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10
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Lucas ER, Romiguier J, Keller L. Gene expression is more strongly influenced by age than caste in the ant Lasius niger. Mol Ecol 2017; 26:5058-5073. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.14256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2017] [Revised: 06/20/2017] [Accepted: 06/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Eric R. Lucas
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; Biophore, University of Lausanne; Lausanne Switzerland
- Department of Vector Biology; Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine; Liverpool UK
| | - Jonathan Romiguier
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; Biophore, University of Lausanne; Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Laurent Keller
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; Biophore, University of Lausanne; Lausanne Switzerland
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11
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Jedlička P, Ernst UR, Votavová A, Hanus R, Valterová I. Gene Expression Dynamics in Major Endocrine Regulatory Pathways along the Transition from Solitary to Social Life in a Bumblebee, Bombus terrestris. Front Physiol 2016; 7:574. [PMID: 27932998 PMCID: PMC5121236 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2016.00574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2016] [Accepted: 11/10/2016] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the social evolution leading to insect eusociality requires, among other, a detailed insight into endocrine regulatory mechanisms that have been co-opted from solitary ancestors to play new roles in the complex life histories of eusocial species. Bumblebees represent well-suited models of a relatively primitive social organization standing on the mid-way to highly advanced eusociality and their queens undergo both, a solitary and a social phase, separated by winter diapause. In the present paper, we characterize the gene expression levels of major endocrine regulatory pathways across tissues, sexes, and life-stages of the buff-tailed bumblebee, Bombus terrestris, with special emphasis on critical stages of the queen's transition from solitary to social life. We focused on fundamental genes of three pathways: (1) Forkhead box protein O and insulin/insulin-like signaling, (2) Juvenile hormone (JH) signaling, and (3) Adipokinetic hormone signaling. Virgin queens were distinguished by higher expression of forkhead box protein O and downregulated insulin-like peptides and JH signaling, indicated by low expression of methyl farnesoate epoxidase (MFE) and transcription factor Krüppel homolog 1 (Kr-h1). Diapausing queens showed the expected downregulation of JH signaling in terms of low MFE and vitellogenin (Vg) expressions, but an unexpectedly high expression of Kr-h1. By contrast, reproducing queens revealed an upregulation of MFE and Vg together with insulin signaling. Surprisingly, the insulin growth factor 1 (IGF-1) turned out to be a queen-specific hormone. Workers exhibited an expression pattern of MFE and Vg similar to that of reproducing queens. Males were characterized by high Kr-h1 expression and low Vg level. The tissue comparison unveiled an unexpected resemblance between the fat body and hypopharyngeal glands across all investigated genes, sexes, and life stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pavel Jedlička
- Department of Chemistry of Social Insects, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences Prague, Czechia
| | - Ulrich R Ernst
- Department of Chemistry of Social Insects, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences Prague, Czechia
| | | | - Robert Hanus
- Department of Chemistry of Social Insects, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences Prague, Czechia
| | - Irena Valterová
- Research Group of Infochemicals, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences Prague, Czechia
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12
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Franco Cairo JPL, Carazzolle MF, Leonardo FC, Mofatto LS, Brenelli LB, Gonçalves TA, Uchima CA, Domingues RR, Alvarez TM, Tramontina R, Vidal RO, Costa FF, Costa-Leonardo AM, Paes Leme AF, Pereira GAG, Squina FM. Expanding the Knowledge on Lignocellulolytic and Redox Enzymes of Worker and Soldier Castes from the Lower Termite Coptotermes gestroi. Front Microbiol 2016; 7:1518. [PMID: 27790186 PMCID: PMC5061848 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.01518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2016] [Accepted: 09/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Termites are considered one of the most efficient decomposers of lignocelluloses on Earth due to their ability to produce, along with its microbial symbionts, a repertoire of carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes). Recently, a set of Pro-oxidant, Antioxidant, and Detoxification enzymes (PAD) were also correlated with the metabolism of carbohydrates and lignin in termites. The lower termite Coptotermes gestroi is considered the main urban pest in Brazil, causing damage to wood constructions. Recently, analysis of the enzymatic repertoire of C. gestroi unveiled the presence of different CAZymes. Because the gene profile of CAZy/PAD enzymes endogenously synthesized by C. gestroi and also by their symbiotic protists remains unclear, the aim of this study was to explore the eukaryotic repertoire of these enzymes in worker and soldier castes of C. gestroi. Our findings showed that worker and soldier castes present similar repertoires of CAZy/PAD enzymes, and also confirmed that endo-glucanases (GH9) and beta-glucosidases (GH1) were the most important glycoside hydrolase families related to lignocellulose degradation in both castes. Classical cellulases such as exo-glucanases (GH7) and endo-glucanases (GH5 and GH45), as well as classical xylanases (GH10 and GH11), were found in both castes only taxonomically related to protists, highlighting the importance of symbiosis in C. gestroi. Moreover, our analysis revealed the presence of Auxiliary Activity enzyme families (AAs), which could be related to lignin modifications in termite digestomes. In conclusion, this report expanded the knowledge on genes and proteins related to CAZy/PAD enzymes from worker and soldier castes of lower termites, revealing new potential enzyme candidates for second-generation biofuel processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- João P L Franco Cairo
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM)Campinas, Brazil; Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Tecidual, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil
| | - Marcelo F Carazzolle
- Laboratório de Genômica e Expressão, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Flávia C Leonardo
- Laboratório de Genômica e Expressão, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil; Centro de Hematologia e Hemoterapia (Hemocentro), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil
| | - Luciana S Mofatto
- Laboratório de Genômica e Expressão, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil; Centro de Hematologia e Hemoterapia (Hemocentro), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil
| | - Lívia B Brenelli
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM)Campinas, Brazil; Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Tecidual, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil
| | - Thiago A Gonçalves
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM)Campinas, Brazil; Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Tecidual, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil
| | - Cristiane A Uchima
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Romênia R Domingues
- Laboratório de Espectrometria de Massas, Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBIO), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Thabata M Alvarez
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Robson Tramontina
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM)Campinas, Brazil; Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Tecidual, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)Campinas, Brazil
| | - Ramon O Vidal
- Laboratório de Genômica e Expressão, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Fernando F Costa
- Centro de Hematologia e Hemoterapia (Hemocentro), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Ana M Costa-Leonardo
- Departamento de Biologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Rio Claro, Brazil
| | - Adriana F Paes Leme
- Laboratório de Espectrometria de Massas, Laboratório Nacional de Biociências (LNBIO), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Gonçalo A G Pereira
- Laboratório de Genômica e Expressão, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) Campinas, Brazil
| | - Fabio M Squina
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol (CTBE), Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM) Campinas, Brazil
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Korb J. Genes Underlying Reproductive Division of Labor in Termites, with Comparisons to Social Hymenoptera. Front Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
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Dedeine F, Weinert LA, Bigot D, Josse T, Ballenghien M, Cahais V, Galtier N, Gayral P. Comparative Analysis of Transcriptomes from Secondary Reproductives of Three Reticulitermes Termite Species. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0145596. [PMID: 26698123 PMCID: PMC4689415 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0145596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2015] [Accepted: 12/07/2015] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Termites are eusocial insects related to cockroaches that feed on lignocellulose. These insects are key species in ecosystems since they recycle a large amount of nutrients but also are pests, exerting major economic impacts. Knowledge on the molecular pathways underlying reproduction, caste differentiation or lignocellulose digestion would largely benefit from additional transcriptomic data. This study focused on transcriptomes of secondary reproductive females (nymphoid neotenics). Thirteen transcriptomes were used: 10 of Reticulitermes flavipes and R. grassei sequenced from a previous study, and two