title: Division of labor in the honey bee (Apis mellifera): the role of tyramine beta-hydroxylase.
abstract: The biogenic amine octopamine (OA) is involved in the regulation of honey bee behavioral development; brain levels are higher in foragers than bees working in the hive, especially in the antennal lobes, and treatment causes precocious foraging. We measured brain mRNA and protein activity of tyramine beta-hydroxylase (T betah), an enzyme vital for OA synthesis, in order to begin testing the hypothesis that this enzyme is responsible for the rising levels of OA during honey bee behavioral development. Brain OA levels were greater in forager bees than in bees engaged in brood care, as in previous studies, but T betah activity was not correlated with bee behavior. T betah mRNA levels, however, did closely track OA levels during behavioral development, and T betah mRNA was localized to previously identified octopaminergic neurons in the bee brain. Our results show that the transcription of this neurotransmitter synthetic enzyme is associated with regulation of social behavior in honey bees, but other factors may be involved.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Hamilton College, Clinton, NY 13323, USA. hlehman@hamilton.edu
authors.forename: Herman K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Lehman
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.forename: Andrew B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Barron
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wraight
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hardison
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Whitney
authors.forename: Hideaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takeuchi
authors.forename: Rajib K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Paul
authors.forename: Gene E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Robinson
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees / Q000201:enzymology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000378:metabolism; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D006899:Mixed Function Oxygenases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009655:Octopamine / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D009655:Octopamine; D006899:Mixed Function Oxygenases; C023205:tyramine beta-hydroxylase