Validating venom variation and evolution in solitary and eusocial aculeate hymenopterans by comparative genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics

毒液类似于动物体内复杂的蛋白质鸡尾酒，这些蛋白质在动物界的大多数谱系中都是一致进化的。毒液蛋白可能是从几个通常显示正常生理功能的蛋白家族进化而来的。毒液是物种进化适应性的关键资产，确保生态和进化的成功被用于防御、捕食、竞争和交流。尽管它对进化过程产生了巨大的影响，但毒液进化和生物学，但对有毒类群的生物学却知之甚少。只有少数几个有毒的类群及其毒液生物学得到了较详细的研究，如蛇、蜘蛛、锥螺、蝎子和最近的蜈蚣。最突出的有毒昆虫群可能是膜翅目。几种毒素，主要是针叶类(蜜蜂、大黄蜂和黄蜂)，部分已为人所知。与它们对人类的影响有关，早期的蛋白质和生化研究侧重于针状毒液的药理方面，以确定毒素、毒素的作用和功能，并解决如何将其抵消或用于药物开发的问题。然而，自相矛盾的是，尽管人类和膜翅目之间存在着这些长期的互动，但最近没有很多详细的比较研究(也有更多膜翅目物种的样本)来评估针叶蜂毒蛋白的一般生物学和进化。该项目旨在首次利用现代毒液科学(毒液组学)的三位一体(转录组学、蛋白质组学和基因组学)以比较的方法研究针叶蜂毒液的进化和生物学。两个主要目标是解决独生类和共生类之间可能的毒液变异，以及授粉类群和捕食性类群之间的毒液蛋白差异。针叶类作为新的模式生物被进一步引入，以了解毒液进化和毒液生物学的基本原理和检验当前的假说。本项目的主要问题是：针叶类动物是否显示出毒液变异和特定的毒液蛋白，这是不同社会性模式的特征？我们是否发现授粉和捕食性针叶动物之间的毒液差异很大？像黄蜂这样的捕食性针叶动物含有更多假定的毒素，显示出更高的选择压力？针叶动物和寄生蜂共享哪些毒液蛋白，这是唯一的？来自寄生蜂的神经毒素，例如针叶类中也有桥连蛋白，它们是如何从寄生蜂进化到针叶类变异体的？基因复制和毒液蛋白重新进入毒液腺是否被有力地证明是针叶类毒液进化的主要力量？在包括身体和毒液腺组织在内的比较分析中，是否发现了选定推定毒素的多种招募过程的证据？

Venoms resemble complex cocktails of proteins in animals that have convergently evolved in most lineages of the animal kingdom. Venom proteins evolved likely from few protein families that generally show normal physiological function. Venoms are crucial assets for the evolutionary fitness of species securing ecological and evolutionary success being used for defense, predation, competition and communication. Despite its immense impact on evolutionary processes venom evolution and biology, but also the biology of venomous taxa are rather poorly understood. Only few venomous taxa and their venom biology are more detailed studied, such as snakes, spiders, cone snails, scorpions, and recently centipedes.The probably most prominent venomous insect group is Hymenoptera. Several toxins mostly of aculeate species (honeybees, bumblebees and wasps) are partly well known. Linked to their impact on humans, early, protein and biochemical studies focused on pharmacological aspects of aculeate venoms to identify toxins, the toxin’s action and function, and to address how they can be counteracted or utilized for drug development. However, it is paradox that despite these long-time interactions between humans and hymenopterans not many recent, detailed, comparative studies (sampling also more hymenopteran species) exist to assess general biology and evolution of aculeate venom proteins.This project aims to tackle for the first time venom evolution and biology within aculeate hymenopterans in a comparative approach using the triade of modern venom science (venomics): transcriptomics, proteomics and genomics. The two major goals are to address possible venom variation between solitary and eusocial aculeates and how venom proteins differ between pollinating and predatory taxa. Aculeate taxa are further introduced as new model organism to understand fundamental principles and to test current hypotheses in venom evolution and venom biology.Main questions in this project are:Do aculeates show venom variations and specific venom proteins, which are characteristic for different sociality modes?Do we find a strong venom variation between pollinating and predatory aculeates?Harbor predatory aculeates like wasps more putative toxins, which show higher selection pressure?Which venom proteins are shared by aculeates and parasitoid wasps, which are unique?Occur neurotoxins from parasitoid wasps, such as pimplin also in aculeates and how did they evolve from parasitoid wasps to aculeate variants?Is gene duplication and recruitment of venom proteins into venom glands strongly evidenced as major force of venom evolution within aculeates?Is evidence found for multiple recruitment processes for selected putative toxins in the comparative analysis including body and venom gland tissue?