transcriptomes of R. lucifugus sequenced for the present study. After transcriptome assembly and read mapping, we examined interspecific variations of genes expressed by termites or gut microorganisms. A total of 18,323 orthologous gene clusters were detected. Functional annotation and taxonomic assignment were performed on a total of 41,287 predicted contigs in the three termite species. Between the termite species studied, functional categories of genes were comparable. Gene ontology (GO) terms analysis allowed the discovery of 9 cellulases and a total of 79 contigs potentially involved in 11 enzymatic activities used in wood metabolism. Altogether, results of this study illustrate the strong potential for the use of comparative interspecific transcriptomes, representing a complete resource for future studies including differentially expressed genes between castes or SNP analysis for population genetics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franck Dedeine
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’Insecte, UMR 7261, CNRS—Université François Rabelais, 37200, Tours, France
| | - Lucy A. Weinert
- Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution, UMR 5554, Université de Montpellier—CNRS—IRD—EPHE, Montpellier, France
| | - Diane Bigot
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’Insecte, UMR 7261, CNRS—Université François Rabelais, 37200, Tours, France
| | - Thibaut Josse
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’Insecte, UMR 7261, CNRS—Université François Rabelais, 37200, Tours, France
| | - Marion Ballenghien
- Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution, UMR 5554, Université de Montpellier—CNRS—IRD—EPHE, Montpellier, France
| | - Vincent Cahais
- Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution, UMR 5554, Université de Montpellier—CNRS—IRD—EPHE, Montpellier, France
| | - Nicolas Galtier
- Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution, UMR 5554, Université de Montpellier—CNRS—IRD—EPHE, Montpellier, France
| | - Philippe Gayral
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’Insecte, UMR 7261, CNRS—Université François Rabelais, 37200, Tours, France
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15
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Berens AJ, Hunt JH, Toth AL. Nourishment level affects caste-related gene expression in Polistes wasps. BMC Genomics 2015; 16:235. [PMID: 25880983 PMCID: PMC4381360 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-015-1410-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2014] [Accepted: 02/27/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Social insects exhibit striking phenotypic plasticity in the form of distinct reproductive (queen) and non-reproductive (worker) castes, which are typically driven by differences in the environment during early development. Nutritional environment and nourishment during development has been shown to be broadly associated with caste determination across social insect taxa such as bees, wasps, and termites. In primitively social insects such as Polistes paper wasps, caste remains flexible throughout adulthood, but there is evidence that nourishment inequalities can bias caste development with workers receiving limited nourishment compared to queens. Dominance and vibrational signaling are behaviors that have also been linked to caste differences in paper wasps, suggesting that a combination of nourishment and social factors may drive caste determination. To better understand the molecular basis of nutritional effects on caste determination, we used RNA-sequencing to investigate the gene expression changes in response to proteinaceous nourishment deprivation in Polistes metricus larvae. Results We identified 285 nourishment-responsive transcripts, many of which are related to lipid metabolism and oxidation-reduction activity. Via comparisons to previously identified caste-related genes, we found that nourishment restriction only partially biased wasp gene expression patterns toward worker caste-like traits, which supports the notion that nourishment, in conjunction with social environment, is a determinant of developmental caste bias. In addition, we conducted cross-species comparisons of nourishment-responsive genes, and uncovered largely lineage-specific gene expression changes, suggesting few shared nourishment-responsive genes across taxa. Conclusion Overall, the results from this study highlight the complex and multifactorial nature of environmental effects on the gene expression patterns underlying plastic phenotypes. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-015-1410-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali J Berens
- Program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA. .,Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA.
| | - James H Hunt
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA. .,Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA. .,W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA.
| | - Amy L Toth
- Program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA. .,Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA. .,Department of Entomology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA.
