Similar Datasets
Project description:High-throughput RNA sequencing was carried out for understanding of caste and organs of Asian honeybees.
2021-04-01 | GSE171284 | GEO
Project description:Transcriptional profiling of brain tissue of was performed by RNA-SEQ in workers, queens and males. The sex and caste specific expressed and spliced genes were examined comparing drone, worker and queen honeybees.
2013-03-27 | GSE45408 | GEO
Project description:Honeybees are very important eusocial insects and are involved in the pollination of many plants. Queen bees and worker bees develop from the same fertilized eggs, and are thus genetically identical despite their substantial behavioural and physiological differences. The mechanism governing developmental differences between worker and queen bees has always attracted much interest. While there are several reports on mRNA expression related to caste differentiation, no systematic investigation of small RNAs has thus far been carried out. Results: Using deep sequencing we systematically profiled small RNA expression in 4th-6th day worker larvae and queen larvae (the critical stages at which the fates of workers and queens are determined), and found that 38 miRNAs were differentially expressed between worker and queen larvae. In addition, 639 mature miRNA candidates were identified in our work for the first time, of which, 526 were expressed only in workers (318) or queens (208). Conclusion: We present the first profile of honeybee small RNAs and explore the mechanism of caste differentiation between worker and queen bees. Caste-specific expression patterns and large discrepancies in small RNA profiles between worker and queen bees indicate that small RNAs may be related to the differential development of worker and queen bee larvae. Results presented here will make a valuable contribution to understanding the caste switch between worker and queen bees.
2014-07-28 | GSE52630 | GEO
Project description:Epigenetic modifications are known to profoundly affect the development and behavior of social insects. In the well-known caste differentiation process of honeybee (Apis mellifera), female larvae with identical genomes are fed royal jellydifferently and develop into either normal workers or into very large, long-lived, and extremely fecund queens, and the queen-worker asymmetry of honeybee is known to be result largely to differential genomic imprinting during larval development that involves DNA methylation-based regulation. The discovery of reversible N6-methyladenosine (m6A) RNA methylation modification has defined a new era for RNA-metabolism-related genetic regulation, yet much remains unknown about m6A-mediated post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms. Here, we report the first honeybee RNA m6A methylome. Specifically, we used the m6A-seq technique to examine the RNA m6A methylomes of honeybee larvae, including queen and worker larvae at multiple instar stages. We identified multiple conserved features of m6A methylation machinery and transcriptome-wide m6A distribution trends among insect species, and observed that m6A marks exert functions in regulating caste differentiation, with apparently particularly strong functional impacts on fifth instar worker larvae. Functional annotation of differentially methylated candidate caste-differentiation-related transcripts revealed many known regulators of caste differentiation (e.g. ILP-2, p110, PI3K, and JHAMT etc.) as well as the widely-studied Vitellogenin gene, which has not previously been implicated in caste differentiation. As ever-more regulatory roles for m6A marks are discovered, honeybees may become an excellent model studying the biology of such epi-transcriptomic regulatory systems, from embryonic development through holometabolous caste-specific development and on towards behavior and the emergent social hierarchies underlying eusociality in animals.
2020-12-13 | GSE137000 | GEO
Project description:The emergence of eusociality is one of the major transitions in evolution. There have been several investigations into the reasons for shaping caste differentiation and social behavior of eusocial insects, such as ants and honeybees. However, the molecular mechanisms governing the sociality of these insects remain obscure. In this study, we profiled the transcriptome and chromatin accessibility of brain tissues in all castes: queens, males, gynes and workers in Monomorium pharaonis which is a typical caste-dependent eusocial insect. We created a comprehensive dataset including 16 RNA-seq and 16 ATAC-seq profiles from 4 biological replicates. We also demonstrated strong reproducibility of the datasets and identified specific genes and open chromatin regions in the genome that may be associated with caste differentiation. Overall, our data will be a valuable resource for further study of the mechanisms underlying eusocial insect behavior, particularly the role of the brain in the control of eusociality.
2020-01-04 | GSE143056 | GEO
Project description:Honeybees are very important eusocial insects and are involved in the pollination of many plants. Queen bees and worker bees develop from the same fertilized eggs, and are thus genetically identical despite their substantial behavioural and physiological differences. The mechanism governing developmental differences between worker and queen bees has always attracted much interest. While there are several reports on mRNA expression related to caste differentiation, no systematic investigation of small RNAs has thus far been carried out. Results: Using deep sequencing we systematically profiled small RNA expression in 4th-6th day worker larvae and queen larvae (the critical stages at which the fates of workers and queens are determined), and found that 38 miRNAs were differentially expressed between worker and queen larvae. In addition, 639 mature miRNA candidates were identified in our work for the first time, of which, 526 were expressed only in workers (318) or queens (208). Conclusion: We present the first profile of honeybee small RNAs and explore the mechanism of caste differentiation between worker and queen bees. Caste-specific expression patterns and large discrepancies in small RNA profiles between worker and queen bees indicate that small RNAs may be related to the differential development of worker and queen bee larvae. Results presented here will make a valuable contribution to understanding the caste switch between worker and queen bees. Three healthy 10-frame colonies of ‘Zhenongda No.1’- a high-yielding royal jelly breed of Apis mellifera ligustica , were maintained at the Huajiachi campus of Zhejiang University. In each colony, the queen laid eggs over a period of 24 hours in one empty frame which was subsequently moved to an egg-free super-chamber. After 66 hours (less than 18 hours after hatching), we transferred 150 larvae into queen cups to rear queens in each colony and put the queen cup frames into their corresponding colonies. 40-60 worker larvae and queen larvae were collected from each colony after 4 days (73~90 h after hatching), 5 days (97~114 h after hatching) and 6 days (121~138 h after hatching). The larval samples were collected into 50 ml tubes, immediately frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80C until being used for RNA extraction. After total RNA was extracted and quantified , relative equal amounts of total RNAs from each of the three sampling days were pooled into respectively worker and queen samples, and the fraction of small RNAs less than 30nt long was retained and sequenced on the Illumina/Solexa high-throughput platform (HTP).
2014-07-28 | E-GEOD-52630 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Ftz-f1 (Fushi tarazu transcription factor 1) is an orphan member of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily, with one of its transcriptional variant (βFtz-f) being homolog of the vertebrate SF1. Ftz-f1 gene is induced after a 20E pulse, and allows for the expression of down-stream genes in processes leading to major switching in development, like those of metamorphosis. In honeybees, the expression of some genes (e.g. vitellogenin, vg; pro-phenoloxidase, pro-Po; juvenile hormone esterase, jhe) during the last part of pharate-adult development is known to be under hormonal control [increasing juvenile hormone titers (JH) in the presence of declining levels of ecdysteroids], both, in queens and workers. However, despite the USP involvement in the gene expression cascade promoted by JH, it does not seem to be the unique mediator of its activity, and, thus, we are still ignorant of the molecular factors regulating the expression of these genes, at least, during the critical period of pharate-adult development. Here, we show that Amftz-f1 has caste-specific transcription profile in fat bodies during this developmental stage, peaking just at the moment of the resuming of JH titers increase in the presence of low levels of ecdysteroids. Knock-down experiments (by RNAi) showed that the expression of genes essential to adult development (e.g. vg, and cuticular protein genes) depends on ftz-f1. Our results suggest that Amftz-f1 can also be considered a competence factor to the expression of several genes during pharate-adult development, and, thus, as a key actor in one of the last developmental processes leading to caste differentiation in A. mellifera.
2018-12-13 | GSE90037 | GEO
Project description:The major environmental determinants of honeybee caste development come from larval nutrients: royal jelly stimulates the differentiation of larvae into queens, whereas beebread leads to worker bee fate. However, these determinants are not fully characterized. Here we report that plant RNAs, particularly miRNAs, which are more enriched in beebread than in royal jelly, delay development and decrease body and ovary size in honeybees, thereby preventing larval differentiation into queens and inducing development into worker bees. Mechanistic studies reveal that amTOR, a stimulatory gene in caste differentiation, is the direct target of miR162a. Interestingly, the same effect also exists in non-social Drosophila. When such plant RNAs and miRNAs are fed to Drosophila larvae, they cause extended developmental times and reductions in body weight and length, ovary size and fecundity. This study identifies an uncharacterized function of plant miRNAs that fine-tunes honeybee caste development, offering hints for understanding cross-kingdom interaction and coevolution.
2017-08-01 | GSE76286 | GEO
Project description:The parasitic mite Varroa destructor causes both direct and indirect damage to infested honeybees but precise information about the identity of the metabolic pathways that are affected is still missing. In order to gain a deeper knwoledge about the effects of parasitization at various levels, while reducing to the miminum the impact of possible confounding factors, a standardized experiment was carried out under artificial condition.
2017-02-15 | GSE94855 | GEO
Project description:Transcriptional profiling of brain tissue of was performed by RNA-SEQ in females and males. The sex specific expressed and spliced genes were examined comparing drone and worker honeybees. Examination of mRNA profiles in heads of male and female honeybees pupae were compared.
2013-03-27 | E-GEOD-45408 | biostudies-arrayexpress