Juvenile hormone induces queen development in late-stage larvae of the ant Harpegnathos saltator

Penick, Clint A.; Prager, Steven S.; Liebig, Jürgen

doi:10.1016/j.jinsphys.2012.10.004

Cited by 46 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…1c). Similarly, application of methoprene to larvae induces development of majors in the formicine ant Camponotus floridanus (D.F.S., unpublished observations) and development of queens in many ant and bee species, including Apis mellifera and Harpegnathos saltator 22,151 .…”

Section: Epigenetic Stabilization Of Transcriptionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Eusocial insects as emerging models for behavioural epigenetics

et al. 2014

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Understanding the molecular basis of how behavioural states are established, maintained and altered by environmental cues is an area of considerable and growing interest. Epigenetic processes, including methylation of DNA and post-translational modification of histones, dynamically modulate activity-dependent gene expression in neurons and can therefore have important regulatory roles in shaping behavioural responses to environmental cues. Several eusocial insect species - with their unique displays of behavioural plasticity due to age, morphology and social context - have emerged as models to investigate the genetic and epigenetic underpinnings of animal social behaviour. This Review summarizes recent studies in the epigenetics of social behaviour and offers perspectives on emerging trends and prospects for establishing genetic tools in eusocial insects.

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Section: Epigenetic Stabilization Of Transcriptionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Eusocial insects as emerging models for behavioural epigenetics

et al. 2014

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“…Queens are often larger, have wings, and have much more highly developed ovaries than workers that often are sterile and lack a sperm storage organ (Hölldobler and Wilson 1990). In most species, the differences between castes result from developmental differences induced by environmental factors rather than genetic differences (Abouheif and Wray 2002; Schwander et al 2010; Penick et al 2012; Rajakumar et al 2012). We therefore investigated whether there was evidence for increased positive selection in genes and pathways potentially involved in developmental plasticity (Smith et al 2008; Fischman et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Patterns of Positive Selection in Seven Ant Genomes

Roux

Privman

Moretti

et al. 2014

Molecular Biology and Evolution

140

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The evolution of ants is marked by remarkable adaptations that allowed the development of very complex social systems. To identify how ant-specific adaptations are associated with patterns of molecular evolution, we searched for signs of positive selection on amino-acid changes in proteins. We identified 24 functional categories of genes which were enriched for positively selected genes in the ant lineage. We also reanalyzed genome-wide data sets in bees and flies with the same methodology to check whether positive selection was specific to ants or also present in other insects. Notably, genes implicated in immunity were enriched for positively selected genes in the three lineages, ruling out the hypothesis that the evolution of hygienic behaviors in social insects caused a major relaxation of selective pressure on immune genes. Our scan also indicated that genes implicated in neurogenesis and olfaction started to undergo increased positive selection before the evolution of sociality in Hymenoptera. Finally, the comparison between these three lineages allowed us to pinpoint molecular evolution patterns that were specific to the ant lineage. In particular, there was ant-specific recurrent positive selection on genes with mitochondrial functions, suggesting that mitochondrial activity was improved during the evolution of this lineage. This might have been an important step toward the evolution of extreme lifespan that is a hallmark of ants.

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“…First, in an ancestral-like ant Harpegnathos saltator, with low queeneworker dimorphism, sensitivity to juvenile hormone, which triggers caste determination, occurs late in larval development, in contrast to early sensitivity observed in more derived ant species (Penick, Prager, & Liebig, 2012). Second, modelling work by Leimar, Hartfelder, Laubichler, and Page (2012) suggests a similar pattern in honeybees.…”

Section: The Consequences Of Early Specialization For Phenotypic Divementioning

confidence: 99%