title: Gonadotropic and physiological functions of juvenile hormone in Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) workers.
abstract: The evolution of advanced sociality in bees is associated with apparent modifications in juvenile hormone (JH) signaling. By contrast to most insects in which JH is a gonadotropin regulating female fertility, in the highly eusocial honey bee (Apis mellifera) JH has lost its gonadotrophic function in adult females, and instead regulates age-related division of labor among worker bees. In order to shed light on the evolution of JH signaling in bees we performed allatectomy and replacement therapies to manipulate JH levels in workers of the "primitively eusocial" bumblebee Bombus terrestris. Allatectomized worker bees showed remarkable reduction in ovarian development, egg laying, Vitellogenin and Krüppel homolog 1 fat body transcript levels, hemolymph Vitellogenin protein abundance, wax secretion, and egg-cell construction. These effects were reverted, at least partially, by treating allatectomized bees with JH-III, the natural JH of bees. Allatectomy also affected the amount of ester component in Dufour's gland secretion, which is thought to convey a social signal relating to worker fertility. These findings provide a strong support for the hypothesis that in contrast to honey bees, JH is a gonadotropin in bumblebees and lend credence to the hypothesis that the evolution of advanced eusociality in honey bees was associated with major modifications in JH signaling.
authors: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors: Hagai
authors: H
authors: Shpigler
authors: Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors: Etya
authors: E
authors: Amsalem
authors: Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, United States of America.
authors: Zachary Y
authors: ZY
authors: Huang
authors: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors: Mira
authors: M
authors: Cohen
authors: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors: Adam J
authors: AJ
authors: Siegel
authors: Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors: Abraham
authors: A
authors: Hefetz
authors: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors: Guy
authors: G
authors: Bloch
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D003335:Corpora Allata / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D015870:Gene Expression; D006062:Gonadotropins / Q000378:metabolism; D006458:Hemolymph / Q000378:metabolism; D007605:Juvenile Hormones / Q000378:metabolism*; D009866:Oogenesis; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D012098:Reproduction; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014819:Vitellogenins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D006062:Gonadotropins; D007605:Juvenile Hormones; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014819:Vitellogenins