How Can Bees Tell Friend From Foe? All Things Considered, NPR Science column: The secret life of bee bacteria; All in a Day with Alan Neal, CBC Radio, Canada Bee microbiome smells tell nestmates apart; Eva Higginbotham, The Naked Scientist Gut Feeling: Research Reveals How Honeybees Identify Outsiders; Environmental News Network Honey bees tell friend […]
Former graduate student Cassie Vernier published her study on the role of the gut microbiome in regulating nestmate recognition in honey bees. Study suggests that microbial genetics play a role in determining hive membership via modulation of host bee pheromones. Vernier CL, Chin I, Adu-Oppong B, Krupp J, Levine J, Dantas G and Ben-Shahar Y […]
CBC Listen Science column: The secret life of bee bacteria | All in a Day with Alan Neal | Live Radio | CBC Listen A new study published this week in Science Advances has shown the very unique way that honey bees can tell who is a member of their hive and who may be […]
NPR.org How Can Bees Tell Friend From Foe? Honeybees rely on chemical cues to identify friendly bees from foes. New research suggests those cues may have something to do with the honeybees’ gut microbes.
Yehuda publishes a new study that describes the brain miRNA transcriptome of diverse bee species with varying levels of sociality. Study was led by Dr. Karen Kapheim from Utah State University, and former postdoctoral fellow Eirik Søvik, now at Volda University in Norway. https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.200517
Postdoctoral fellow Dr. Nicole Leitner receives a one-year postdoctoral fellowship from the McDonnell Center for Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology.
Nicole and Yehuda publish a new review article about the role of post-developmental molecular processes in regulating male vs. female behavior in a special issue of Genes, Brain, and Behavior. Leitner N and Ben-Shahar Y (2020) The neurogenetics of sexually dimorphic behaviors from a post-developmental perspective. Genes Brain and Behavior 19:e12623 (invited review)
Fly study suggests neuronal gene malfunction, not oxygen deprivation, is behind long QT seizures. -by Talia Ogliore, full story here
Chin’s research identifying the genetic networks that regulate complex social decision-making behaviors in insects stood out among this year’s nominees, evaluators said, in part because it yielded unexpected results. Her thesis was titled “The contribution of Williams Syndrome-related genes to Drosophila social behaviors uncovers an evolutionarily conserved genetic toolkit underlying animal sociality.” -by Talia Ogliore, full […]
“It was always assumed that the way that honey bees acquire nestmate recognition cues, their cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profiles, is through these mechanisms where they rub up against each other, or transfer compounds between each other,” said Cassondra L. Vernier, a graduate student at Washington University and first author of the new study. “You would […]