1
|
Oi CA. Honeybee queen mandibular pheromone fails to regulate ovary activation in the common wasp. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2022; 208:297-302. [PMID: 35028724 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-021-01531-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) identified from the honeybee is responsible for maintaining reproductive division of labour in the colony, and affects multiple behaviours. Interestingly, QMP inhibits reproduction not only in honeybee workers, but also in distantly related insect species such as fruit flies and bumblebees. This study examines whether QMP also affects worker reproduction in the common wasp Vespula vulgaris. Wasp workers were exposed to one of the following treatments: QMP, wasp queen pheromone (the hydrocarbon heptacosane n-C27), or acetone (solvent-only control). After dissecting the workers, no evidence that QMP inhibits development in V. vulgaris could be found. However, this study could confirm the inhibitory effect of the hydrocarbon heptacosane on ovary activation. The reason why non-social species such as the fruit fly and social species such as bumblebees and ants respond to the QMP, while the social wasp V. vulgaris does not, is unclear. The investigation of whether olfaction is key to sensing QMP in other insect species, and the detailed study of odorant receptors in other social insects, may provide insights into the mechanisms of response to this pheromone.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cintia Akemi Oi
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Quigley TP, Amdam GV. Social modulation of ageing: mechanisms, ecology, evolution. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20190738. [PMID: 33678020 PMCID: PMC7938163 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Human life expectancy increases, but the disease-free part of lifespan (healthspan) and the quality of life in old people may not show the same development. The situation poses considerable challenges to healthcare systems and economies, and calls for new strategies to increase healthspan and for sustainable future approaches to elder care. This call has motivated innovative research on the role of social relationships during ageing. Correlative data from clinical surveys indicate that social contact promotes healthy ageing, and it is time to reveal the causal mechanisms through experimental research. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is a prolific model animal, but insects with more developed social behaviour can be equally instrumental for this research. Here, we discuss the role of social contact in ageing, and identify lines of study where diverse insect models can help uncover the mechanisms that are involved. This article is part of the theme issue 'Ageing and sociality: why, when and how does sociality change ageing patterns?'
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tyler P. Quigley
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, PO Box 874501, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
| | - Gro V. Amdam
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, PO Box 874501, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, PO Box 5002, N-1432 Aas, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Khodaei L, Long TAF. Kin recognition and co-operative foraging in Drosophila melanogaster larvae. J Evol Biol 2019; 32:1352-1361. [PMID: 31454451 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2019] [Revised: 08/05/2019] [Accepted: 08/22/2019] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
A long-standing goal for biologists and social scientists is to understand the factors that lead to the evolution and maintenance of co-operative behaviour between conspecifics. To that end, the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, is becoming an increasingly popular model species to study sociality; however, most of the research to date has focused on adult behaviours. In this study, we set out to examine group-feeding behaviour by larvae and to determine whether the degree of relatedness between individuals mediates the expression co-operation. In a series of assays, we manipulated the average degree of relatedness in groups of third-instar larvae that were faced with resource scarcity, and measured the size, frequency and composition of feeding clusters, as well as the fitness benefits associated with co-operation. Our results suggest that larval D. melanogaster are capable of kin recognition (something that has not been previously described in this species), as clusters were more numerous, larger and involved more larvae, when more closely related kin were present in the social environment. These findings are discussed in the context of the correlated fitness-associated benefits of co-operation, the potential mechanisms by which individuals may recognize kin, and how that kinship may play an important role in facilitating the manifestation of this co-operative behaviour.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lucas Khodaei
- Department of Biology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON, Canada
| | - Tristan A F Long
- Department of Biology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Galang KC, Croft JR, Thompson GJ, Percival-Smith A. Analysis of the Drosophila melanogaster anti-ovarian response to honey bee queen mandibular pheromone. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2019; 28:99-111. [PMID: 30159981 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) is a potent reproductive signal to which honey bee workers respond by suppressing their ovaries and adopting alloparental roles within the colony. This anti-ovarian effect of QMP on workers can, surprisingly, be induced in other insects, including fruit flies, in which females exposed to synthetic QMP develop smaller ovaries with fewer eggs. In this study, we use the Drosophila melanogaster model to identify the components of synthetic QMP required for the anti-ovarian effect. We found that virgin females respond strongly to 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid and 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid (10HDA), suggesting that the decenoic acid components of QMP are essential for the anti-ovarian response. Further, a nuclear factor of activated T-cells reporter system revealed neurones expressing the olfactory receptors Or-56a, Or-49b and Or-98a are activated by QMP in the antenna. In addition, we used olfactory receptor GAL4 drivers and a neuronal activator (a neuronal activating bacterial sodium channel) to test whether the candidate neurones are potential labelled lines for a decenoic acid response. We identified Or-49b as a potential candidate receiver of the 10HDA signal. Finally, the anti-ovarian response to synthetic QMP is not mediated by decreasing the titre of the reproductive hormones ecdysone and juvenile hormone.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- K C Galang
- Department of Biology, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - J R Croft
- Department of Biology, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - G J Thompson
- Department of Biology, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - A Percival-Smith
- Department of Biology, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Faragalla KM, Chernyshova AM, Gallo AJ, Thompson GJ. From gene list to gene network: Recognizing functional connections that regulate behavioral traits. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY PART B-MOLECULAR AND DEVELOPMENTAL EVOLUTION 2018; 330:317-329. [DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.22829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2018] [Accepted: 09/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
|
6
|
Cridge AG, Lovegrove MR, Skelly JG, Taylor SE, Petersen GEL, Cameron RC, Dearden PK. The honeybee as a model insect for developmental genetics. Genesis 2017; 55. [PMID: 28432809 DOI: 10.1002/dvg.23019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2016] [Revised: 01/08/2017] [Accepted: 01/15/2017] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Honeybees are an important component of modern agricultural systems, and a fascinating and scientifically engrossing insect. Honeybees are not commonly used as model systems for understanding development in insects despite their importance in agriculture. Honeybee embryogenesis, while being superficially similar to Drosophila, is molecularly very different, especially in axis formation and sex determination. In later development, much of honeybee biology is modified by caste development, an as yet poorly understood, but excellent, system to study developmental plasticity. In adult stages, developmental plasticity of the ovaries, related to reproductive constraint exhibits another aspect of plasticity. Here they review the tools, current knowledge and opportunities in honeybee developmental biology, and provide an updated embryonic staging scheme to support future studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- A G Cridge
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, P.O. Box 56, Aotearoa-New Zealand
| | - M R Lovegrove
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, P.O. Box 56, Aotearoa-New Zealand
| | - J G Skelly
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, P.O. Box 56, Aotearoa-New Zealand
| | - S E Taylor
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, P.O. Box 56, Aotearoa-New Zealand
| | - G E L Petersen
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, P.O. Box 56, Aotearoa-New Zealand.,AbacusBio Ltd, Public Trust Building, 442 Moray Place, Dunedin 9016, Aotearoa-New Zealand
| | - R C Cameron
- Department of Developmental and Molecular Biology and Gottesman Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York
| | - P K Dearden
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, P.O. Box 56, Aotearoa-New Zealand
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Croft JR, Liu T, Camiletti AL, Simon AF, Thompson GJ. Sexual response of male Drosophila to honey bee queen mandibular pheromone: implications for genetic studies of social insects. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2017; 203:143-149. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-017-1147-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2016] [Revised: 12/31/2016] [Accepted: 01/09/2017] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
|
8
|
Camiletti AL, Percival-Smith A, Croft JR, Thompson GJ. A novel screen for genes associated with pheromone-induced sterility. Sci Rep 2016; 6:36041. [PMID: 27786267 PMCID: PMC5081541 DOI: 10.1038/srep36041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2016] [Accepted: 10/10/2016] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
For honey bee and other social insect colonies the ‘queen substance’ regulates colony reproduction rendering workers functionally sterile. The evolution of worker reproductive altruism is explained by inclusive fitness theory, but little is known of the genes involved or how they regulate the phenotypic expression of altruism. We previously showed that application of honeybee queen pheromone to virgin fruit flies suppresses fecundity. Here we exploit this finding to identify genes associated with the perception of an ovary-inhibiting social pheromone. Mutational and RNAi approaches in Drosophila reveal that the olfactory co-factor Orco together with receptors Or49b, Or56a and Or98a are potentially involved in the perception of queen pheromone and the suppression of fecundity. One of these, Or98a, is known to mediate female fly mating behaviour, and its predicted ligand is structurally similar to a methyl component of the queen pheromone. Our novel approach to finding genes associated with pheromone-induced sterility implies conserved reproductive regulation between social and pre-social orders, and further helps to identify candidate orthologues from the pheromone-responsive pathway that may regulate honeybee worker sterility.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alison L Camiletti
- Biology Department, Western University, 1151 Richmond Street, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada
| | - Anthony Percival-Smith
- Biology Department, Western University, 1151 Richmond Street, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada
| | - Justin R Croft
- Biology Department, Western University, 1151 Richmond Street, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada
| | - Graham J Thompson
- Biology Department, Western University, 1151 Richmond Street, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada.,Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, UNIL-Sorge, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|