Phylogeny of the Ants: Diversification in the Age of Angiosperms

Moreau, Corrie S.; Bell, Charles D.; Vila, Roger; Archibald, S. Bruce; Pierce, Naomi E.

doi:10.1126/science.1124891

Cited by 723 publications

(898 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…In order to evaluate whether different approaches give Figure 1 Ant species used in this study. The divergence estimates are in My and based on large-scale sequence data from Brady et al (2006) and Moreau et al (2006). CSP evolution in ants J Kulmuni et al similar results, we made a neighbour-joining tree of each alignment and confirmed that different alignment methods produced similar overall topology.…”

Section: Sequence Alignment and Analysissupporting

confidence: 50%

Comparative genomics of chemosensory protein genes reveals rapid evolution and positive selection in ant-specific duplicates

2013

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Gene duplications can have a major role in adaptation, and gene families underlying chemosensation are particularly interesting due to their essential role in chemical recognition of mates, predators and food resources. Social insects add yet another dimension to the study of chemosensory genomics, as the key components of their social life rely on chemical communication. Still, chemosensory gene families are little studied in social insects. Here we annotated chemosensory protein (CSP) genes from seven ant genomes and studied their evolution. The number of functional CSP genes ranges from 11 to 21 depending on species, and the estimated rates of gene birth and death indicate high turnover of genes. Ant CSP genes include seven conservative orthologous groups present in all the ants, and a group of genes that has expanded independently in different ant lineages. Interestingly, the expanded group of genes has a differing mode of evolution from the orthologous groups. The expanded group shows rapid evolution as indicated by a high dN/dS (nonsynonymous to synonymous changes) ratio, several sites under positive selection and many pseudogenes, whereas the genes in the seven orthologous groups evolve slowly under purifying selection and include only one pseudogene. These results show that adaptive changes have played a role in ant CSP evolution. The expanded group of ant-specific genes is phylogenetically close to a conservative orthologous group CSP7, which includes genes known to be involved in ant nestmate recognition, raising an interesting possibility that the expanded CSPs function in ant chemical communication.

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Section: Sequence Alignment and Analysissupporting

confidence: 50%

Comparative genomics of chemosensory protein genes reveals rapid evolution and positive selection in ant-specific duplicates

2013

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“…The phylogenetic relationships given are slightly different than in figure 1. Nevertheless, using the phylogenetic relationships of Moreau et al (2006) does not qualitatively change any of our conclusions.…”

Section: Note Added In Proofmentioning

confidence: 57%

“…Recently, Moreau et al (2006) have constructed a detailed molecular phylogeny of ants. The phylogenetic relationships given are slightly different than in figure 1.…”

Section: Note Added In Proofmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative Analysis of Worker Reproduction and Policing in Eusocial Hymenoptera Supports Relatedness Theory

Wenseleers¹,

Ratnieks²

2006

The American Naturalist

206

279

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In many bees, wasps, and ants, workers police each other in order to prevent individual workers from selfishly producing their own male offspring. Although several factors can selectively favor worker policing, genetic relatedness is considered to be of special importance. In particular, kin selection theory predicts that worker policing should be more common in species where workers are more related to the queen's sons than to other workers' sons. Here we provide strong novel support for this theory based on a comparative analysis of policing and male parentage in 109 species of ants, bees, and wasps. First, an analysis of behavioral data confirms that worker policing occurs more frequently in species where workers are more related to the queen's sons than to other workers' sons. Second, an analysis of male parentage shows that a significantly higher percentage of the males are workers' sons in species where the workers are more related to other workers' sons. Both conclusions also hold if data are analyzed using phylogenetically independent contrasts. Although our analysis provides strong overall support for the theory that relatedness affects kin conflict over male parentage, there is also significant residual variation. Several factors that may explain this variation are discussed.Keywords: worker policing, queen policing, worker reproduction, social Hymenoptera, inclusive fitness, kin selection.A major challenge in evolutionary biology is to explain how social groups can reduce or prevent costly conflicts

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“…The most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of Pseudomyrmecinae dates to 71.7 + 7 Ma, significantly older than found in chronograms that focused on all ants and therefore included only a few Pseudomyrmecinae [52,53]. The stem age of Pseudomyrmex is 49.0 + 4 Ma, its crown age 35.8 + 4 Ma (figure 2; electronic supplementary material, figure S4).…”

Section: (B) Times Of Origin Of Pseudomyrmecinae and Their Plant Hostsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Macroevolutionary assembly of ant/plant symbioses:Pseudomyrmexants and their ant-housing plants in the Neotropics

2015

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Symbioses include some of the clearest cases of coevolution, but their origin, loss or reassembly with different partners can rarely be inferred. Here we use ant/plant symbioses involving three plant clades to investigate the evolution of symbioses. We generated phylogenies for the big-eyed arboreal ants (Pseudomyrmecinae), including 72% of their 286 species, as well as for five of their plant host groups, in each case sampling more than 61% of the species. We show that the ant-housing Vachellia (Mimosoideae) clade and its ants co-diversified for the past 5 Ma, with some species additionally colonized by younger plant-nesting ant species, some parasitic. An apparent co-radiation of ants and Tachigali (Caesalpinioideae) was followed by waves of colonization by the same ant clade, and subsequent occupation by a younger ant group. Wide crown and stem age differences between the ant-housing genus Triplaris (Polygonaceae) and its obligate ant inhabitants, and stochastic trait mapping, indicate that its domatium evolved earlier than the ants now occupying it, suggesting previous symbioses that dissolved. Parasitic ant species evolved from generalists, not from mutualists, and are younger than the mutualistic systems they parasitize. Our study illuminates the macroevolutionary assembly of ant/plant symbioses, which has been highly dynamic, even in very specialized systems.

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Phylogeny of the Ants: Diversification in the Age of Angiosperms

Cited by 723 publications

References 20 publications

Comparative genomics of chemosensory protein genes reveals rapid evolution and positive selection in ant-specific duplicates

Comparative genomics of chemosensory protein genes reveals rapid evolution and positive selection in ant-specific duplicates

Comparative Analysis of Worker Reproduction and Policing in Eusocial Hymenoptera Supports Relatedness Theory

Macroevolutionary assembly of ant/plant symbioses:Pseudomyrmexants and their ant-housing plants in the Neotropics

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