Characterization of antennal sensilla, larvae morphology and olfactory genes of Melipona scutellaris stingless bee.

ABSTRACT: There is growing evidence in the literature suggesting that caste differentiation in the stingless bee, Melipona scutellaris, and other bees in the genus Melipona, is triggered by environmental signals, particularly a primer pheromone. With the proper amount of food and a chemical stimulus, 25% of females emerge as queens, in agreement with a long-standing "two loci/two alleles model" proposed in the 1950s. We surmised that these larvae must be equipped with an olfactory system for reception of these chemical signals. Here we describe for the first time the diversity of antennal sensilla in adults and the morphology of larvae of M. scutellaris. Having found evidence for putative olfactory sensilla in larvae, we next asked whether olfactory proteins were expressed in larvae. Since the molec

SUBMITTER: Carvalho WJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5396885 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature