Abstract
We examined changes in the content of biogenic amines in the brains of ant queen associated with early colony establishment. In ants, including Formica japonica, winged virgin queens lose their wings following copulation, and then start establishing a colony. Significant changes in brain biogenic amine content in the queen are associated with transition from winged virgin queen to wingless mated queen. The levels of serotonin (5HT), octopamine (OA) and dopamine (DA) decreased significantly in the brain of the queen after starting a colony. On the other hand, tyramine (TA) increased significantly in the brain following colony establishment. Catabolized substances of the biogenic amines in the brain were also measured. The levels of N-acetyloctopamine (Nac-OA) and N-acetyltyramine (Nac-TA) in the brain did not show a significant change after the queen established a colony. However, the levels of N-acetylserotonin (Nac-5HT) in the brain were significantly higher in wingless mated queens than in winged virgin queens, whereas levels of N-acetyldopamine (Nac-DA) in the brain were significantly lower in wingless mated queens than winged virgin queens. These results suggest that serotonergic and octopaminergic systems in the brain of the queen change when the mated queen starts to establish a new colony.
Highlights
The Japanese wood ant, Formica japonica is one of the most common ants in Japan
We examined changes in biogenic amine levels of queen brain’s that are associated with the transition from winged virgin queen to wingless mated queen (Table 1)
Brain biogenic amine catabolites were measured in order to estimate the dynamics of biogenic amine changes in the brain
Summary
The Japanese wood ant, Formica japonica is one of the most common ants in Japan. The colonies of this species are largely polygynous and contain thousands of workers and broods [1,2]. Polygyny (i.e. the presence of more than one queen in a colony of social insects) is thought to be rather common in Formica ants [3]. There are hundreds of newborn queens and males living together in a single colony of F. japonica in the early summer. When newborn queens of F. japonica become sexually mature, they disperse from the nest and perform a nuptial flight. Queens land, shed their wings using their legs, and start finding places to establish new colonies
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