Gene reuse facilitates rapid radiation and independent adaptation to diverse habitats in the Asian honeybee
Yongkun Ji, Xingan Li, Ting Ji, Junbo Tang, Lifei Qiu, Jiahui Hu, Jiangxing Dong, Shiqi Luo, Shanlin Liu, Paul B. Frandsen, Xuguo Zhou, Xuguo Zhou, Sajad Hussain Parey, Li Lianming, Qingsheng Niu, Xin Zhou, Xin Zhou
Abstract
, we showed that multiple peripheral subspecies radiated from a central ancestral population and adapted independently to diverse habitats. We found strong evidence of gene reuse in the Leucokinin receptor (Lkr), which was repeatedly selected in almost all peripheral subspecies. Differential expression and RNA interference knockdown revealed the role of Lkr in influencing foraging labor division, suggesting that Lkr facilitates collective tendency for pollen/nectar collection as an adaptation to floral changes. Our results suggest that honeybees may accommodate diverse floral shifts during rapid radiation through fine-tuning individual foraging tendency, a seemingly complex process accomplished by gene reuse.