Dissertation Research: The Evolutionary and Developmental Genetic Basis of Wing Polymorphisms in Ants

0073278雷,AbouheifOne生物学的巨大挑战是了解基因被部署在一个生物体的发展产生惊人的地球上各种各样的生物。如果对各种生物现象进行详细的研究，可以帮助我们更好地理解这些基因蓝图。其中一种现象，形态多态性，在自然界广泛存在，并且在许多不同类型的生物体中独立出现。以蚂蚁为例，根据个体蚂蚁胚胎所经历的环境条件，它要么发育成有翅膀的生殖阶层（雄性或蚁后），要么发育成没有翅膀的不育阶层（工蚁或兵蚁）。在哪里,什么时候。在发育过程中，哪些基因被关闭或打开，从而在兄弟姐妹之间产生生理差异？本研究通过整合来自多个生物水平和多个物种的数据，研究了蚂蚁中涉及这种形态多态性的基因。它将描述与翅膀发育、细胞生长和激素调节有关的几个基因的表达。目的是确定：(1)参与翅膀发育的基因在有翼繁殖蚂蚁中是否保守；(2)无翅非生殖蚂蚁翅膀的图案、生长和分化是如何被打断的；(3)无翅非生殖蚂蚁的中断过程是否进化。了解这种现象的遗传基础将有助于深入了解生物体的基因、环境和解剖结构之间的关系。

0073278Wray & AbouheifOne of the great challenges to biology is understanding how genes are deployed during an organism's development to produce the astonishing variety of creatures on earth. A variety of biological phenomena can, if studied in detail, help us gain a better understanding of these genetic blueprints. One such phenomenon, morphological polymorphism, is widespread in nature, and has appeared independently in many different types of organisms. In ants, for example, depending on the environmental conditions an individual ant embryo experiences, it will either develop into a reproductive caste (male or a queen) with wings or develop into a sterile caste (worker or soldier) without wings. Where, when. and which genes are turned off or on during development to produce antomical differenes among siblings? This study examines the genes involved in this morphological polymorphism in ants by integrating data from multiple biological levels and from multiple species. It will characterize the expression of several genes involved in wing development, cell growth, and hormonal regulation. The goals are to determine: (1) whether the genes involved in wing development are conserved in winged reproductive ants; (2) how the patterning, growth, and differentiation of wings in wingless non-reproductive ants is interrupted; and (3) whether the process of interruption in wingless non-reproductive ants has evolved. Understanding the genetic basis of this phenomenon will provide insights into the relationship between an organism's genes, the environment, and anatomy.