Downregulation of Orco and 5-HTT Alters Nestmate Discrimination in the Subterranean Termite Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki).

ABSTRACT: Nestmate discrimination allows social insects to recognize nestmates from non-nestmates using colony-specific chemosensory cues, which typically evoke aggressive behavior toward non-nestmates. Functional analysis of genes associated with nestmate discrimination has been primarily focused on inter-colonial discrimination in Hymenopterans, and parallel studies in termites, however, are grossly lacking. To fill this gap, we investigated the role of two genes, Orco and 5-HTT, associated with chemosensation and neurotransmission respectively, in nestmate discrimination in a highly eusocial subterranean termite, Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki). We hypothesized that knocking down of these genes will compromise the nestmate recognition and lead to the antagonistic behavior.

SUBMITTER: Sun P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6579916 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature