1
|
Dolejšová K, Křivánek J, Štáfková J, Horáček N, Havlíčková J, Roy V, Kalinová B, Roy A, Kyjaková P, Hanus R. Identification of a queen primer pheromone in higher termites. Commun Biol 2022; 5:1165. [PMID: 36323794 PMCID: PMC9630296 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-04163-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
It is long established that queens of social insects, including termites, maintain their reproductive dominance with queen primer pheromones (QPPs). Yet, the QPP chemistry has only been elucidated in a single species of lower termites. By contrast, the most diversified termite family Termitidae (higher termites), comprising over 70% of termite species, has so far resisted all attempts at QPP identification. Here, we show that the queen- and egg-specific sesquiterpene (3R,6E)-nerolidol acts as the QPP in the higher termite Embiratermes neotenicus. This species has a polygynous breeding system, in which the primary queen is replaced by multiple neotenic queens of parthenogenetic origin. We demonstrate that (3R,6E)-nerolidol suppresses the development of these parthenogenetic queens and thus mimics the presence of mature queen(s). It acts as an airborne signal and may be used to optimize the number of queens, thus being the key regulatory element in the special breeding system of E. neotenicus.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Klára Dolejšová
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Křivánek
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jitka Štáfková
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Natan Horáček
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Havlíčková
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Virginie Roy
- Université Paris Est Créteil, Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, CNRS, INRAE, IRD, iEES Paris, Créteil, France
| | | | - Amit Roy
- Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pavlína Kyjaková
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Robert Hanus
- Chemistry of Social Insects, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Oi CA, Ferreira HM, da Silva RC, Bienstman A, do Nascimento FS, Wenseleers T. Effects of juvenile hormone in fertility and fertility-signaling in workers of the common wasp Vespula vulgaris. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0250720. [PMID: 33999926 PMCID: PMC8128253 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0250720] [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: 10/01/2020] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
In the highly eusocial wasp, Vespula vulgaris, queens produce honest signals to alert their subordinate workers of their fertility status, and therefore they are reproductively suppressed and help in the colony. The honesty of the queen signals is likely maintained due to hormonal regulation, which affects fertility and fertility cue expression. Here, we tested if hormonal pleiotropy could support the hypothesis that juvenile hormone controls fertility and fertility signaling in workers. In addition, we aimed to check oocyte size as a proxy of fertility. To do that, we treated V. vulgaris workers with synthetic versions of juvenile hormone (JH) analogue and a JH inhibitor, methoprene and precocene, respectively. We dissected the treated females to check ovary activation and analyzed their chemical profile. Our results showed that juvenile hormone has an influence on the abundance of fertility linked compounds produced by workers, and it also showed to increase oocyte size in workers. Our results corroborate the hypothesis that juvenile hormone controls fertility and fertility signaling in workers, whereby workers are unable to reproduce without alerting other colony members of their fertility. This provides supports the hypothesis that hormonal pleiotropy contributes to keeping the queen fertility signals honest.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cintia Akemi Oi
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Rafael Carvalho da Silva
- Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de São Paulo – USP/ Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Andreas Bienstman
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Fabio Santos do Nascimento
- Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de São Paulo – USP/ Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Tom Wenseleers
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Oi CA, Brown RL, da Silva RC, Wenseleers T. Reproduction and signals regulating worker policing under identical hormonal control in social wasps. Sci Rep 2020; 10:18971. [PMID: 33149171 PMCID: PMC7643062 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-76084-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2020] [Accepted: 10/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In social Hymenoptera, fertility and fertility signalling are often under identical hormonal control, and it has been suggested that such hormonal pleiotropies can help to maintain signal honesty. In the common wasp Vespula vulgaris, for example, fertile queens have much higher juvenile hormone (JH) titers than workers, and JH also controls the production of chemical fertility cues present on the females’ cuticle. To regulate reproductive division of labour, queens use these fertility cues in two distinct ways: as queen pheromones that directly suppress the workers’ reproduction as well as to mark queen eggs and enable the workers to recognize and police eggs laid by other workers. Here, we investigated the hormonal pleiotropy hypothesis by testing if experimental treatment with the JH analogue methoprene could enable the workers to lay eggs that evade policing. In support of this hypothesis, we find that methoprene-treated workers laid more eggs, and that the chemical profiles of their eggs were more queen-like, thereby causing fewer of their eggs to be policed compared to in the control. Overall, our results identify JH as a key regulator of both reproduction and the production of egg marking pheromones that mediate policing behaviour in eusocial wasps.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cintia Akemi Oi
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Robert L Brown
- Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research, Lincoln, New Zealand
| | - Rafael Carvalho da Silva
- Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de São Paulo - USP, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Tom Wenseleers
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Orlova M, Amsalem E. Context matters: plasticity in response to pheromones regulating reproduction and collective behavior in social Hymenoptera. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2019; 35:69-76. [PMID: 31404906 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2019.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2019] [Revised: 06/25/2019] [Accepted: 07/05/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Pheromones mediating social behavior are critical components in the cohesion and function of the colony and are instrumental in the evolution of eusocial insect species. However, different aspects of colony function, such as reproductive division of labor and colony maintenance (e.g. foraging, brood care, and defense), pose different challenges for the optimal function of pheromones. While reproductive communication is shaped by forces of conflict and competition, colony maintenance calls for enhanced cooperation and self-organization. Mechanisms that ensure efficacy, adaptivity and evolutionary stability of signals such as structure-to-function suitability, honesty and context are important to all chemical signals but vary to different degrees between pheromones regulating reproductive division of labor and colony maintenance. In this review, we will discuss these differences along with the mechanisms that have evolved to ensure pheromone adaptivity in reproductive and non-reproductive context.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Margarita Orlova
- Department of Entomology, Center for Chemical Ecology, Center for Pollinator Research, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
| | - Etya Amsalem
- Department of Entomology, Center for Chemical Ecology, Center for Pollinator Research, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Oi CA, Oliveira RC, van Zweden JS, Mateus S, Millar JG, Nascimento FS, Wenseleers T. Do Primitively Eusocial Wasps Use Queen Pheromones to Regulate Reproduction? A Case Study of the Paper Wasp Polistes satan. Front Ecol Evol 2019. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
|
6
|
Otesbelgue A, Dos Santos CF, Blochtein B. Queen bee acceptance under threat: Neurotoxic insecticides provoke deep damage in queen-worker relationships. ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY 2018; 166:42-47. [PMID: 30245292 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2018.09.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2018] [Revised: 09/07/2018] [Accepted: 09/09/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Virgin queens (gynes) exhibit a range of behaviors in order to be accepted as the leader of colony. However, environmental neurotoxic insecticides as neonicotinoids may affect the social performance of the bees. Here, we evaluated the sublethal effects of neonicotinoid imidacloprid on the larval food of queens from Plebeia droryana, a species of neotropical stingless bee. Several behaviors were analyzed as multivariate response variables in a Hotelling test, as well as generalized additive mixed models. Our findings demonstrate that treated queens perform less wing vibration and trophallaxis with their workers. Furthermore, the treated gynes encounter more harassment (aggression) from their workers, suggesting that workers can differentiate nontreated queens from treated queens most likely by chemical signals. Our data indicate that the behavioral repertoire underlying the queen selection process by the stingless bee P. droryana may be seriously affected by residual doses of imidacloprid in larval food. As a result, such queens are rather undernourished and aggressed by workers, which most likely compromises the viability and permanence of colonies in the long term.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alex Otesbelgue
- Departamento de Biodiversidade e Ecologia, Escola de Ciências, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga, 6681 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Charles Fernando Dos Santos
- Departamento de Biodiversidade e Ecologia, Escola de Ciências, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga, 6681 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
| | - Betina Blochtein
- Departamento de Biodiversidade e Ecologia, Escola de Ciências, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga, 6681 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Instituto do Meio Ambiente, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga, 6681 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Olejarz J, Veller C, Nowak MA. The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:8427-8441. [PMID: 29075460 PMCID: PMC5648666 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2017] [Revised: 07/12/2017] [Accepted: 07/20/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
A trademark of eusocial insect species is reproductive division of labor, in which workers forego their own reproduction while the queen produces almost all offspring. The presence of the queen is key for maintaining social harmony, but the specific role of the queen in the evolution of eusociality remains unclear. A long‐discussed scenario is that a queen either behaviorally or chemically sterilizes her workers. However, the demographic and ecological conditions that enable such manipulation are still debated. We study a simple model of evolutionary dynamics based on haplodiploid genetics. Our model is set in the commonly observed case where workers have lost the ability to lay female (diploid) eggs by mating, but retain the ability to lay male (haploid) eggs. We consider a mutation that acts in a queen, causing her to control the reproductive behavior of her workers. Our mathematical analysis yields precise conditions for the evolutionary emergence and stability of queen‐induced worker sterility. These conditions do not depend on the queen's mating frequency. We find that queen control is always established if it increases colony reproductive efficiency, but can evolve even if it decreases colony efficiency. We further derive the conditions under which queen control is evolutionarily stable against invasion by mutant workers who have recovered the ability to lay male eggs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jason Olejarz
- Program for Evolutionary Dynamics Harvard University Cambridge MA USA
| | - Carl Veller
- Program for Evolutionary Dynamics Harvard University Cambridge MA USA.,Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology Harvard University Cambridge MA USA
| | - Martin A Nowak
- Program for Evolutionary Dynamics Harvard University Cambridge MA USA.,Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology Harvard University Cambridge MA USA.,Department of Mathematics Harvard University Cambridge MA USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Oliveira RC, Vollet-Neto A, Akemi Oi C, van Zweden JS, Nascimento F, Sullivan Brent C, Wenseleers T. Hormonal pleiotropy helps maintain queen signal honesty in a highly eusocial wasp. Sci Rep 2017; 7:1654. [PMID: 28490760 PMCID: PMC5431770 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-01794-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2016] [Accepted: 04/10/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
In insect societies, both queens and workers produce chemicals that reliably signal caste membership and reproductive status. The mechanisms that help to maintain the honesty of such queen and fertility signals, however, remain poorly studied. Here we test if queen signal honesty could be based on the shared endocrine control of queen fertility and the production of specific signals. In support of this “hormonal pleiotropy” hypothesis, we find that in the common wasp, application of methoprene (a juveline hormone analogue) caused workers to acquire a queen-like cuticular hydrocarbon profile, resulting in the overproduction of known queen pheromones as well as some compounds typically linked to worker fertility. By contrast, administration of precocene-I (a JH inhibitor) had a tendency to have the opposite effect. Furthermore, a clear gonadotropic effect of JH in queens was suggested by the fact that circulating levels of JH were ca. 2 orders of magnitude higher in queens than those in workers and virgin, non-egg-laying queens, even if methoprene or precocene treatment did not affect the ovary development of workers. Overall, these results suggest that queen signal honesty in this system is maintained by queen fertility and queen signal production being under shared endocrine control.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ricardo Caliari Oliveira
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, Zoological Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Ayrton Vollet-Neto
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, Zoological Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Cintia Akemi Oi
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, Zoological Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jelle S van Zweden
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, Zoological Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Fabio Nascimento
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | | | - Tom Wenseleers
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, Zoological Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Conservation of Queen Pheromones Across Two Species of Vespine Wasps. J Chem Ecol 2016; 42:1175-1180. [PMID: 27722875 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-016-0777-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2016] [Revised: 08/21/2016] [Accepted: 09/19/2016] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Social insects are known for their reproductive division of labor between queens and workers, whereby queens lay the majority of the colony's eggs, and workers engage mostly in non-reproductive tasks. Queens produce pheromones that signal their presence and fertility to workers, which in turn generally remain sterile. Recently, it has been discovered that specific queen-characteristic cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) function as queen pheromones across multiple lineages of social insects. In the common wasp, Vespula vulgaris, several long-chain linear alkanes and 3-methylalkanes were shown to act as queen signals. Here, we describe similar bioassays with a related species of highly eusocial vespine wasp, the Saxon wasp, Dolichovespula saxonica. We show that a blend of queen-characteristic hydrocarbons that are structurally related to those of the common wasp inhibit worker reproduction, suggesting conservation of queen pheromones across social wasps. Overall, our results highlight the central importance of CHCs in chemical communication among social insects in general, and as conserved queen pheromones in these social wasps in particular.
Collapse
|
10
|
Grüter C, Keller L. Inter-caste communication in social insects. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2016; 38:6-11. [PMID: 26803006 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2016.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2015] [Revised: 01/04/2016] [Accepted: 01/04/2016] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Social insect colonies function as highly integrated units despite consisting of many individuals. This requires the different functional parts of the colony (e.g. different castes) to exchange information that aid in colony functioning and ontogeny. Here we discuss inter-caste communication in three contexts, firstly, the communication between males and females during courtship, secondly, the communication between queens and workers that regulate reproduction and thirdly, the communication between worker castes that allows colonies to balance the number of different worker types. Some signals show surprising complexity in both their chemistry and function, whereas others are simple compounds that were probably already used as pheromones in the solitary ancestors of several social insect lineages.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Grüter
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Laurent Keller
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Hoffmann K, Gowin J, Hartfelder K, Korb J. The scent of royalty: a p450 gene signals reproductive status in a social insect. Mol Biol Evol 2014; 31:2689-96. [PMID: 25053804 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msu214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Cooperation requires communication; this applies to animals and humans alike. The main communication means differ between taxa and social insects (ants, termites, and some bees and wasps) lack the cognitive abilities of most social vertebrates. Central to the regulation of the reproductive harmony in insect societies is the production of a royalty scent which signals the fertility status of the reproducing queen to the nonreproducing workers. Here, we revealed a central genetic component underlying this hallmark of insect societies in the termite Cryptotermes secundus. Communication between queens and workers relied upon the expression of a gene, Neofem4, which belongs to the cytochrome P450 genes. We inhibited Neofem4 in queens by RNA interference. This resulted in the loss of the royalty scent in queens and the workers behaved as though the queen were absent. The queen's behavior was not generally affected by silencing Neofem4. This suggests that the lack of the royalty scent lead to workers not recognizing her anymore as queen. P450 genes are known to be involved in the production of chemical signals in cockroaches and their expression has been linked to a major fertility regulator, juvenile hormone. This makes P450 genes, both a suitable and available evolutionary substrate in the face of natural selection for production of a queen substance. Our data suggest that in an organism without elaborate cognitive abilities communication has been achieved by the exploitation of a central gene that links the fertility network with the chemical communication pathway. As termites and social Hymenoptera seem to share the same class of compounds in signaling fertility, this role of P450 genes might be more widespread across social insects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Johannes Gowin
- Behavioral Biology, University of Osnabrueck, Osnabrueck, Germany Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Klaus Hartfelder
- Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular e Bioagentes Patogênicos, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Judith Korb
- Behavioral Biology, University of Osnabrueck, Osnabrueck, Germany Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Peso M, Elgar MA, Barron AB. Pheromonal control: reconciling physiological mechanism with signalling theory. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2014; 90:542-59. [PMID: 24925630 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2012] [Revised: 05/07/2014] [Accepted: 05/13/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Pheromones are intraspecific chemical signals. They can have profound effects on the behaviour and/or physiology of the receiver, and it is still common to hear pheromones described as controlling of the behaviour of the receiver. The discussion of pheromonal control arose initially from a close association between hormones and pheromones in the comparative physiological literature, but the concept of a controlling pheromone is at odds with contemporary signal evolution theory, which predicts that a manipulative pheromonal signal negatively affecting the receiver's fitness should not be stable over evolutionary time. Here we discuss the meaning of pheromonal control, and the ecological circumstances by which it might be supported. We argue that in discussing pheromonal control it is important to differentiate between control applied to the effects of a pheromone on a receiver's physiology (proximate control), and control applied to the effects of a pheromone on a receiver's fitness (ultimate control). Critically, a pheromone signal affecting change in the receiver's behaviour or physiology need not necessarily manipulate the fitness of a receiver. In cases where pheromonal signalling does lead to a reduction in the fitness of the receiver, the signalling system would be stable if the pheromone were an honest signal of a social environment that disadvantages the receiver, and the physiological and behavioural changes observed in the receiver were an adaptive response to the new social circumstances communicated by the pheromone.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marianne Peso
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Building E8A, Eastern Road, North Ryde, New South Wales 2109, Australia
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
van Zweden JS, Bonckaert W, Wenseleers T, d'Ettorre P. QUEEN SIGNALING IN SOCIAL WASPS. Evolution 2013; 68:976-86. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.12314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2013] [Accepted: 10/10/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jelle S. van Zweden
- Centre for Social Evolution; University of Copenhagen; Universitetsparken 15 2100 Copenhagen Denmark
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution; KU Leuven; Naamsestraat 59, box 2466 3000 Leuven Belgium
| | - Wim Bonckaert
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution; KU Leuven; Naamsestraat 59, box 2466 3000 Leuven Belgium
| | - Tom Wenseleers
- Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution; KU Leuven; Naamsestraat 59, box 2466 3000 Leuven Belgium
| | - Patrizia d'Ettorre
- Centre for Social Evolution; University of Copenhagen; Universitetsparken 15 2100 Copenhagen Denmark
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée; Université Paris 13 99 avenue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 93430 Villetaneuse France
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Chemical Signature and Reproductive Status in the Facultatively Polygynous ant Pachycondyla Verenae. J Chem Ecol 2012; 38:1441-9. [DOI: 10.1007/s10886-012-0195-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2012] [Revised: 09/23/2012] [Accepted: 10/02/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
|
15
|
Experimental evidence that workers recognize reproductives through cuticular hydrocarbons in the ant Odontomachus brunneus. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2012. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-012-1380-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
|
16
|
Cooperation, Conflict, and the Evolution of Queen Pheromones. J Chem Ecol 2011; 37:1263-75. [DOI: 10.1007/s10886-011-0036-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2011] [Revised: 10/16/2011] [Accepted: 10/28/2011] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
|
17
|
Holman L. Queen pheromones: The chemical crown governing insect social life. Commun Integr Biol 2010; 3:558-60. [PMID: 21331238 DOI: 10.4161/cib.3.6.12976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2010] [Accepted: 07/05/2010] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Group-living species produce signals that alter the behavior and even the physiology of their social partners. Social insects possess especially sophisticated chemical communication systems that govern every aspect of colony life, including the defining feature of eusociality: reproductive division of labor. Current evidence hints at the central importance of queen pheromones, but progress has been hindered by the fact that such pheromones have only been isolated in honeybees. In a pair of papers on the ant Lasius niger, we identified and investigated a queen pheromone regulating worker sterility. The cuticular hydrocarbon 3-methylhentriacontane (3-MeC(31)) is correlated with queen maturity and fecundity and workers are also more likely to execute surplus queens that have low amounts of this chemical. Experiments with synthetic 3-MeC(31) found that it inhibits ovarian development in queenless workers and lowers worker aggression towards objects coated with it. Production of 3-MeC(31) by queens was depressed by an experimental immune challenge, and the same chemical was abundant on queenlaid eggs, suggesting that the workers' responses to the queen are conditional on her health and fecundity. Together with other studies, these results indicate that queen pheromones are honest signals of quality that simultaneously regulate multiple social behaviors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Luke Holman
- Centre for Social Evolution; Department of Biology; University of Copenhagen; Universitetsparken, Copenhagen Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Holman L, Jørgensen CG, Nielsen J, d'Ettorre P. Identification of an ant queen pheromone regulating worker sterility. Proc Biol Sci 2010; 277:3793-800. [PMID: 20591861 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2010.0984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 129] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The selective forces that shape and maintain eusocial societies are an enduring puzzle in evolutionary biology. Ordinarily sterile workers can usually reproduce given the right conditions, so the factors regulating reproductive division of labour may provide insight into why eusociality has persisted over evolutionary time. Queen-produced pheromones that affect worker reproduction have been implicated in diverse taxa, including ants, termites, wasps and possibly mole rats, but to date have only been definitively identified in the honeybee. Using the black garden ant Lasius niger, we isolate the first sterility-regulating ant queen pheromone. The pheromone is a cuticular hydrocarbon that comprises the majority of the chemical profile of queens and their eggs, and also affects worker behaviour, by reducing aggression towards objects bearing the pheromone. We further show that the pheromone elicits a strong response in worker antennae and that its production by queens is selectively reduced following an immune challenge. These results suggest that the pheromone has a central role in colony organization and support the hypothesis that worker sterility represents altruistic self-restraint in response to an honest quality signal.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Luke Holman
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|