TL;DR:
- The diverse nature of wasp societies makes them a valuable subject of research into the evolution of animal societies.
- The queen and worker castes in social insects, including wasps, evolved at least eight times independently in Hymenoptera and are critical to the success of the colony.
- The molecular mechanisms driving insect societies are more complex than previously thought and influenced by the complexity of society and life history.
- A recent study published in Nature Communications studied the activation of genes in the brains of nine genera of social wasps from around the world using AI.
- The study found evidence for the social toolkit hypothesis, with queens characterized by fewer active genes compared to workers.
- The complexity of society also influences the molecular toolkit, with more complex societies requiring additional molecular processes.
- A limited focus on popular species has given a limited perspective on the evolution of societies, requiring innovation and a broader perspective to unlock their secrets.
Main AI News:
The UK is basking in the beauty of spring and its daffodils. As a queen yellowjacket wasp emerges from a loft, she sets out to build a paper nest to house her growing family. Despite being less studied than other social insects like bees and ants, the diverse nature of wasp societies makes them an intriguing subject of research. In a recent study published in Nature Communications, my team delved into the genetic makeup of nine wasp species to uncover the underlying factors that distinguish a queen from a worker.
Our findings challenge conventional wisdom in the scientific community and offer new insight into the molecular mechanisms driving insect societies. Social insects, including bees, wasps, and ants, thrive due to their highly organized division of labor. The queen and worker castes evolved at least eight times in Hymenoptera independently, and the yellowjacket queen is no exception. As her first brood hatches, she becomes a dedicated egg producer, while her worker offspring take over tasks such as expanding the nest and foraging for food.
This seamless cooperation between the queen and her workers is the key to the success of social insects. Like different tissues in the human body, the queen and workers divide the duties of the society between them, working in perfect harmony to ensure the survival of their colony. Understanding the genetic basis for this division of labor helps shed light on the evolution of animal societies and the role of social insects in our ecosystem.
The Art of Socializing with a Sting In the world of social insects, there’s always more to discover. Take the Metapolybia wasps in Trinidad, for example, where multiple queens and workers join forces to search for a new nest site. The swarm settles on a tree trunk and begins constructing a papery nest that resembles a cow pat. However, after a few weeks of growth, only one queen remains in charge. The exact process of selecting the queen remains a mystery, but those who don’t make the final cut become workers. Interestingly, young Metapolybia workers are “totipotent,” meaning they can take over as queen if the current one dies, while older workers undergo insect “menopause” and can no longer reproduce.
In contrast, some wasp societies are simpler. Take the Polistes paper wasps along the banks of the Panama Canal, where their nests hang like old shoes from trees, bridges, and houses. Each nest is home to dozens of female wasps, but only one of them holds the title of a queen at any given time. When the queen dies, the hierarchy collapses, and a fierce battle ensues to determine her replacement.
Thanks to advancements in molecular biology, we now understand that queens and workers in insect societies are simply different expressions of the same genome. Their physiological and behavioral differences stem from the activation of shared genes in different ways. In honeybees, for instance, hundreds of genes separate queens from workers, and the same is true for fire ants, bumblebees, and paper wasps. Scientists have long considered this a shared social toolkit. However, our understanding of this complex world is constantly evolving.
Insights into Social Insects Comparing data on social insects is a complex task, as researchers often focus on popular species and use different methods, making it difficult to compare results. To overcome these challenges, my team took a holistic approach and studied the activation of genes in the brains of nine genera of social wasps from around the world, including species with both simple and complex societies.
Our focus on the brain was strategic, as differences in gene activation in the brain shape behaviors such as foraging, mating, and nest building, as well as physiology, such as egg production. We used consistent sampling and sequencing techniques across all species and leveraged artificial intelligence (AI) to process the data. The AI was trained to identify castes and classify samples as queens or workers based on patterns in gene activation.
If the social toolkit hypothesis was correct, we expected to see shared activation profiles for queens and workers across all species. The AI analysis provided some evidence for this theory, with correct classification for seven of the nine species. Intriguingly, the results showed that queens are characterized by fewer active genes compared to workers, perhaps due to the specialized role of queens as egg-laying specialists, while workers perform a wider range of tasks.
Our study sheds new light on the complexities of social insect societies and provides valuable insights into the genetic basis of their behavior and physiology. As we continue to unlock the secrets of these fascinating creatures, we expand our understanding of the diversity of life on our planet.
The Complexities of Social Insect Societies Our study reveals that the complexity of society also plays a crucial role in shaping the molecular toolkit of social insects. Our AI methods showed that while the basic molecular toolkit provides the foundation for simpler societies, more complex societies, like superorganisms like yellowjacket wasps, require additional molecular processes.
Our results indicate that the molecular toolkit for social life is more intricate than previously believed, with the type of colony influencing the way evolution modifies the building blocks of life to create societies. Life history further complicates this picture, with species-specific factors such as whether they build new nests alone or with a swarm of queens and workers influencing the social toolkit.
Our narrow scientific focus on a few popular species has given us a limited perspective on the evolution of societies. The transition from simple groups like paper wasps to highly complex superorganisms like yellowjackets may require a fundamental shift in the molecular machinery. Overcoming this challenge will require innovation and a broader perspective on the diversity of life on our planet.
Conlcusion:
The recent study on the genetic makeup of nine wasp species provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms driving insect societies and the evolution of animal societies. The study found that the complexity of a society plays a crucial role in shaping the molecular toolkit of social insects and that more complex societies require additional molecular processes. The results indicate that the molecular toolkit for social life is more intricate than previously believed, with the type of colony and life history influencing the way evolution modifies the building blocks of life to create societies. The narrow scientific focus on popular species has given a limited perspective on the evolution of societies and requires a broader perspective and innovation to unlock the secrets of these fascinating creatures.