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16
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Scharf ME. Omic research in termites: an overview and a roadmap. Front Genet 2015; 6:76. [PMID: 25821456 PMCID: PMC4358217 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2015.00076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2014] [Accepted: 02/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Many recent breakthroughs in our understanding of termite biology have been facilitated by "omics" research. Omic science seeks to collectively catalog, quantify, and characterize pools of biological molecules that translate into structure, function, and life processes of an organism. Biological molecules in this context include genomic DNA, messenger RNA, proteins, and other biochemicals. Other permutations of omics that apply to termites include sociogenomics, which seeks to define social life in molecular terms (e.g., behavior, sociality, physiology, symbiosis, etc.) and digestomics, which seeks to define the collective pool of host and symbiont genes that collaborate to achieve high-efficiency lignocellulose digestion in the termite gut. This review covers a wide spectrum of termite omic studies from the past 15 years. Topics covered include a summary of terminology, the various kinds of omic efforts that have been undertaken, what has been revealed, and to a degree, what the results mean. Although recent omic efforts have contributed to a better understanding of many facets of termite and symbiont biology, and have created important new resources for many species, significant knowledge gaps still remain. Crossing these gaps can best be done by applying new omic resources within multi-dimensional (i.e., functional, translational, and applied) research programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael E Scharf
- Department of Entomology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN USA
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17
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Berens AJ, Hunt JH, Toth AL. Comparative Transcriptomics of Convergent Evolution: Different Genes but Conserved Pathways Underlie Caste Phenotypes across Lineages of Eusocial Insects. Mol Biol Evol 2014; 32:690-703. [DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msu330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 132] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
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18
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Helanterä H, Uller T. Neutral and adaptive explanations for an association between caste-biased gene expression and rate of sequence evolution. Front Genet 2014; 5:297. [PMID: 25221570 PMCID: PMC4148897 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2014.00297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2014] [Accepted: 08/08/2014] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The castes of social insects provide outstanding opportunities to address the causes and consequences of evolution of discrete phenotypes, i.e., polymorphisms. Here we focus on recently described patterns of a positive association between the degree of caste-specific gene expression and the rate of sequence evolution. We outline how neutral and adaptive evolution can cause genes that are morph-biased in their expression profiles to exhibit historical signatures of faster or slower sequence evolution compared to unbiased genes. We conclude that evaluation of different hypotheses will benefit from (i) reconstruction of the phylogenetic origin of biased expression and changes in rates of sequence evolution, and (ii) replicated data on gene expression variation within versus between morphs. Although the data are limited at present, we suggest that the observed phylogenetic and intra-population variation in gene expression lends support to the hypothesis that the association between caste-biased expression and rate of sequence evolution largely is a result of neutral processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heikki Helanterä
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of HelsinkiHelsinki, Finland
| | - Tobias Uller
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of OxfordOxford, UK
- Department of Biology, University of LundSölvegatan, Lund, Sweden
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19
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Morandin C, Havukainen H, Kulmuni J, Dhaygude K, Trontti K, Helanterä H. Not only for egg yolk--functional and evolutionary insights from expression, selection, and structural analyses of Formica ant vitellogenins. Mol Biol Evol 2014; 31:2181-93. [PMID: 24895411 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msu171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Vitellogenin (Vg), a storage protein, has been extensively studied for its egg-yolk precursor role, and it has been suggested to be fundamentally involved in caste differences in social insects. More than one Vg copy has been reported in several oviparous species, including ants. However, the number and function of different Vgs, their phylogenetic relatedness, and their role in reproductive queens and nonreproductive workers have been studied in few species only. We studied caste-biased expression of Vgs in seven Formica ant species. Only one copy of conventional Vg was identified in Formica species, and three Vg homologs, derived from ancient duplications, which represent yet undiscovered Vg-like genes. We show that each of these Vg-like genes is present in all studied Hymenoptera and some of them in other insects as well. We show that after each major duplication event, at least one of the Vg-like genes has experienced a period of positive selection. This, combined with the observation that the Vg-like genes have acquired or lost specific protein domains suggests sub- or neofunctionalization between Vg and the duplicated genes. In contrast to earlier studies, Vg was not consistently queen biased in its expression, and the caste bias of the three Vg-like genes was highly variable among species. Furthermore, a truncated and Hymenoptera-specific Vg-like gene, Vg-like-C, was consistently worker biased. Multispecies comparisons are essential for Vg expression studies, and for gene expression studies in general, as we show that expression and also, putative functions cannot be generalized even among closely related species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire Morandin
