Candidate foraging gene orthologs in a lower termite, Reticulitermes flavipes

Under a sociogenomic context, the molecular mechanisms underlying gene‐behavior associations are of particular interest. The Drosophila foraging (for) gene has been demonstrated to have a causal role in insect behavioral plasticity. Previous studies of for have revealed many facets of for function,...

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Veröffentlicht in:Journal of experimental zoology. Part B, Molecular and developmental evolution Molecular and developmental evolution, 2020-05, Vol.334 (3), p.168-177
Hauptverfasser: Merchant, Austin, Song, Dongyan, Yang, Xiaowei, Li, Xiangrui, Zhou, Xuguo “Joe” 
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Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:Under a sociogenomic context, the molecular mechanisms underlying gene‐behavior associations are of particular interest. The Drosophila foraging (for) gene has been demonstrated to have a causal role in insect behavioral plasticity. Previous studies of for have revealed many facets of for function, including roles in foraging, energy metabolism, learning and memory, circadian rhythm, and stress resistance. for orthologs have been identified in a variety of insect taxa. However, expression patterns are not consistent across all insects, with for orthologs serving as both positive and negative regulators of foraging behavior. In this study, we cloned two for orthologs, Rffor‐α and Rffor‐β, from the Eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes. Spatial distribution study showed that the termite brain possesses significantly higher expression levels of Rffor‐α and Rffor‐β than other types of tissues, which suggests that for may act on the brain to influence an individual's ability to respond to its environment. The temporal expression profile of Rffor across different developmental stages suggests that Rffor functions as a negative regulator of foraging behavior. However, results from environmental impacts, that is, temperature and photoperiod, do not fit under a model of negative correlation between gene expression and locomotion. Further testing is warranted to better understand the interaction between Rffor expression and the environment. Candidate foraging gene orthologs in a lower termite, Reticulitermes flavipes. (a) The primary structures of Reticulitermes flavipes genes Rffor‐α and Rffor‐β, which are consistent with those found in other cGMP‐dependent protein kinases (PKGs), (b) Reticulitermes flavipes workers and soldiers, and (c) temporal expression profiles of both Rffor genes showed caste‐biased expression patterns. Research highlights We identified two orthologs of the Drosophila foraging gene in the termite Reticulitermes flavipes. Expression of Rffor‐α and Rffor‐β was highly localized in the brain and showed strong gene × environment interactions, indicative of involvement in behavioral regulation.
ISSN:1552-5007
1552-5015
DOI:10.1002/jez.b.22918