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Published on: December 28, 2016
The gene vitellogenin has multiple coordinating effects on social organization
C Mindy Nelson1, Kate E Ihle, M Kim Fondrk
1Department of Entomology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America.
Plos Biology
|March 8, 2007
Summary
A single gene, vitellogenin, controls honeybee social behaviors. This gene regulates foraging onset, specialization, and lifespan, revealing how reproductive pathways shape social organization in insects.
Area of Science:
- Social insect biology
- Behavioral genetics
- Insect physiology
Background:
- Honeybee societies exhibit temporal division of labor and foraging specialization.
- These social traits correlate with worker reproductive physiology.
- Genetic and hormonal mechanisms controlling social organization remain largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of the vitellogenin gene in regulating honeybee social traits.
- To understand the genetic basis of foraging behavior, specialization, and longevity in worker honeybees.
Main Methods:
- Utilized RNA interference (RNAi) to manipulate vitellogenin gene activity in worker honeybees.
- Observed and quantified effects on foraging onset, task specialization, and worker lifespan.
Main Results:
- Vitellogenin gene activity was shown to pace the onset of foraging behavior.
- The gene influences the priming of bees for specialized foraging tasks (pollen or nectar collection).
- Vitellogenin activity was found to impact worker longevity.
Conclusions:
- Vitellogenin, a yolk precursor gene, pleiotropically affects multiple social life-history traits in honeybees.
- This suggests that worker specializations in hymenopteran sociality may have evolved through the co-option of reproductive regulatory pathways.
- Coordinated control of diverse social traits can arise from the pleiotropic effects of a single gene.
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