1
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Stoldt M, Macit MN, Collin E, Foitzik S. Molecular (co)evolution of hymenopteran social parasites and their hosts. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2022; 50:100889. [PMID: 35181562 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2022.100889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Social parasitism describes a fascinating way of life in which species exploit the altruistic behaviour of closely related, social species. Social parasites have repeatedly evolved in the social Hymenoptera, including ants, bees, and wasps. The common ancestry and shared (social) environment with their hosts facilitates the study of molecular adaptations to the parasitic lifestyle. Moreover, when social parasites are widespread and virulent, they exert strong selection pressure on their hosts, leading to the evolution of defense mechanisms and triggering a coevolutionary arms race. Recent advances in sequencing technology now make it possible to study the molecular basis of this coevolutionary process. In addition to describing the latest developments, we highlight open research questions that could be tackled with genomic, transcriptomic, or epigenetic data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marah Stoldt
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
| | - Maide Nesibe Macit
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Erwann Collin
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Susanne Foitzik
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
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2
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Uy FMK, Jernigan CM, Zaba NC, Mehrotra E, Miller SE, Sheehan MJ. Dynamic neurogenomic responses to social interactions and dominance outcomes in female paper wasps. PLoS Genet 2021; 17:e1009474. [PMID: 34478434 PMCID: PMC8415593 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Social interactions have large effects on individual physiology and fitness. In the immediate sense, social stimuli are often highly salient and engaging. Over longer time scales, competitive interactions often lead to distinct social ranks and differences in physiology and behavior. Understanding how initial responses lead to longer-term effects of social interactions requires examining the changes in responses over time. Here we examined the effects of social interactions on transcriptomic signatures at two times, at the end of a 45-minute interaction and 4 hours later, in female Polistes fuscatus paper wasp foundresses. Female P. fuscatus have variable facial patterns that are used for visual individual recognition, so we separately examined the transcriptional dynamics in the optic lobe and the non-visual brain. Results demonstrate much stronger transcriptional responses to social interactions in the non-visual brain compared to the optic lobe. Differentially regulated genes in response to social interactions are enriched for memory-related transcripts. Comparisons between winners and losers of the encounters revealed similar overall transcriptional profiles at the end of an interaction, which significantly diverged over the course of 4 hours, with losers showing changes in expression levels of genes associated with aggression and reproduction in paper wasps. On nests, subordinate foundresses are less aggressive, do more foraging and lay fewer eggs compared to dominant foundresses and we find losers shift expression of many genes in the non-visual brain, including vitellogenin, related to aggression, worker behavior, and reproduction within hours of losing an encounter. These results highlight the early neurogenomic changes that likely contribute to behavioral and physiological effects of social status changes in a social insect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Floria M. K. Uy
- Laboratory for Animal Social Evolution and Recognition, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - Christopher M. Jernigan
- Laboratory for Animal Social Evolution and Recognition, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - Natalie C. Zaba
- Laboratory for Animal Social Evolution and Recognition, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - Eshan Mehrotra
- Laboratory for Animal Social Evolution and Recognition, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - Sara E. Miller
- Laboratory for Animal Social Evolution and Recognition, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - Michael J. Sheehan
- Laboratory for Animal Social Evolution and Recognition, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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3
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Rozanski AN, Cini A, Lopreto TE, Gandia KM, Hauber ME, Cervo R, Uy FMK. Differential investment in visual and olfactory brain regions is linked to the sensory needs of a wasp social parasite and its host. J Comp Neurol 2021; 530:756-767. [PMID: 34473851 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2021] [Revised: 08/03/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Obligate insect social parasites evolve traits to effectively locate and then exploit their hosts, whereas hosts have complex social behavioral repertoires, which include sensory recognition to reject potential conspecific intruders and heterospecific parasites. While social parasites and host behaviors have been studied extensively, less is known about how their sensory systems function to meet their specific selective pressures. Here, we compare investment in visual and olfactory brain regions in the paper wasp Polistes dominula, and its obligate social parasite P. sulcifer, to explore the links among sensory systems,brain and behavior. Our results show significant relative volumetric differences between these two closely related species, consistent with their very different life histories. Social parasites show proportionally larger optic lobes and central complex to likely navigate long-distance migrations and unfamiliar landscapes to locate the specific species of hosts they usurp. Contrastingly, hosts have larger antennal lobes and calyces of the mushroom bodies compared with social parasites, as predicted by their sensory means to maintain social cohesion via olfactory signals, allocate colony tasks, forage, and recognize conspecific and heterospecific intruders. Our work suggests how this tradeoff between visual and olfactory brain regions may facilitate different sensory adaptations needed to perform social and foraging tasks by the host, including recognition of parasites, or to fly long distances and successful host localizing by the social parasite.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alessandro Cini