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandTvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Heli Havukainen
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandDepartment of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway
| | - Jonna Kulmuni
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandDepartment of Biology and Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Kishor Dhaygude
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Kalevi Trontti
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandDepartment of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Heikki Helanterä
- Department of Biosciences, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandTvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
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20
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Shimada K, Maekawa K. Gene expression and molecular phylogenetic analyses of beta-glucosidase in the termite Reticulitermes speratus (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae). JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2014; 65:63-9. [PMID: 24831179 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2014.05.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2014] [Revised: 04/18/2014] [Accepted: 05/01/2014] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Beta-glucosidase (BG) is known as a multifunctional enzyme for social maintenance in terms of both cellulose digestion and social communication in termites. However, the expression profiles of each BG gene and their evolutionary history are not well understood. First, we cloned two types of BG homologs (RsBGI and RsBGII) from the termite Reticulitermes speratus (Kolbe). Gene expression analyses showed that RsBGI expression levels of primary queens and kings from 30 to 100 days after colony foundation were high, but those of reproductives dropped after day 400. Extremely low gene expression levels of RsBGI were observed in eggs, whereas workers had significantly higher expression levels than those of soldiers and other colony members. Consequently, RsBGI gene expression levels changed among each developmental stage, and RsBGI was shown to be involved in cellulose digestion. On the other hand, the RsBGII gene was consistently expressed in all castes and developmental stages examined, and notable expression changes were not observed among them, including in eggs. It was indicated that RsBGII is a main component involved in social communication, for example, the egg-recognition pheromone shown in this species previously. Finally, we obtained partial gene homologs from other termite and cockroach species, including the woodroach (genus Cryptocercus), which is the sister group to termites, and performed molecular phylogenetic analyses. The results showed that the origin of the BG gene homologs preceded the divergence of termites and cockroaches, suggesting that the acquisition of multifunctionality of the BG gene also occurred in cockroach lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keisuke Shimada
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, 3190 Gofuku, Toyama, Toyama 930-8555, Japan
| | - Kiyoto Maekawa
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, 3190 Gofuku, Toyama, Toyama 930-8555, Japan.
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21
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Terrapon N, Li C, Robertson HM, Ji L, Meng X, Booth W, Chen Z, Childers CP, Glastad KM, Gokhale K, Gowin J, Gronenberg W, Hermansen RA, Hu H, Hunt BG, Huylmans AK, Khalil SMS, Mitchell RD, Munoz-Torres MC, Mustard JA, Pan H, Reese JT, Scharf ME, Sun F, Vogel H, Xiao J, Yang W, Yang Z, Yang Z, Zhou J, Zhu J, Brent CS, Elsik CG, Goodisman MAD, Liberles DA, Roe RM, Vargo EL, Vilcinskas A, Wang J, Bornberg-Bauer E, Korb J, Zhang G, Liebig J. Molecular traces of alternative social organization in a termite genome. Nat Commun 2014; 5:3636. [PMID: 24845553 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 270] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2013] [Accepted: 03/13/2014] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Although eusociality evolved independently within several orders of insects, research into the molecular underpinnings of the transition towards social complexity has been confined primarily to Hymenoptera (for example, ants and bees). Here we sequence the genome and stage-specific transcriptomes of the dampwood termite Zootermopsis nevadensis (Blattodea) and compare them with similar data for eusocial Hymenoptera, to better identify commonalities and differences in achieving this significant transition. We show an expansion of genes related to male fertility, with upregulated gene expression in male reproductive individuals reflecting the profound differences in mating biology relative to the Hymenoptera. For several chemoreceptor families, we show divergent numbers of genes, which may correspond to the more claustral lifestyle of these termites. We also show similarities in the number and expression of genes related to caste determination mechanisms. Finally, patterns of DNA methylation and alternative splicing support a hypothesized epigenetic regulation of caste differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Terrapon
- 1] Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster D48149, Germany [2] [3]
