« Previous AbstractDiversity of odourant binding proteins revealed by an expressed sequence tag project on male Manduca sexta moth antennae    Next AbstractBioremediation of engine-oil contaminated soil using local residual organic matter »

Genome Res

Title:		"The chemoreceptor superfamily in the honey bee, Apis mellifera: expansion of the odorant, but not gustatory, receptor family"
Author(s):		Robertson HM; Wanner KW;
Address:		"Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA. hughrobe@life.uiuc.edu"
Journal Title:		Genome Res
Year:		2006
Volume:		20061025
Issue:		11
Page Number:		1395 - 1403
DOI:		10.1101/gr.5057506
ISSN/ISBN:		1088-9051 (Print) 1549-5477 (Electronic) 1088-9051 (Linking)
Abstract:		"The honey bee genome sequence reveals a remarkable expansion of the insect odorant receptor (Or) family relative to the repertoires of the flies Drosophila melanogaster and Anopheles gambiae, which have 62 and 79 Ors respectively. A total of 170 Or genes were annotated in the bee, of which seven are pseudogenes. These constitute five bee-specific subfamilies in an insect Or family tree, one of which has expanded to a total of 157 genes encoding proteins with 15%-99% amino acid identity. Most of the Or genes are in tandem arrays, including one with 60 genes. This bee-specific expansion of the Or repertoire presumably underlies their remarkable olfactory abilities, including perception of several pheromone blends, kin recognition signals, and diverse floral odors. The number of Apis mellifera Ors is approximately equal to the number of glomeruli in the bee antennal lobe (160-170), consistent with a general one-receptor/one-neuron/one-glomerulus relationship. The bee genome encodes just 10 gustatory receptors (Grs) compared with the D. melanogaster and A. gambiae repertoires of 68 and 76 Grs, respectively. A lack of Gr gene family expansion primarily accounts for this difference. A nurturing hive environment and a mutualistic relationship with plants may explain the lack of Gr family expansion. The Or family is the most dramatic example of gene family expansion in the bee genome, and characterizing their caste- and sex-specific gene expression may provide clues to their specific roles in detection of pheromone, kin, and floral odors"
Keywords:		"Animals Bees/*genetics/physiology Chemoreceptor Cells/*physiology Drosophila melanogaster/genetics/physiology Female Genes, Insect Insect Proteins/*genetics Male Multigene Family Phylogeny Receptors, Cell Surface/*genetics Receptors, Odorant/*genetics Spe;"
Notes:		"MedlineRobertson, Hugh M Wanner, Kevin W eng R01 AI056081/AI/NIAID NIH HHS/ AI56081/AI/NIAID NIH HHS/ Comparative Study Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural 2006/10/27 Genome Res. 2006 Nov; 16(11):1395-403. doi: 10.1101/gr.5057506. Epub 2006 Oct 25"