- Department of Biology, University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy.,Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, University College London, London, UK
| | - Taylor E Lopreto
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA
| | - Kristine M Gandia
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA
| | - Mark E Hauber
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Rita Cervo
- Department of Biology, University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy
| | - Floria M K Uy
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA.,Department of Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, USA
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4
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Schrader L, Pan H, Bollazzi M, Schiøtt M, Larabee FJ, Bi X, Deng Y, Zhang G, Boomsma JJ, Rabeling C. Relaxed selection underlies genome erosion in socially parasitic ant species. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2918. [PMID: 34006882 PMCID: PMC8131649 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23178-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Inquiline ants are highly specialized and obligate social parasites that infiltrate and exploit colonies of closely related species. They have evolved many times convergently, are often evolutionarily young lineages, and are almost invariably rare. Focusing on the leaf-cutting ant genus Acromyrmex, we compared genomes of three inquiline social parasites with their free-living, closely-related hosts. The social parasite genomes show distinct signatures of erosion compared to the host lineages, as a consequence of relaxed selective constraints on traits associated with cooperative ant colony life and of inquilines having very small effective population sizes. We find parallel gene losses, particularly in olfactory receptors, consistent with inquiline species having highly reduced social behavioral repertoires. Many of the genomic changes that we uncover resemble those observed in the genomes of obligate non-social parasites and intracellular endosymbionts that branched off into highly specialized, host-dependent niches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Schrader
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
| | | | - Martin Bollazzi
- Entomología, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Morten Schiøtt
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Fredrick J Larabee
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA
| | | | | | - Guojie Zhang
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China
| | - Jacobus J Boomsma
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Christian Rabeling
- Department of Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA.
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.
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5
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Kaur R, Stoldt M, Jongepier E, Feldmeyer B, Menzel F, Bornberg-Bauer E, Foitzik S. Ant behaviour and brain gene expression of defending hosts depend on the ecological success of the intruding social parasite. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 374:20180192. [PMID: 30967075 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2018.0192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The geographical mosaic theory of coevolution predicts that species interactions vary between locales. Depending on who leads the coevolutionary arms race, the effectivity of parasite attack or host defence strategies will explain parasite prevalence. Here, we compare behaviour and brain transcriptomes of Temnothorax longispinosus ant workers when defending their nest against an invading social parasite, the slavemaking ant Temnothorax americanus. A full-factorial design allowed us to test whether behaviour and gene expression are linked to parasite pressure on host populations or to the ecological success of parasite populations. Albeit host defences had been shown before to covary with local parasite pressure, we found parasite success to be much more important. Our chemical and behavioural analyses revealed that parasites from high prevalence sites carry lower concentrations of recognition cues and are less often attacked by hosts. This link was further supported by gene expression analysis. Our study reveals that host-parasite interactions are strongly influenced by social parasite strategies, so that variation in parasite prevalence is determined by parasite traits rather than the efficacy of host defence. Gene functions associated with parasite success indicated strong neuronal responses in hosts, including long-term changes in gene regulation, indicating an enduring impact of parasites on host behaviour. This article is part of the theme issue 'The coevolutionary biology of brood parasitism: from mechanism to pattern'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajbir Kaur
- 1 Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University , Mainz , Germany
| | - Marah Stoldt
- 1 Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University , Mainz , Germany
| | - Evelien Jongepier
- 2 Molecular Evolution and Bioinformatics Group, Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität , Münster , Germany
| | - Barbara Feldmeyer
- 3 Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung , Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main , Germany
| | - Florian Menzel
- 1 Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University , Mainz , Germany
| | - Erich Bornberg-Bauer
- 2 Molecular Evolution and Bioinformatics Group, Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität , Münster , Germany
| | - Susanne Foitzik
- 1 Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University , Mainz , Germany
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6
