Abstract
In the eusocial honey bee Apis mellifera, with reproductive queens and sterile workers, a female larva's developmental fate depends on its diet; nurse bees feed queen-destined larvae exclusively royal jelly, a glandular secretion, but worker-destined larvae receive royal jelly for 3 days and subsequently jelly to which honey and beebread are added. RNA-Seq analysis demonstrated that p-coumaric acid, which is ubiquitous in honey and beebread, differentially regulates genes involved in caste determination. Rearing larvae in vitro on a royal jelly diet to which p-coumaric acid has been added produces adults with reduced ovary development. Thus, consuming royal jelly exclusively not only enriches the diet of queen-destined larvae but also may protect them from inhibitory effects of phytochemicals present in the honey and beebread fed to worker-destined larvae.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | e1500795 |
| Journal | Science Advances |
| Volume | 1 |
| Issue number | 7 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Aug 2015 |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine(all)
Cite this
A dietary phytochemical alters caste-associated gene expression in honey bees. / Mao, Wenfu; Schuler, Mary A; Berenbaum, May R.
In: Science Advances, Vol. 1, No. 7, e1500795, 08.2015.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - A dietary phytochemical alters caste-associated gene expression in honey bees
AU - Mao, Wenfu
AU - Schuler, Mary A
AU - Berenbaum, May R
PY - 2015/8
Y1 - 2015/8
N2 - In the eusocial honey bee Apis mellifera, with reproductive queens and sterile workers, a female larva's developmental fate depends on its diet; nurse bees feed queen-destined larvae exclusively royal jelly, a glandular secretion, but worker-destined larvae receive royal jelly for 3 days and subsequently jelly to which honey and beebread are added. RNA-Seq analysis demonstrated that p-coumaric acid, which is ubiquitous in honey and beebread, differentially regulates genes involved in caste determination. Rearing larvae in vitro on a royal jelly diet to which p-coumaric acid has been added produces adults with reduced ovary development. Thus, consuming royal jelly exclusively not only enriches the diet of queen-destined larvae but also may protect them from inhibitory effects of phytochemicals present in the honey and beebread fed to worker-destined larvae.
AB - In the eusocial honey bee Apis mellifera, with reproductive queens and sterile workers, a female larva's developmental fate depends on its diet; nurse bees feed queen-destined larvae exclusively royal jelly, a glandular secretion, but worker-destined larvae receive royal jelly for 3 days and subsequently jelly to which honey and beebread are added. RNA-Seq analysis demonstrated that p-coumaric acid, which is ubiquitous in honey and beebread, differentially regulates genes involved in caste determination. Rearing larvae in vitro on a royal jelly diet to which p-coumaric acid has been added produces adults with reduced ovary development. Thus, consuming royal jelly exclusively not only enriches the diet of queen-destined larvae but also may protect them from inhibitory effects of phytochemicals present in the honey and beebread fed to worker-destined larvae.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85027834963&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85027834963&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1126/sciadv.1500795
DO - 10.1126/sciadv.1500795
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85027834963
VL - 1
JO - Science advances
JF - Science advances
SN - 2375-2548
IS - 7
M1 - e1500795
ER -