Transcriptomics on Social Interactions in Termites: Effects of Soldier Presence
Transcriptomics on Social Interactions in Termites: Effects of Soldier Presence
复制标题
DOI：
10.3389/fevo.2022.924151
复制
发表时间：
2014-07
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
M. Matsunami;Dai Watanabe;Kokuto Fujiwara;Y. Hayashi;S. Shigenobu;T. Miura;K. Maekawa
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
M. Matsunami;Dai Watanabe;Kokuto Fujiwara;Y. Hayashi;S. Shigenobu;T. Miura;K. Maekawa
社会性昆虫群体的组织需要复杂的机制来根据群体需求调节种姓组成。在白蚁中，士兵种姓负责抑制士兵分化，但调节士兵分化的机制仍不清楚。在这项研究中，我们进行了转录组分析，以确定地下白蚁 Reticulitermes speratus 中工蚁中表达的基因在士兵存在时波动。首先，通过应用保幼激素（JH）人工诱导士兵分化，并评估士兵分化对士兵存在的抑制作用。其次，从接受 JH 治疗的有或没有士兵的工人中制备转录组，并进行表达分析以确定每种治疗的差异表达基因 (DEG)。通过实时定量PCR验证了几个DEG的表达水平。结果表明，只有少数 DEG 因士兵的存在而上调。 DEG的同源性搜索和DEG的基因本体（GO）分析表明，一些基因负责激素水平的调节、社会互动和对外源物质的反应，这表明它们可能参与工蚁的发育停滞和信息素调节。此外，GO分析表明，许多基因的表达，包括那些参与激素代谢过程的基因，随着JH的应用而波动。在士兵存在的情况下抑制士兵分化可以通过表达士兵分化所需的大量基因来实现。
The organization of social insect colonies requires sophisticated mechanisms to regulate caste composition according to colony demands. In termites, the soldier caste is responsible for the inhibition of soldier differentiation, but the mechanism underlying the regulation of soldier differentiation is still unclear. In this study, we performed transcriptome analyses to identify genes expressed in workers that fluctuated in the presence of soldiers in the subterranean termite Reticulitermes speratus. First, soldier differentiation was artificially induced via juvenile hormone (JH) application, and the inhibitory effects of soldier differentiation on soldier presence were evaluated. Second, transcriptomes were prepared from workers with or without soldiers under JH treatment, and expression analyses were performed to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for each treatment. The expression levels of several DEGs were verified by quantitative real-time PCR. The results indicated that only a small number of DEGs were upregulated by the presence of soldiers. A homology search of DEGs and gene ontology (GO) analysis of the DEGs showed that some genes were responsible for the regulation of hormone levels, social interaction, and response to xenobiotic substances, suggesting that they could be involved in developmental arrest and pheromonal regulation in workers. Moreover, GO analysis indicated that the expression of many genes, including those involved in hormone metabolic processes, fluctuated with JH application. Suppression of soldier differentiation in the presence of soldiers could be accomplished by the expression of a large number of genes required for soldier differentiation.