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Cini A, Sumner S, Cervo R. Inquiline social parasites as tools to unlock the secrets of insect sociality. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2019; 374:20180193. [PMID: 30967091 PMCID: PMC6388031 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2018.0193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/29/2018] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Insect societies play a crucial role in the functioning of most ecosystems and have fascinated both scientists and the lay public for centuries. Despite the long history of study, we are still far from understanding how insect societies have evolved and how social cohesion in their colonies is maintained. Here we suggest inquiline social parasites of insect societies as an under-exploited experimental tool for understanding sociality. We draw on examples from obligate inquiline (permanent) social parasites in wasps, ants and bees to illustrate how these parasites may allow us to better understand societies and learn more about the evolution and functioning of insect societies. We highlight three main features of these social parasite-host systems-namely, close phylogenetic relationships, strong selective pressures arising from coevolution and multiple independent origins-that make inquiline social parasites particularly suited for this aim; we propose a conceptual comparative framework that considers trait losses, gains and modifications in social parasite-host systems. We give examples of how this framework can reveal the more elusive secrets of sociality by focusing on two cornerstones of sociality: communication and reproductive division of labour. Together with social parasites in other taxonomic groups, such as cuckoos in birds, social parasitism has a great potential to reveal the mechanisms and evolution of complex social groups. This article is part of the theme issue 'The coevolutionary biology of brood parasitism: from mechanism to pattern'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Cini
- Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via Madonna del Piano, 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Seirian Sumner
- Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Rita Cervo
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via Madonna del Piano, 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
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7
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Lhomme P, Hines HM. Reproductive Dominance Strategies in Insect Social Parasites. J Chem Ecol 2018; 44:838-850. [PMID: 29785629 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-018-0971-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2017] [Revised: 05/08/2018] [Accepted: 05/14/2018] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
In eusocial insects, the high cost of altruistic cooperation between colony members has favoured the evolution of cheaters that exploit social services of other species. In the most extreme forms of insect social parasitism, which has evolved multiple times across most social lineages, obligately parasitic species invade the nests of social species and manipulate the workforce of their hosts to rear their own reproductive offspring. As alien species that have lost their own sociality, these social parasites still face social challenges to infiltrate and control their hosts, thus providing independent replicates for understanding the mechanisms essential to social dominance. This review compares socially parasitic insect lineages to find general trends and build a hypothetical framework for the means by which social parasites achieve reproductive dominance. It highlights how host social organization and social parasite life history traits may impact the way they achieve reproductive supremacy, including the potential role of chemical cues. The review discusses the coevolutionary dynamics between host and parasite during this process. Altogether, this review emphasizes the value of social parasites for understanding social evolution and the need for future research in this area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Lhomme
- Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA.
| | - Heather M Hines
- Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA
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8
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Aumer D, Mumoki FN, Pirk CWW, Moritz RFA. The transcriptomic changes associated with the development of social parasitism in the honeybee Apis mellifera capensis. Naturwissenschaften 2018; 105:22. [PMID: 29557991 DOI: 10.1007/s00114-018-1552-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2018] [Revised: 03/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/08/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Social insects are characterized by the division of labor. Queens usually dominate reproduction, whereas workers fulfill non-reproductive age-dependent tasks to maintain the colony. Although workers are typically sterile, they can activate their ovaries to produce their own offspring. In the extreme, worker reproduction can turn into social parasitism as in Apis mellifera capensis. These intraspecific parasites occupy a host colony, kill the resident queen, and take over the reproductive monopoly. Because they exhibit a queenlike behavior and are also treated like queens by the fellow workers, they are so-called pseudoqueens. Here, we compare the development of parasitic pseudoqueens and social workers at different time points using fat body transcriptome data. Two complementary analysis methods-a principal component analysis and a time course analysis-led to the identification of a core set of genes involved in the transition from a social worker into a highly fecund parasitic pseudoqueen. Comparing our results on pseudoqueens with gene expression data of honeybee queens revealed many similarities. In addition, there was a set of specific transcriptomic changes in the parasitic pseudoqueens that differed from both, queens and social workers, which may be typical for the development of the social parasitism in A. m. capensis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denise Aumer
- Department of Molecular Ecology, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Hoher Weg 4, 06099, Halle (Saale), Germany.
