Meeting Abstract
Insects rely heavily on their sense of smell as a way to assess their surroundings and nearby organisms. In a lifestyle termed eusociality, bees, wasps, and ants form a hierarchy in which there are a limited amount of reproductive individuals and the rest become workers or nurses. Coordinated communication in the colony is mediated through the olfactory system, where each ant has a specific scent, acting as a “chemical ID”, signifying one’s own reproductive status, age, sex, etc. in the colony. These odors are made up of Cuticular Hydrocarbons (CHCs), which coat their exoskeleton. With the critical nature of smell for communication, there needs to be receptors to transmit and send the signal for higher level processing and recognition. Harpegnathos saltator, also known as the Indian Jumping Ant, has become a prime model for studying eusociality due to its reproductive behaviors, and the rapidly evolving 9-exon subfamily, which makes up the majority of CHC receptors. Focusing on specific HsOr lineages undergoing positive selection, we are examining how genetic variation can lead to differences in CHC sensitivity. Using an HsOr expression system in Drosophila melanogaster, we can functionally characterize odorant receptors within its genome. Utilizing electrophysiology, we can puff certain odors onto the fly that has a specific receptor, and see if there is a response based on their electrical signals that are being tracked. Through this work, we hope to understand how rapid evolution of olfactory receptors can facilitate the chemical communication required for the hierarchical lifestyle in ants and other eusocial insects. Building on this, by determining protein receptor structures, and identifying their function by accordance with smell, we may not only be able to preserve eusocial insect communities, but confront the issues of agricultural pests and human disease vectors.
