The genomes of two key bumblebee species with primitive eusocial organization

Background: The shift from solitary to social behavior is one of the major evolutionary transitions. Primitively eusocial bumblebees are uniquely placed to illuminate the evolution of highly eusocial insect societies. Bumblebees are also invaluable natural and agricultural pollinators, and there is widespread concern over recent population declines in some species. High-quality genomic data will inform key aspects of bumblebee biology, including susceptibility to implicated population viability threats. Results: We report the high quality draft genome sequences of Bombus terrestris and Bombus impatiens, two ecologically dominant bumblebees and widely utilized study species. Comparing these new genomes to those of the highly eusocial honeybee Apis mellifera and other Hymenoptera, we identify deeply conserved similarities, as well as novelties key to the biology of these organisms. Some honeybee genome features thought to underpin advanced eusociality are also present in bumblebees, indicating an earlier evolution in the bee lineage. Xenobiotic detoxification and immune genes are similarly depauperate in bumblebees and honeybees, and multiple categories of genes linked to social organization, including development and behavior, show high conservation. Key differences identified include a bias in bumblebee chemoreception towards gustation from olfaction, and striking differences in microRNAs, potentially responsible for gene regulation underlying social and other traits. Conclusions: These two bumblebee genomes provide a foundation for post-genomic research on these key pollinators and insect societies. Overall, gene repertoires suggest that the route to advanced eusociality in bees was mediated by many small changes in many genes and processes, and not by notable expansion or depauperation

Data for: The presence of a larval honey bee parasite, Ascosphaera apis, on flowers reduces pollinator visitation to several plant species

Observations of pollinator species after spraying Ascosphaera apis spore solution and control on inflorescence of several plant specie

Data for: The presence of a larval honey bee parasite, Ascosphaera apis, on flowers reduces pollinator visitation to several plant species

Observations of pollinator visits between Ascosphaera apis spores-sprayed (CH) and water-sprayed (WA)flowers. Visits are categorized as Apporaches (VWL), Landings (V) and Feedings (F)

Data for: The presence of a larval honey bee parasite, Ascosphaera apis, on flowers reduces pollinator visitation to several plant species

Observations of pollinator species after spraying Ascosphaera apis spore solution and control on inflorescence of several plant speciesTHIS DATASET IS ARCHIVED AT DANS/EASY, BUT NOT ACCESSIBLE HERE. TO VIEW A LIST OF FILES AND ACCESS THE FILES IN THIS DATASET CLICK ON THE DOI-LINK ABOV

Data for: The presence of a larval honey bee parasite, Ascosphaera apis, on flowers reduces pollinator visitation to several plant species

Observations of pollinator visits between Ascosphaera apis spores-sprayed (CH) and water-sprayed (WA)flowers. Visits are categorized as Apporaches (VWL), Landings (V) and Feedings (F).THIS DATASET IS ARCHIVED AT DANS/EASY, BUT NOT ACCESSIBLE HERE. TO VIEW A LIST OF FILES AND ACCESS THE FILES IN THIS DATASET CLICK ON THE DOI-LINK ABOV

Eusocial Transition in Blattodea: Transposable Elements and Shifts of Gene Expression (TE datasets)

De novo TE database of 6 Blattodea species (B. germanica, P. americana, Z. nevadensis, C. secundus, R. speratus, M. natalensis). For each species, a fasta file contains TEs and their sequence, with as header the ID of the TE, its position within a genome (scaffold name, positions, and DNA strand), and its class, subclass, and superfamily.THIS DATASET IS ARCHIVED AT DANS/EASY, BUT NOT ACCESSIBLE HERE. TO VIEW A LIST OF FILES AND ACCESS THE FILES IN THIS DATASET CLICK ON THE DOI-LINK ABOV

DNA Transposons favour de novo transcript emergence through enrichment of transcription factor binding motifs

Transposable elements (TE) are known to play an essential role in driving evolvability and thus facilitating fast acting molecular adaptive processes at the DNA level. We report here on how TEs can affect the recently detected and meanwhile well confirmed process of de novo gene emergence. Specifically, we focused on the gain of new transcription events. In many species a continuum between absent and very prominent transcription has been reported for essentially all regions of the genome. In this study we searched for de novo transcripts by using newly assembled genomes and transcriptomes of seven inbred lines of Drosophila melanogaster, originating from seven geographically diverse populations. This setup allowed us to detect line specific de novo transcripts, and compare them to their homologous nontranscribed regions in other lines, as well as genic and intergenic control sequences. We studied the association with TE and the enrichment of transcription factor motifs upstream of de novo emerged transcripts. We found that de novo transcripts overlap with TEs more often than expected by chance. The emergence of new transcripts correlates with epigenetic marks islands and regions of TEs activity. Moreover, upstream regions of de novo transcripts are highly enriched with regulatory motifs. Such motifs abound in new transcripts overlapping with TEs, particularly DNA TEs, and are more conserved upstream de novo transcripts than upstream their nontranscribed homologs. Overall, our study demonstrates that TE insertions play an important role in new transcript emergence, partly by introducing new regulatory motifs from DNA TE families