| | - Cai Li
- 1] China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China [2] Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, Copenhagen 1350, Denmark [3]
| | - Hugh M Robertson
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA
| | - Lu Ji
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Xuehong Meng
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Warren Booth
- 1] Department of Entomology and W. M Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA [2]
| | - Zhensheng Chen
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | | | - Karl M Glastad
- School of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Kaustubh Gokhale
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA
| | - Johannes Gowin
- 1] Behavioural Biology, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück D49076, Germany [2]
| | - Wulfila Gronenberg
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
| | - Russell A Hermansen
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming 82071, USA
| | - Haofu Hu
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Brendan G Hunt
- 1] School of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA [2]
| | - Ann Kathrin Huylmans
- 1] Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster D48149, Germany [2]
| | - Sayed M S Khalil
- 1] Department of Entomology and W. M Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA [2] Department of Microbial Molecular Biology, Agricultural Genetic Engineering Research Institute, Giza 12619, Egypt
| | - Robert D Mitchell
- Department of Entomology and W. M Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA
| | - Monica C Munoz-Torres
- Genomics Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Julie A Mustard
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA
| | - Hailin Pan
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Justin T Reese
- Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA
| | - Michael E Scharf
- Department of Entomology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA
| | - Fengming Sun
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Heiko Vogel
- Department of Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena D-07745, Germany
| | - Jin Xiao
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Wei Yang
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Zhikai Yang
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Zuoquan Yang
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Jiajian Zhou
- China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Jiwei Zhu
- Department of Entomology and W. M Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA
| | - Colin S Brent
- Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Maricopa, Arizona 85138, USA
| | - Christine G Elsik
- 1] Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA [2] Division of Plant Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA
| | | | - David A Liberles
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming 82071, USA
| | - R Michael Roe
- Department of Entomology and W. M Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA
| | - Edward L Vargo
- Department of Entomology and W. M Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA
| | - Andreas Vilcinskas
- Institut für Phytopathologie und Angewandte Zoologie, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Giessen D35390, Germany
| | - Jun Wang
- 1] China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China [2] Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen DK-1165, Denmark [3] Princess Al Jawhara Center of Excellence in the Research of Hereditary Disorders, King Abdulaziz University, 21589 Jeddah, Saudi Arabia [4] Macau University of Science and Technology, Avenida Wai long, Taipa, Macau 999078, China [5] Department of Medicine, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Erich Bornberg-Bauer
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster D48149, Germany
| | - Judith Korb
- 1] Behavioural Biology, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück D49076, Germany [2]
| | - Guojie Zhang
- 1] China National GeneBank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China [2] Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jürgen Liebig
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA
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Ayyanath MM, Cutler GC, Scott-Dupree CD, Prithiviraj B, Kandasamy S, Prithiviraj K. Gene expression during imidacloprid-induced hormesis in green peach aphid. Dose Response 2014; 12:480-97. [PMID: 25249837 DOI: 10.2203/dose-response.13-057.cutler] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Imidacloprid-induced hormesis in the form of stimulated reproduction has previously been reported in green peach aphid, Myzus persicae. Changes in gene expression accompanying this hormetic response have not been previously investigated. In this study, expression of stress response (Hsp60), dispersal (OSD, TOL and ANT), and developmental (FPPS I) genes were examined for two generations during imidacloprid-induced reproductive stimulation in M. persicae. Global DNA methylation was also measured to test the hypothesis that changes in gene expression are heritable. At hormetic concentrations, down-regulation of Hsp60 was followed by up-regulation of this gene in the subsequent generation. Likewise, expression of dispersal-related genes and FPPS I varied with concentration, life stage, and generation. These results indicate that reproductive hormesis in M. persicae is accompanied by a complex transgenerational pattern of up- and down-regulation of genes that likely reflects trade-offs in gene expression and related physiological processes during the phenotypic dose-response. Moreover, DNA methylation in second generation M. persicae occurred at higher doses than in first-generation aphids, suggesting that heritable adaptability to low doses of the stressor might have occurred.
