CHARACTERIZING ECDYSTEROID TITER PROFILES AND THE FUNCTIONAL ROLE OF ECDYSTEROIDS IN ADULT WORKER HONEY BEES (APIS MELLIFERA)

The reproductive ground plan hypothesis (RGPH) suggests the coordination of social behaviors in honey bees emerged from pathways that regulate reproduction in solitary species. I examined possible mechanisms of the RGPH in honey bees through analysis of the ecdysteroid profiles of adult worker honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). Ecdysteroids have been thought to play little role in the physiology of adult worker honey bees outside of reproduction because little was known about ecdysteroid production across the lifespan of individual workers. The data reported here reveal that significant and dynamic production of ecdysteroids occurs in adult worker honey bees, typically in the absence of morphological signs of ovarian development, and that queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) regulation of ecdysteroid production is dependent upon social context. Additionally I explored novel roles of ecdysteroids in behavior and physiology. Comparison of observations in the first days of foraging revealed that 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) treated bees displayed higher levels of foraging activity than vehicle-treated controls, suggesting a novel role for the ecdysteroids present in adult worker bees. I further demonstrated preliminary evidence of a modulatory effect of QMP on hemocytes in worker bees and a potential enhanced recovery from a decrease in hemocytes by treatment of 20E. I also provide evidence that bees held in queenless conditions may have unique immunocompetence profiles, specifically reducing the production of glucose oxidase (GOX). The results presented here provide an updated view of ecdysteroid profiles of adult bees and present an initial survey of the role of ecdysteroids and pheromone exposure in the physiology and behavior of adult worker honey bees.

Grantor dc:publisher

Wake Forest University

Year dc:date.issued

2016

Author dc:creator

• Trawinski, Ashton Marjorie

• Ecdysteroid

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/59276

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:wakespace.lib.wfu.edu:10339/59276