Abstract
The termites evolved eusociality and complex societies before the ants, but have been studied much less. The recent publication of the first two termite genomes provides a unique comparative opportunity, particularly because the sequenced termites represent opposite ends of the social complexity spectrum. Zootermopsis nevadensis has simple colonies with totipotent workers that can develop into all castes (dispersing reproductives, nest-inheriting replacement reproductives, and soldiers). In contrast, the fungus-growing termite Macrotermes natalensis belongs to the higher termites and has very large and complex societies with morphologically distinct castes that are life-time sterile. Here we compare key characteristics of genomic architecture, focusing on genes involved in communication, immune defenses, mating biology and symbiosis that were likely important in termite social evolution. We discuss these in relation to what is known about these genes in the ants and outline hypothesis for further testing.
Highlights
The termites are “social cockroaches,” a monophyletic clade (Infraorder “Isoptera”) nested within the Blattodea (Inward et al, 2007a; Engel et al, 2009; Krishna et al, 2013)
MATING BIOLOGY Compared to M. natalensis, the Z. nevadensis genome is enriched in genes that are related to male fertility/spermatogenesis (e.g., KLHL10) (Table 4, Table S7)
The gene families underlying chemical communication seem not to be expanded in the more complex fungus-growing termite compared to Z. nevadensis
Summary
The termites are “social cockroaches,” a monophyletic clade (Infraorder “Isoptera”) nested within the Blattodea (Inward et al, 2007a; Engel et al, 2009; Krishna et al, 2013). Termites and ants share many traits that convergently evolved in response to similar selective pressures (Thorne and Traniello, 2003; Korb, 2008; Howard and Thorne, 2011) Both are mostly soil-dwelling and continuously exposed to high pathogen loads and their long-lived, populous and genetically homogenous colonies appear to be ideal targets for infections (Schmid-Hempel, 1998). Wood-dwelling species (Abe, 1987; Shellman-Reeve, 1997) nest within a single piece of dead wood that serves both as food and nesting habitat so the termites never leave their nest to forage This social syndrome is widely considered to be ancestral (e.g., Noirot and Pasteels, 1987, 1988; Inward et al, 2007b) and associated with high degrees of developmental plasticity for the individual termites (Figure 2A). We compare the genomes of these divergent species (Table 1) with those of other insects and outline first hypotheses how sociality and ecological factors left their footprints in the genomes
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