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Affiliation(s)
- Murali-Mohan Ayyanath
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, Nova Scotia, CANADA; ; School of Environmental Sciences, Ontario Agricultural College, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, CANADA
| | - G Christopher Cutler
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, Nova Scotia, CANADA
| | - Cynthia D Scott-Dupree
- School of Environmental Sciences, Ontario Agricultural College, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, CANADA
| | - Balakrishnan Prithiviraj
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, Nova Scotia, CANADA
| | - Saveetha Kandasamy
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, Nova Scotia, CANADA
| | - Kalyani Prithiviraj
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, Nova Scotia, CANADA
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OMETTO LINO, ROSS KENNETHG, SHOEMAKER D, KELLER LAURENT. Disruption of gene expression in hybrids of the fire antsSolenopsis invictaandSolenopsis richteri. Mol Ecol 2012; 21:2488-501. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-294x.2012.05544.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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Husseneder C, McGregor C, Lang RP, Collier R, Delatte J. Transcriptome profiling of female alates and egg-laying queens of the Formosan subterranean termite. COMPARATIVE BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY D-GENOMICS & PROTEOMICS 2011; 7:14-27. [PMID: 22079412 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbd.2011.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2011] [Revised: 10/13/2011] [Accepted: 10/14/2011] [Indexed: 10/16/2022]
Abstract
Termites are known to have an extraordinary reproductive plasticity and capacity, but the underlying genetic patterns of termite reproductive biology are relatively understudied. The goal of this study was to identify genes for which expression levels differ between dealated precopulatory females (virgins) and egg-laying queens of the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki. We constructed a normalized polyphenic expressed sequence tag (EST) library that represents genomic material from most of the castes and life stages of the Formosan subterranean termite. Microarrays were designed using probes from this EST library and public genomic resources. Virgin females and queens were competitively hybridized to these microarrays and differentially expressed candidate genes were identified. Differential expression of eight genes was subsequently confirmed via reverse transcriptase quantitative PCR (RT-QPCR). When compared to virgins, queens had higher expression of genes coding for proteins related to immunity (gram negative binding protein), nutrition (e.g., termite-derived endo-beta-1,4-glucanase), protein storage, regulation of caste differentiation and reproduction (hexamerin, juvenile hormone binding protein). Queens also had higher transcript levels for genes involved in metabolism of xenobiotics, fat, and juvenile hormone (glutathione-S-transferase-like proteins, and cytochrome P450), among others. In particular, hexamerin, juvenile hormone binding protein, and a cytochrome P450 from the 4C subfamily are likely to be involved in initiating the inactive period during the reproductive cycle of the queen. Vice versa, virgins had higher expression than queens of genes related to respiration, probably due to recent flight activity, and several genes of unknown function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Husseneder
- Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Department of Entomology, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.
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Yamamoto Y, Matsuura K. Genetic influence on caste determination underlying the asexual queen succession system in a termite. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-011-1249-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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26
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Fischman BJ, Woodard SH, Robinson GE. Molecular evolutionary analyses of insect societies. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2011; 108 Suppl 2:10847-54. [PMID: 21690385 PMCID: PMC3131825 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1100301108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The social insects live in extraordinarily complex and cohesive societies, where many individuals sacrifice their personal reproduction to become helpers in the colony. Identifying adaptive molecular changes involved in eusocial evolution in insects is important for understanding the mechanisms underlying transitions from solitary to social living, as well as the maintenance and elaboration of social life. Here, we review recent advances made in this area of research in several insect groups: the ants, bees, wasps, and termites. Drawing from whole-genome comparisons, candidate gene approaches, and a genome-scale comparative analysis of protein-coding sequence, we highlight novel insights gained for five major biological processes: chemical signaling, brain development and function, immunity, reproduction, and metabolism and nutrition. Lastly, we make comparisons across these diverse approaches and social insect lineages and discuss potential common themes of eusocial evolution, as well as challenges and prospects for future research in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Gene E. Robinson
- Program in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology
- Department of Entomology
- Institute for Genomic Biology, and
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801
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Ometto L, Shoemaker D, Ross KG, Keller L. Evolution of Gene Expression in Fire Ants: The Effects of Developmental Stage, Caste, and Species. Mol Biol Evol 2010; 28:1381-92. [DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msq322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
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28
