Expansion and Accelerated Evolution of 9-Exon Odorant Receptors in Polistes Paper Wasps.

ABSTRACT: Independent origins of sociality in bees and ants are associated with independent expansions of particular odorant receptor (OR) gene subfamilies. In ants, one clade within the OR gene family, the 9-exon subfamily, has dramatically expanded. These receptors detect cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs), key social signaling molecules in insects. It is unclear to what extent 9-exon OR subfamily expansion is associated with the independent evolution of sociality across Hymenoptera, warranting studies of taxa with independently derived social behavior. Here, we describe OR gene family evolution in the northern paper wasp, Polistes fuscatus, and compare it to four additional paper wasp species spanning ∼40 million years of evolutionary divergence. We find 200 putatively functional OR genes in P. fuscat

SUBMITTER: Legan AW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8383895 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature