Identification of a major gene regulating complex social behavior
Identification of a major gene regulating complex social behavior
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DOI：
10.1126/science.1065247
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发表时间：
2002-01-11
期刊：
影响因子：
56.9
通讯作者：
Ross, KG
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Krieger, MJB;Ross, KG
蚁群蚁后数是火蚁社会组织的一个主要特征，它与工蚁Gp-9基因型有关。我们对Gp-9进行了测序，发现它编码一种信息素结合蛋白，这是同种生物化学识别的关键分子成分。这表明，不同社会形式的工蜂Gp-9基因型的差异可能导致工蜂识别蚁后和调节蚁后数量的能力差异。序列进化分析表明，Gp-9对社会组织的调控在具有社会多态性的南美火蚁物种中是保守的，表明正选择推动了与替代社会组织相关的等位基因之间的分化。该研究表明，在社会进化过程中，具有重要作用的单一基因可能是复杂行为表达的基础。
Colony queen number, a major feature of social organization in fire ants, is associated with worker genotypes at the gene Gp-9. We sequenced Gp-9 and found that it encodes a pheromone-binding protein, a crucial molecular component in chemical recognition of conspecifics, This suggests that differences in worker Gp-9 genotypes between social forms may cause differences in workers' abilities to recognize queens and regulate their numbers. Analyses of sequence evolution indicate that regulation of social organization by Gp-9 is conserved in South American fire ant species exhibiting social polymorphism and suggest that positive selection has driven the divergence between the alleles associated with alternate social organizations. This study demonstrates that single genes of major effect can underlie the expression of complex behaviors important in social evolution.