| | - Fiona N Mumoki
- Social Insect Research Group, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20 Hatfield, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| | - Christian W W Pirk
- Social Insect Research Group, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20 Hatfield, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| | - Robin F A Moritz
- Department of Molecular Ecology, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Hoher Weg 4, 06099, Halle (Saale), Germany.,Social Insect Research Group, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20 Hatfield, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Deutscher Platz 5e, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
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9
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Limited social plasticity in the socially polymorphic sweat bee Lasioglossum calceatum. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018; 72:56. [PMID: 29568150 PMCID: PMC5845590 DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2475-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2017] [Revised: 02/02/2018] [Accepted: 03/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Abstract Eusociality is characterised by a reproductive division of labour, where some individuals forgo direct reproduction to instead help raise kin. Socially polymorphic sweat bees are ideal models for addressing the mechanisms underlying the transition from solitary living to eusociality, because different individuals in the same species can express either eusocial or solitary behaviour. A key question is whether alternative social phenotypes represent environmentally induced plasticity or predominantly genetic differentiation between populations. In this paper, we focus on the sweat bee Lasioglossum calceatum, in which northern or high-altitude populations are solitary, whereas more southern or low-altitude populations are typically eusocial. To test whether social phenotype responds to local environmental cues, we transplanted adult females from a solitary, northern population, to a southern site where native bees are typically eusocial. Nearly all native nests were eusocial, with foundresses producing small first brood (B1) females that became workers. In contrast, nine out of ten nests initiated by transplanted bees were solitary, producing female offspring that were the same size as the foundress and entered directly into hibernation. Only one of these ten nests became eusocial. Social phenotype was unlikely to be related to temperature experienced by nest foundresses when provisioning B1 offspring, or by B1 emergence time, both previously implicated in social plasticity seen in two other socially polymorphic sweat bees. Our results suggest that social polymorphism in L. calceatum predominantly reflects genetic differentiation between populations, and that plasticity is in the process of being lost by bees in northern populations. Significance statement Phenotypic plasticity is thought to play a key role in the early stages of the transition from solitary to eusocial behaviour, but may then be lost if environmental conditions become less variable. Socially polymorphic sweat bees exhibit either solitary or eusocial behaviour in different geographic populations, depending on the length of the nesting season. We tested for plasticity in the socially polymorphic sweat bee Lasioglossum calceatum by transplanting nest foundresses from a northern, non-eusocial population to a southern, eusocial population. Plasticity would be detected if transplanted bees exhibited eusocial behaviour. We found that while native bees were eusocial, 90% of transplanted bees and their offspring did not exhibit traits associated with eusociality. Environmental variables such as time of offspring emergence or temperatures experienced by foundresses during provisioning could not explain these differences. Our results suggest that the ability of transplanted bees to express eusociality is being lost, and that social polymorphism predominantly reflects genetic differences between populations. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s00265-018-2475-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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10
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Branstetter MG, Childers AK, Cox-Foster D, Hopper KR, Kapheim KM, Toth AL, Worley KC. Genomes of the Hymenoptera. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2018; 25:65-75. [PMID: 29602364 PMCID: PMC5993429 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2017.11.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2017] [Accepted: 11/16/2017] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Hymenoptera is the second-most sequenced arthropod order, with 52 publically archived genomes (71 with ants, reviewed elsewhere), however these genomes do not capture the breadth of this very diverse order (Figure 1, Table 1). These sequenced genomes represent only 15 of the 97 extant families. Although at least 55 other genomes are in progress in an additional 11 families (see Table 2), stinging wasps represent 35 (67%) of the available and 42 (76%) of the in progress genomes. A more comprehensive catalog of hymenopteran genomes is needed for research into the evolutionary processes underlying the expansive diversity in terms of ecology, behavior, and physiological traits within this group. Additional sequencing is needed to generate an assembly for even 0.05% of the estimated 1 million hymenopteran species, and we recommend premier level assemblies for at least 0.1% of the >150,000 named species dispersed across the order. Given the haplodiploid sex determination in Hymenoptera, haploid male sequencing will help minimize genome assembly issues to enable higher quality genome assemblies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael G Branstetter
- Pollinating Insect-biology, Management, Systematics Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Logan, UT 84322, United States