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Hunt BG, Goodisman MAD. Evolutionary variation in gene expression is associated with dimorphism in eusocial vespid wasps. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2010; 19:641-652. [PMID: 20546040 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2583.2010.01021.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Phenotypic diversity is frequently generated by differences in gene expression. In this study, we addressed the relationship between homology in gene expression and phenotype among four species of eusocial wasps. Specifically, we investigated the evolution of caste-specific and sex-specific gene expression patterns associated with caste polyphenisms and sexual dimorphisms. We also identified several genes with functions relevant to their phenotype-specific roles. Our results suggest that gene expression profiles associated with caste polyphenisms may evolve rapidly relative to those associated with sexes. Thus, caste-biased genes may undergo less regulatory constraint or be subject to greater neutral variation in expression than sex-biased genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- B G Hunt
- School of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
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29
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Identification of a pheromone regulating caste differentiation in termites. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2010; 107:12963-8. [PMID: 20615972 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1004675107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The hallmark of social insects is their caste system: reproduction is primarily monopolized by queens, whereas workers specialize in the other tasks required for colony growth and survival. Pheromones produced by reigning queens have long been believed to be the prime factor inhibiting the differentiation of new reproductive individuals. However, there has been very little progress in the chemical identification of such inhibitory pheromones. Here we report the identification of a volatile inhibitory pheromone produced by female neotenics (secondary queens) that acts directly on target individuals to suppress the differentiation of new female neotenics and identify n-butyl-n-butyrate and 2-methyl-1-butanol as the active components of the inhibitory pheromone. An artificial pheromone blend consisting of these two compounds had a strong inhibitory effect similar to live neotenics. Surprisingly, the same two volatiles are also emitted by eggs, playing a role both as an attractant to workers and an inhibitor of reproductive differentiation. This dual production of an inhibitory pheromone by female reproductives and eggs probably reflects the recruitment of an attractant pheromone as an inhibitory pheromone and may provide a mechanism ensuring honest signaling of reproductive status with a tight coupling between fertility and inhibitory power. Identification of a volatile pheromone regulating caste differentiation in a termite provides insights into the functioning of social insect colonies and opens important avenues for elucidating the developmental pathways leading to reproductive and nonreproductive castes.
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Toth AL, Varala K, Henshaw MT, Rodriguez-Zas SL, Hudson ME, Robinson GE. Brain transcriptomic analysis in paper wasps identifies genes associated with behaviour across social insect lineages. Proc Biol Sci 2010; 277:2139-48. [PMID: 20236980 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2010.0090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Comparative sociogenomics has the potential to provide important insights into how social behaviour evolved. We examined brain gene expression profiles of the primitively eusocial wasp Polistes metricus and compared the results with a growing base of brain gene expression information for the advanced eusocial honeybee, Apis mellifera. We studied four female wasp groups that show variation in foraging/provisioning behaviour and reproductive status, using our newly developed microarray representing approximately 3248 P. metricus genes based on sequences generated from high-throughput pyrosequencing. We found differences in the expression of approximately 389 genes across the four groups. Pathways known from Drosophila melanogaster to be related to lipid metabolism, heat and stress response, and various forms of solitary behaviour were associated with behavioural differences among wasps. Forty-five per cent of differentially expressed transcripts showed significant associations with foraging/provisioning status, and 14 per cent with reproductive status. By comparing these two gene lists with lists of genes previously shown to be differentially expressed in association with honeybee division of labour, we found a significant overlap of genes associated with foraging/provisioning, but not reproduction, across the two species. These results suggest common molecular roots for foraging division of labour in two independently evolved social insect species and the possibility of more lineage-specific roots of reproductive behaviour. We explore the implications of these findings for the idea that there is a conserved 'genetic toolkit' for division of labour across multiple lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy L Toth
- Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA.
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Wurm Y, Wang J, Keller L. Changes in reproductive roles are associated with changes in gene expression in fire ant queens. Mol Ecol 2010; 19:1200-11. [PMID: 20163551 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-294x.2010.04561.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
In species with social hierarchies, the death of dominant individuals typically upheaves the social hierarchy and provides an opportunity for subordinate individuals to become reproductives. Such a phenomenon occurs in the monogyne form of the fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, where colonies typically contain a single wingless reproductive queen, thousands of workers and hundreds of winged nonreproductive virgin queens. Upon the death of the mother queen, many virgin queens shed their wings and initiate reproductive development instead of departing on a mating flight. Workers progressively execute almost all of them over the following weeks. To identify the molecular changes that occur in virgin queens as they perceive the loss of their mother queen and begin to compete for reproductive dominance, we collected virgin queens before the loss of their mother queen, 6 h after orphaning and 24 h after orphaning. Their RNA was extracted and hybridized against microarrays to examine the expression levels of approximately 10,000 genes. We identified 297 genes that were consistently differentially expressed after orphaning. These include genes that are putatively involved in the signalling and onset of reproductive development, as well as genes underlying major physiological changes in the young queens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yannick Wurm
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
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