Draft genome of the globally widespread and invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile).
Details
Serval ID
serval:BIB_310440611FA0
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Draft genome of the globally widespread and invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile).
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
ISSN
1091-6490 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
0027-8424
Publication state
Published
Issued date
2011
Volume
108
Number
14
Pages
5673-5678
Language
english
Abstract
Ants are some of the most abundant and familiar animals on Earth, and they play vital roles in most terrestrial ecosystems. Although all ants are eusocial, and display a variety of complex and fascinating behaviors, few genomic resources exist for them. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of a particularly widespread and well-studied species, the invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile), which was accomplished using a combination of 454 (Roche) and Illumina sequencing and community-based funding rather than federal grant support. Manual annotation of >1,000 genes from a variety of different gene families and functional classes reveals unique features of the Argentine ant's biology, as well as similarities to Apis mellifera and Nasonia vitripennis. Distinctive features of the Argentine ant genome include remarkable expansions of gustatory (116 genes) and odorant receptors (367 genes), an abundance of cytochrome P450 genes (>110), lineage-specific expansions of yellow/major royal jelly proteins and desaturases, and complete CpG DNA methylation and RNAi toolkits. The Argentine ant genome contains fewer immune genes than Drosophila and Tribolium, which may reflect the prominent role played by behavioral and chemical suppression of pathogens. Analysis of the ratio of observed to expected CpG nucleotides for genes in the reproductive development and apoptosis pathways suggests higher levels of methylation than in the genome overall. The resources provided by this genome sequence will offer an abundance of tools for researchers seeking to illuminate the fascinating biology of this emerging model organism.
Keywords
Animals, Ants/genetics, Ants/physiology, Base Sequence, Type="Geographic">California, DNA Methylation, Gene Library, Genetics, Population, Genome, Insect/genetics, Genomics/methods, Hierarchy, Social, Molecular Sequence Data, Phylogeny, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide/genetics, Receptors, Odorant/genetics, Sequence Analysis, DNA
Pubmed
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Create date
22/03/2011 15:51
Last modification date
20/08/2019 13:15