Odorant Receptors Expressing and Antennal Lobes Architecture Are Linked to Caste Dimorphism in Asian Honeybee, Apis cerana (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Insects heavily rely on the olfactory system for food, mating, and predator evasion. However, the caste-related olfactory differences in , a eusocial insect, remain unclear. To explore the peripheral and primary center of the olfactory system link to the caste dimorphism in , transcriptome and immun...

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Published in:International journal of molecular sciences 2024-04, Vol.25 (7), p.3934
Main Authors: Ke, Haoqin, Chen, Yu, Zhang, Baoyi, Duan, Shiwen, Ma, Xiaomei, Ren, Bingzhong, Wang, Yinliang
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
antennal lobes
apis olfactory system
bee glomeruli
Bees - genetics
caste dimorphism
Cell Communication
Food
Genes
Hymenoptera
Insects
Nervous system
odorant receptor
Pathogens
Pesticides
Pheromones
Plant reproduction
Receptors, Odorant - genetics
Sex Characteristics
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Summary:Insects heavily rely on the olfactory system for food, mating, and predator evasion. However, the caste-related olfactory differences in , a eusocial insect, remain unclear. To explore the peripheral and primary center of the olfactory system link to the caste dimorphism in , transcriptome and immunohistochemistry studies on the odorant receptors (ORs) and architecture of antennal lobes (ALs) were performed on different castes. Through transcriptomesis, we found more olfactory receptor genes in queens and workers than in drones, which were further validated by RT-qPCR, indicating caste dimorphism. Meanwhile, ALs structure, including volume, surface area, and the number of glomeruli, demonstrated a close association with caste dimorphism. Particularly, drones had more macroglomeruli possibly for pheromone recognition. Interestingly, we found that the number of ORs and glomeruli ratio was nearly 1:1. Also, the ORs expression distribution pattern was very similar to the distribution of glomeruli volume. Our results suggest the existence of concurrent plasticity in both the peripheral olfactory system and ALs among different castes of , highlighting the role of the olfactory system in labor division in insects.
ISSN:1422-0067
1661-6596
1422-0067
DOI:10.3390/ijms25073934