scholarly journals The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (20) ◽  
pp. 8427-8441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Olejarz ◽  
Carl Veller ◽  
Martin A. Nowak
Keyword(s):  
Worker Reproduction ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
The Social ◽  
Queen Control

scholarly journals Hormone-mediated dispersal and sexual maturation in males of the social paper wasp Polistes lanio

2020 ◽  
Vol 223 (23) ◽  
pp. jeb226472
Author(s):  
Robin J. Southon ◽  
Andrew N. Radford ◽  
Seirian Sumner
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Maturation ◽  
Paper Wasp ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
Natal Nest ◽  
Male Dispersal ◽  
Accessory Glands ◽  
Social Species ◽  
The Social ◽  
Males And Females

ABSTRACTSex-biased dispersal is common in social species, but the dispersing sex may delay emigration if associated benefits are not immediately attainable. In the social Hymenoptera (ants, some bees and wasps), newly emerged males typically disperse from the natal nest whilst most females remain as philopatric helpers. However, little information exists on the mechanisms regulating male dispersal. Furthermore, the conservation of such mechanisms across the Hymenoptera and any role of sexual maturation are also relatively unknown. Through field observations and mark–recapture, we observed that males of the social paper wasp Polistes lanio emerge from pupation sexually immature, and delay dispersal from their natal nest for up to 7 days whilst undergoing sexual maturation. Delayed dispersal may benefit males by allowing them to mature in the safety of the nest and thus be more competitive in mating. We also demonstrate that both male dispersal and maturation are associated with juvenile hormone (JH), a key regulator of insect reproductive physiology and behaviour, which also has derived functions regulating social organisation in female Hymenoptera. Males treated with methoprene (a JH analogue) dispersed earlier and possessed significantly larger accessory glands than their age-matched controls. These results highlight the wide role of JH in social hymenopteran behaviour, with parallel ancestral functions in males and females, and raise new questions on the nature of selection for sex-biased dispersal.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Inter and Intraspecific Differences in the Venom Chemical Compositions of Polybia paulista Wasps and Ectatomma brunneum Ants Using FTIR-PAS

Sociobiology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 515
Author(s):  
Angelica Mendonça ◽  
Rafaella Caroline Bernardi ◽  
Ellen Liciane Barbosa Firmino ◽  
Luis Humberto da Cunha Andrade ◽  
Sandro Marcio Lima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Intraspecific Variability ◽  
Social Wasp ◽  
Chemical Compositions ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
Interspecific Differences ◽  
The Social ◽  
Polybia Paulista ◽  
Predominant Factor ◽  
Exogenous Factors ◽  
The Fourier Transform

Wasps can synthesize chemical compounds called venom whose function is to overcome prey and assist in defense of the colonies. Geographic Parameters such as sex, age, the season of the year, and diet determined the composition of the venom location, genetics, environment. However, studies on the compositional variability of venom are still limited due to the difficulty in obtaining samples and the complexity of these substances. This work describes the use of the Fourier Transform Infrared Photoacoustic Spectroscopy (FTIR-PAS) to investigate inter- and intraspecific variability in the venom chemical composition (VCC) of the social wasp Polybia paulista (Von Ihering 1896) and the ant Ectatomma brunneum (Smith 1858). The results reveal significant differences in VCC among the ant and wasp, even for samples obtained from the same environment. The genetic component, therefore, seemed to be the predominant factor determining the compounds present. The findings also showed that exogenous factors, such as diet, could also be responsible for intraspecific differences, especially in wasps. The FTIR-PAS technique proved to be a reliable way of assessing intra- and interspecific differences in social Hymenoptera VCC.

scholarly journals Allele specific expression and methylation in the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e3798 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoë Lonsdale ◽  
Kate Lee ◽  
Maria Kiriakidu ◽  
Harindra Amarasinghe ◽  
Despina Nathanael ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bombus Terrestris ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
Specific Expression ◽  
Allele Specific Expression ◽  
Epigenetic Marker ◽  
The Social ◽  
Allele Specific ◽  
Contradictory Evidence ◽  
Allele Specific Methylation

The social hymenoptera are emerging as models for epigenetics. DNA methylation, the addition of a methyl group, is a common epigenetic marker. In mammals and flowering plants methylation affects allele specific expression. There is contradictory evidence for the role of methylation on allele specific expression in social insects. The aim of this paper is to investigate allele specific expression and monoallelic methylation in the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris. We found nineteen genes that were both monoallelically methylated and monoallelically expressed in a single bee. Fourteen of these genes express the hypermethylated allele, while the other five express the hypomethylated allele. We also searched for allele specific expression in twenty-nine published RNA-seq libraries. We found 555 loci with allele-specific expression. We discuss our results with reference to the functional role of methylation in gene expression in insects and in the as yet unquantified role of genetic cis effects in insect allele specific methylation and expression.

WITHIN-COLONY RELATEDNESS IN A TERMITE SPECIES: GENETIC ROADS TO EUSOCIALITY?

Behaviour ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 136 (9) ◽  
pp. 1045-1063 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
J.T. Epplen ◽  
◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Kin Selection ◽  
Oligonucleotide Probe ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Selective Force ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
The Social ◽  
Multilocus Dna Fingerprinting ◽  
Synthetic Oligonucleotide Probe ◽  
Evolution Of Eusociality ◽  
Do So

AbstractHamilton's theory predicts that relatedness asymmetries, with higher relatedness between alloparents and brood than between parents and brood, favour the evolution of eusociality. The haplodiploid reproductive system of the social Hymenoptera does indeed produce relatedness asymmetries, but the diplodiploid system of the eusocial Isoptera does not automatically do so. Three mechanisms that might favour relatedness asymmetries, and therefore eusociality, in termites have been extensively debated: First, substantial inbreeding generates the background for effective kin-selection. Second, inbreeding-outbreeding cycles within and between colonies cause a higher relatedness between individuals of the same generation than between them and their potential offspring. This would be analogous to the haplodiploid system. Third, translocation complexes of sex-linked chromosomes may generate higher relatedness within sexes than between sexes, again analogous to the haplodiploid system. We tested these three hypotheses for the African termite Schedorhinotermes lamanianus (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae) using estimates of within-colony relatedness derived by multilocus DNA fingerprinting with a synthetic oligonucleotide probe. We found little support for any of the three hypotheses. We observed inbreeding to occur only during one or a few generations within colonies, which is unlikely to be an operational basis for ongoing kin-selection. Overall, we conclude that ecological factors and constraints must be considered a major selective force.

scholarly journals Phylogenetic tests reject Emery's rule in the evolution of social parasitism in yellowjackets and hornets (Hymenoptera: Vespidae, Vespinae)

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (9) ◽  
pp. 150159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Lopez-Osorio ◽  
Adrien Perrard ◽  
Kurt M. Pickett ◽  
James M. Carpenter ◽  
Ingi Agnarsson
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Social Parasitism ◽  
Strict Sense ◽  
Brood Care ◽  
Social Parasites ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
The Social ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Worker Caste

Social parasites exploit the brood-care behaviour and social structure of one or more host species. Within the social Hymenoptera there are different types of social parasitism. In its extreme form, species of obligate social parasites, or inquilines, do not have the worker caste and depend entirely on the workers of a host species to raise their reproductive offspring. The strict form of Emery's rule states that social parasites share immediate common ancestry with their hosts. Moreover, this rule has been linked with a sympatric origin of inquilines from their hosts. Here, we conduct phylogenetic analyses of yellowjackets and hornets based on 12 gene fragments and evaluate competing evolutionary scenarios to test Emery's rule. We find that inquilines, as well as facultative social parasites, are not the closest relatives of their hosts. Therefore, Emery's rule in its strict sense is rejected, suggesting that social parasites have not evolved sympatrically from their hosts in yellowjackets and hornets. However, the relaxed version of the rule is supported, as inquilines and their hosts belong to the same Dolichovespula clade. Furthermore, inquilinism has evolved only once in Dolichovespula .

scholarly journals The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Olejarz ◽  
Carl Veller ◽  
Martin A. Nowak
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Mating Frequency ◽  
Social Hymenoptera ◽  
Queen Control ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Colony Efficiency ◽  
Worker Sterility ◽  
Reproductive Division Of Labor ◽  
Evolutionary Emergence ◽  
Reproductive Division

AbstractA 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 unknown. Accordingly, we propose a simple model of evolutionary dynamics that is based on haplodiploid genetics. 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. Moreover, we find that queen control is always established if it increases colony reproductive efficiency and can evolve even if it decreases colony efficiency. We further outline the conditions under which queen control is evolutionarily stable against invasion by mutant, reproductive workers.

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