| | - Anna K Childers
- Bee Research Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD 20705, United States
| | - Diana Cox-Foster
- Pollinating Insect-biology, Management, Systematics Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Logan, UT 84322, United States
| | - Keith R Hopper
- Beneficial Insects Introduction Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Newark, DE 19713, United States
| | - Karen M Kapheim
- Utah State University, Department of Biology, Logan, UT 84322, United States
| | - Amy L Toth
- Iowa State University, Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology and Department of Entomology, Ames, IA 50011, United States
| | - Kim C Worley
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, and Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, United States
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11
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Alleman A, Feldmeyer B, Foitzik S. Comparative analyses of co-evolving host-parasite associations reveal unique gene expression patterns underlying slavemaker raiding and host defensive phenotypes. Sci Rep 2018; 8:1951. [PMID: 29386535 PMCID: PMC5792630 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-20262-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Accepted: 01/15/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The transition to parasitism is a drastic shift in lifestyle, involving rapid changes in gene structure, function, and expression. After the establishment of antagonistic relationships, parasites and hosts co-evolve through reciprocal adaptations, often resulting in evolutionary arms-races. Repeated evolution of social parasitism and slavery among Temnothorax ants allows us to examine those gene expression patterns that characterize slavemaker raiding and reciprocal host defensive phenotypes. Previous behavioural studies have established that raiding strategies between Temnothorax slavemakers diverge, while host defense portfolios shift similarly under parasite pressure. We are the first to confirm this at the molecular level, revealing that slavemaking species exhibit a wider variety of genes with species-specific patterns of expression within their raiding phenotypes, whereas expression similarity is commonly found during the non-raiding phenotype. Host species response to slavemaker aggression, however, is indicated by strong changes in the expression of a relatively few number genes. Additionally, the expression of individual genes such as Acyl-CoA-Delta(11) desaturase and Trypsin-7 is strongly associated with the raiding phenotype of all three slavemaking species. Here, we provide novel insight into the gene expression patterns associated with raiding and nest defense behavior in Temnothorax ants, suggesting lineage-specific evolutionary patterns among both slavemakers and hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Austin Alleman
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Johannes von Müller Weg 6, Mainz, 55128, Germany.
| | - Barbara Feldmeyer
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, Senckenberganlage 25, D-60325, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Susanne Foitzik
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Johannes von Müller Weg 6, Mainz, 55128, Germany
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12
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Kennedy P, Baron G, Qiu B, Freitak D, Helanterä H, Hunt ER, Manfredini F, O'Shea-Wheller T, Patalano S, Pull CD, Sasaki T, Taylor D, Wyatt CDR, Sumner S. Deconstructing Superorganisms and Societies to Address Big Questions in Biology. Trends Ecol Evol 2017; 32:861-872. [PMID: 28899581 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2017] [Revised: 07/31/2017] [Accepted: 08/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Social insect societies are long-standing models for understanding social behaviour and evolution. Unlike other advanced biological societies (such as the multicellular body), the component parts of social insect societies can be easily deconstructed and manipulated. Recent methodological and theoretical innovations have exploited this trait to address an expanded range of biological questions. We illustrate the broadening range of biological insight coming from social insect biology with four examples. These new frontiers promote open-minded, interdisciplinary exploration of one of the richest and most complex of biological phenomena: sociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Kennedy
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - Gemma Baron
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom
| | - Bitao Qiu
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Dalial Freitak
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 1, P.O. Box 65, 00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Heikki Helanterä
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 1, P.O. Box 65, 00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Edmund R Hunt
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - Fabio Manfredini
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom
| | - Thomas O'Shea-Wheller
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | | | - Christopher D Pull
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom; IST Austria (Institute of Science and Technology Austria), Am Campus 1, A-3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Takao Sasaki
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, The Tinbergen Building, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, United Kingdom
| | - Daisy Taylor
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher D R Wyatt
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), The Barcelona Institute for Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Seirian Sumner
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom; Current address: Centre for Biodiversity & Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution & Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom.
