scholarly journals Stress and early experience underlie dominance status and division of labour in a clonal insect

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1885) ◽  
pp. 20181468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abel Bernadou ◽  
Lukas Schrader ◽  
Julia Pable ◽  
Elisabeth Hoffacker ◽  
Karen Meusemann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Division Of Labour ◽  
Caste Differentiation ◽  
Cooperative Groups ◽  
Stress Injury ◽  
Major Transitions ◽  
Environmental Stimuli ◽  
Expression Of Genes ◽  
Major Transitions In Evolution ◽  
Platythyrea Punctata ◽  
Shed Light

Cooperation and division of labour are fundamental in the ‘major transitions’ in evolution. While the factors regulating cell differentiation in multi-cellular organisms are quite well understood, we are just beginning to unveil the mechanisms underlying individual specialization in cooperative groups of animals. Clonal ants allow the study of which factors influence task allocation without confounding variation in genotype and morphology. Here, we subjected larvae and freshly hatched workers of the clonal ant Platythyrea punctata to different rearing conditions and investigated how these manipulations affected division of labour among pairs of oppositely treated, same-aged clonemates. High rearing temperature, physical stress, injury and malnutrition increased the propensity of individuals to become subordinate foragers rather than dominant reproductives. This is reflected in changed gene regulation: early stages of division of labour were associated with different expression of genes involved in nutrient signalling pathways, metabolism and the phenotypic response to environmental stimuli. Many of these genes appear to be capable of responding to a broad range of stressors. They might link environmental stimuli to behavioural and phenotypic changes and could therefore be more broadly involved in caste differentiation in social insects. Our experiments also shed light on the causes of behavioural variation among genetically identical individuals.

scholarly journals Relatedness and the fraternal major transitions

2000 ◽  
Vol 355 (1403) ◽  
pp. 1647-1655 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C. Queller
Keyword(s):  
Kin Selection ◽  
Germ Line ◽  
Division Of Labour ◽  
Major Transitions ◽  
Insect Societies ◽  
Reproductive Division Of Labour ◽  
Special Relationships ◽  
Reproductive Division ◽  
Major Transitions In Evolution

Many of the major transitions in evolution involved the coalescence of independent lower–level units into a higher organismal level. This paper examines the role of kinship, focusing on the transitions to multicellularity in animals and to coloniality in insects. In both, kin selection based on high relatedness permitted cooperation and a reproductive division of labour. The higher relatedness of haplodiploid females to their sisters than to their offspring might not have been crucial in the origin of insect societies, and the transition to multicellularity shows that such special relationships are not required. When multicellular forms develop from a single cell, selfish conflict is minimal because each selfish mutant obtains only one generation of within–individual advantage in a chimaera. Conditionally expressed traits are particularly immune to within–individual selfishness because such mutations are rarely expressed in chimaeras. Such conditionally expressed altruism genes lead easily to the evolution of the soma, and the germ line might simply be what is left over. In most social insects, differences in relatedness ensure that there will be potential conflicts. Power asymmetries sometimes lead to such decisive settlements of conflicts that social insect colonies can be considered to be fully organismal.

scholarly journals Evolution of simple multicellularity increases environmental complexity

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Rebolleda-Gómez ◽  
William C. Ratcliff ◽  
Jonathon Fankhauser ◽  
Michael Travisano
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Dynamics ◽  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Experimental Evolution ◽  
Single Cells ◽  
Environmental Complexity ◽  
Major Transitions ◽  
Rapid Diversification ◽  
Ecological Mechanisms ◽  
Major Transitions In Evolution ◽  
Maintenance Of Diversity

AbstractMulticellularity—the integration of previously autonomous cells into a new, more complex organism—is one of the major transitions in evolution. Multicellularity changed evolutionary possibilities and facilitated the evolution of increased complexity. Transitions to multicellularity are associated with rapid diversification and increased ecological opportunity but the potential mechanisms are not well understood. In this paper we explore the ecological mechanisms of multicellular diversification during experimental evolution of the brewer’s yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The evolution from single cells into multicellular clusters modifies the structure of the environment, changing the fluid dynamics and creating novel ecological opportunities. This study demonstrates that even in simple conditions, incipient multicellularity readily changes the environment, facilitating the origin and maintenance of diversity.

Evolution, Societal Sexism, and Universal Average Sex Differences in Cognition and Behavior

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Sexually Dimorphic ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Industrial Countries ◽  
Expression Of Genes ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Industrial Societies ◽  
Shed Light

During the past century, social scientists have documented many cross-cultural sex differences in personality and behavior, quite a few of which now appear to be found in all human societies. However, contrary to most scientists’ expectations, these so-called universal sex differences have been shown to be more pronounced in Western industrial societies than in most non-Western developing societies. This chapter briefly reviews the evidence bearing on these findings and offers a biologically based theory that could help shed light on why cross-cultural sex differences exist. The following hypothesis is offered: The expression of many genes influencing sexually dimorphic traits is more likely among descendants of couples who are least closely related to one another. If so, societies in which out-marriage is normative (i.e., Western industrial countries) will exhibit a stronger expression of genes for sexually dimorphic traits compared to societies in which consanguineal marriages are common.

4. Levels of selection

2019 ◽  
pp. 45-62
Author(s):  
Samir Okasha
Keyword(s):  
Kin Selection ◽  
Group Selection ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Levels Of Selection ◽  
Major Transitions ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Or Groups ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Major Transitions In Evolution

‘Levels of selection’ examines the levels-of-selection question, which asks whether natural selection acts on individuals, genes, or groups. This question is one of the most fundamental in evolutionary biology, and the subject of much controversy. Traditionally, biologists have mostly been concerned with selection and adaptation at the individual level. But, in theory, there are other possibilities, including selection on sub-individual units such as genes and cells, and on supra-individual units such as groups and colonies. Group selection, altruistic behaviour, kin selection, the gene-centric view of evolution, and the major transitions in evolution are all discussed.

Renegotiating the Domestic Division of Labour? A Study of Dual Career Households in North East and South East England

1993 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 475-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicky Gregson ◽  
Michelle Lowe
Keyword(s):  
Social Class ◽  
Final Section ◽  
Economic Restructuring ◽  
Division Of Labour ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Dual Career ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
South East England ◽  
Shed Light

This paper is concerned with extending debate on the renegotiation of the domestic division of labour within the context of contemporary economic restructuring. Our focus is on a form of household which is becoming increasingly common in Britain in the 1990s. This is the dual career household, in which both partners are in full time professional/managerial employment. A sample of 71 households drawn from the North east and South east, forms the basis for the study. The paper is divided into three main sections. In the first we establish a typology of forms of the domestic division of labour, as well as a means of allocating individual households to particular forms of the domestic division of labour. Then we move on to discuss the degree of variation in particular forms of the domestic division of labour found within our sample households and illustrate these with reference to five case studies. In our final section we consider the implications of our findings for the respective arguments of Lydia Morris and Jane Wheelock; point to the significance of gender identities to an understanding of between household variation in form of the domestic division of labour; and suggest how our findings shed light on the debate over women and social class.

scholarly journals Transcriptional Regulation of Ascorbic Acid During Fruit Ripening in Pepper (Capsicum annuum) Varieties with Low and High Antioxidants Content

Plants ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pasquale Chiaiese ◽  
Giandomenico Corrado ◽  
Maria Minutolo ◽  
Amalia Barone ◽  
Angela Errico
Keyword(s):  
Ascorbic Acid ◽  
Higher Plants ◽  
Phenotypic Diversity ◽  
Transcriptional Analysis ◽  
Expression Of Genes ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Plant Antioxidants ◽  
Local Germplasm ◽  
Shed Light ◽  
Preventive Role

Research on plant antioxidants, such as ascorbic acid (AsA) and polyphenols, is of increasing interest in plant science because of the health benefits and preventive role in chronic diseases of these natural compounds. Pepper (Capiscum annuum L.) is a major dietary source of antioxidants, especially AsA. Although considerable advance has been made, our understanding of AsA biosynthesis and its regulation in higher plants is not yet exhaustive. For instance, while it is accepted that AsA content in cells is regulated at different levels (e.g., transcriptional and post-transcriptional), their relative prominence is not fully understood. In this work, we identified and studied two pepper varieties with low and high levels of AsA to shed light on the transcriptional mechanisms that can account for the observed phenotypes. We quantified AsA and polyphenols in leaves and during fruit maturation, and concurrently, we analyzed the transcription of 14 genes involved in AsA biosynthesis, degradation, and recycling. The differential transcriptional analysis indicated that the higher expression of genes involved in AsA accumulation is a likely explanation for the observed differences in fruits. This was also supported by the identification of gene-metabolite relations, which deserve further investigation. Our results provide new insights into AsA differential accumulation in pepper varieties and highlight the phenotypic diversity in local germplasm, a knowledge that may ultimately contribute to the increased level of health-related phytochemicals.

scholarly journals Major evolutionary transitions in individuality

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (33) ◽  
pp. 10112-10119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart A. West ◽  
Roberta M. Fisher ◽  
Andy Gardner ◽  
E. Toby Kiers
Keyword(s):  
Life Form ◽  
Cooperative Groups ◽  
Evolutionary Transitions ◽  
Major Transitions ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Evolution Of Life ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
Multicellular Organisms ◽  
Unified Description

The evolution of life on earth has been driven by a small number of major evolutionary transitions. These transitions have been characterized by individuals that could previously replicate independently, cooperating to form a new, more complex life form. For example, archaea and eubacteria formed eukaryotic cells, and cells formed multicellular organisms. However, not all cooperative groups are en route to major transitions. How can we explain why major evolutionary transitions have or haven’t taken place on different branches of the tree of life? We break down major transitions into two steps: the formation of a cooperative group and the transformation of that group into an integrated entity. We show how these steps require cooperation, division of labor, communication, mutual dependence, and negligible within-group conflict. We find that certain ecological conditions and the ways in which groups form have played recurrent roles in driving multiple transitions. In contrast, we find that other factors have played relatively minor roles at many key points, such as within-group kin discrimination and mechanisms to actively repress competition. More generally, by identifying the small number of factors that have driven major transitions, we provide a simpler and more unified description of how life on earth has evolved.

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