IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v14y2023i1d10.1038_s41467-023-36456-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Social complexity, life-history and lineage influence the molecular basis of castes in vespid wasps

Author

Listed:
  • Christopher Douglas Robert Wyatt

    (University College London)

  • Michael Andrew Bentley

    (University College London)

  • Daisy Taylor

    (University of Bristol)

  • Emeline Favreau

    (University College London)

  • Ryan Edward Brock

    (University of Bristol
    Norwich Research Park)

  • Benjamin Aaron Taylor

    (University College London)

  • Emily Bell

    (University of Bristol)

  • Ellouise Leadbeater

    (Royal Holloway University of London)

  • Seirian Sumner

    (University College London)

Abstract

A key mechanistic hypothesis for the evolution of division of labour in social insects is that a shared set of genes co-opted from a common solitary ancestral ground plan (a genetic toolkit for sociality) regulates caste differentiation across levels of social complexity. Using brain transcriptome data from nine species of vespid wasps, we test for overlap in differentially expressed caste genes and use machine learning models to predict castes using different gene sets. We find evidence of a shared genetic toolkit across species representing different levels of social complexity. We also find evidence of additional fine-scale differences in predictive gene sets, functional enrichment and rates of gene evolution that are related to level of social complexity, lineage and of colony founding. These results suggest that the concept of a shared genetic toolkit for sociality may be too simplistic to fully describe the process of the major transition to sociality.

Suggested Citation

  • Christopher Douglas Robert Wyatt & Michael Andrew Bentley & Daisy Taylor & Emeline Favreau & Ryan Edward Brock & Benjamin Aaron Taylor & Emily Bell & Ellouise Leadbeater & Seirian Sumner, 2023. "Social complexity, life-history and lineage influence the molecular basis of castes in vespid wasps," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-16, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:14:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-023-36456-6
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-36456-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-36456-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-023-36456-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Benjamin A. Taylor & Alessandro Cini & Christopher D. R. Wyatt & Max Reuter & Seirian Sumner, 2021. "The molecular basis of socially mediated phenotypic plasticity in a eusocial paper wasp," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Michael R. Warner & Lijun Qiu & Michael J. Holmes & Alexander S. Mikheyev & Timothy A. Linksvayer, 2019. "Convergent eusocial evolution is based on a shared reproductive groundplan plus lineage-specific plastic genes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-11, December.
    3. Sarah D. Kocher & Ricardo Mallarino & Benjamin E. R. Rubin & Douglas W. Yu & Hopi E. Hoekstra & Naomi E. Pierce, 2018. "The genetic basis of a social polymorphism in halictid bees," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 9(1), pages 1-7, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chao Tong & Leticia Avilés & Linda S. Rayor & Alexander S. Mikheyev & Timothy A. Linksvayer, 2022. "Genomic signatures of recent convergent transitions to social life in spiders," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    2. Lopes, Tiago Camarinha, 2022. "Humans, technology and control: An essay based on the metalanguage of economic calculation," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 204(C), pages 631-642.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:14:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-023-36456-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.