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Cortez MJV, Rabajante JF, Tubay JM, Babierra AL. From epigenetic landscape to phenotypic fitness landscape: Evolutionary effect of pathogens on host traits. INFECTION GENETICS AND EVOLUTION 2017; 51:245-254. [PMID: 28408285 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2017.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2016] [Revised: 04/03/2017] [Accepted: 04/06/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The epigenetic landscape illustrates how cells differentiate through the control of gene regulatory networks. Numerous studies have investigated epigenetic gene regulation but there are limited studies on how the epigenetic landscape and the presence of pathogens influence the evolution of host traits. Here, we formulate a multistable decision-switch model involving several phenotypes with the antagonistic influence of parasitism. As expected, pathogens can drive dominant (common) phenotypes to become inferior through negative frequency-dependent selection. Furthermore, novel predictions of our model show that parasitism can steer the dynamics of phenotype specification from multistable equilibrium convergence to oscillations. This oscillatory behavior could explain pathogen-mediated epimutations and excessive phenotypic plasticity. The Red Queen dynamics also occur in certain parameter space of the model, which demonstrates winnerless cyclic phenotype-switching in hosts and in pathogens. The results of our simulations elucidate the association between the epigenetic and phenotypic fitness landscapes and how parasitism facilitates non-genetic phenotypic diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Jayson V Cortez
- Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Physics, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna 4031, Philippines
| | - Jomar F Rabajante
- Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Physics, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna 4031, Philippines.
| | - Jerrold M Tubay
- Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Physics, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna 4031, Philippines
| | - Ariel L Babierra
- Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Physics, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna 4031, Philippines
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14
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Manna TJ, Hauber ME. Recognition, speciation, and conservation: recent progress in brood parasitism research among social insects. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2016.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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15
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Smith CR, Helms Cahan S, Kemena C, Brady SG, Yang W, Bornberg-Bauer E, Eriksson T, Gadau J, Helmkampf M, Gotzek D, Okamoto Miyakawa M, Suarez AV, Mikheyev A. How Do Genomes Create Novel Phenotypes? Insights from the Loss of the Worker Caste in Ant Social Parasites. Mol Biol Evol 2015; 32:2919-31. [PMID: 26226984 PMCID: PMC4651238 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msv165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
A central goal of biology is to uncover the genetic basis for the origin of new
phenotypes. A particularly effective approach is to examine the genomic
architecture of species that have secondarily lost a phenotype with respect to
their close relatives. In the eusocial Hymenoptera, queens and workers have
divergent phenotypes that may be produced via either expression of alternative
sets of caste-specific genes and pathways or differences in expression patterns
of a shared set of multifunctional genes. To distinguish between these two
hypotheses, we investigated how secondary loss of the worker phenotype in
workerless ant social parasites impacted genome evolution across two independent
origins of social parasitism in the ant genera Pogonomyrmex and
Vollenhovia. We sequenced the genomes of three social
parasites and their most-closely related eusocial host species and compared gene
losses in social parasites with gene expression differences between host queens
and workers. Virtually all annotated genes were expressed to some degree in both
castes of the host, with most shifting in queen-worker bias across developmental
stages. As a result, despite >1 My of divergence from the last common
ancestor that had workers, the social parasites showed strikingly little
evidence of gene loss, damaging mutations, or shifts in selection regime
resulting from loss of the worker caste. This suggests that regulatory changes
within a multifunctional genome, rather than sequence differences, have played a
predominant role in the evolution of social parasitism, and perhaps also in the
many gains and losses of phenotypes in the social insects.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Carsten Kemena
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhems-Universität Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Seán G Brady
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC
| | - Wei Yang
- Department of Computer Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
| | - Erich Bornberg-Bauer
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, Westfälische Wilhems-Universität Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Ti Eriksson
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University
| | | | | | - Dietrich Gotzek
- Department of Entomology, University of Georgia Department of Animal Biology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
| | - Misato Okamoto Miyakawa
- Ecology and Evolution Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Onna, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Andrew V Suarez
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Department of Entomology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
| | - Alexander Mikheyev
- Ecology and Evolution Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Onna, Okinawa, Japan
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