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J Chem Ecol

Title:		Regulation of reproduction in the primitively eusocial wasp Ropalidia marginata: on the trail of the queen pheromone
Author(s):		Bhadra A; Mitra A; Deshpande SA; Chandrasekhar K; Naik DG; Hefetz A; Gadagkar R;
Address:		"Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India"
Journal Title:		J Chem Ecol
Year:		2010
Volume:		20100318
Issue:		4
Page Number:		424 - 431
DOI:		10.1007/s10886-010-9770-x
ISSN/ISBN:		1573-1561 (Electronic) 0098-0331 (Linking)
Abstract:		"Queens and workers are not morphologically differentiated in the primitively eusocial wasp, Ropalidia marginata. Upon removal of the queen, one of the workers becomes extremely aggressive, but immediately drops her aggression if the queen is returned. If the queen is not returned, this hyper-aggressive individual, the potential queen (PQ), will develop her ovaries, lose her hyper-aggression, and become the next colony queen. Because of the non-aggressive nature of the queen, and because the PQ loses her aggression by the time she starts laying eggs, we hypothesized that regulation of worker reproduction in R. marginata is mediated by pheromones rather than by physical aggression. Based on the immediate loss of aggression by the PQ upon return of the queen, we developed a bioassay to test whether the queen's Dufour's gland is, at least, one of the sources of the queen pheromone. Macerates of the queen's Dufour's gland, but not that of the worker's Dufour's gland, mimic the queen in making the PQ decrease her aggression. We also correctly distinguished queens and workers of R. marginata nests by a discriminant function analysis based on the chemical composition of their respective Dufour's glands"
Keywords:		Animals Discriminant Analysis Female Hydrocarbons/*chemistry *Oviparity *Pheromones Social Dominance Wasps/*chemistry;
Notes:		"MedlineBhadra, Anindita Mitra, Aniruddha Deshpande, Sujata A Chandrasekhar, Kannepalli Naik, Dattatraya G Hefetz, Abraham Gadagkar, Raghavendra eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2010/03/20 J Chem Ecol. 2010 Apr; 36(4):424-31. doi: 10.1007/s10886-010-9770-x. Epub 2010 Mar 18"