Biology subjects

Gibson, J. D.

Publications and source records attributed to Gibson, J. D..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

Behavioral Interactions in Two Ant Species in The Southeast United States and Evidence for a Native Supercolony

Ants vary extensively in their colony structure, ranging from occupying single nests to tremendous supercolonies that occupy territories spanning large areas. Fewer than 1% of ants are known to produce supercolonies, yet they are disproportionately overrepresented in highly invasive ants. A broader understanding of supercolonial ants in their native range, therefore, may provide key insights into the factors that allow some ants to become invasive. Here, we show the results of behavioral assays of two native species of ants, Dorymyrmex bureni and D. smithi (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Dolichoderinae) across geographically separated sites in southeastern Georgia, USA. We show that D. smithi has extremely low incidence of aggression in ants from sites up to 35 km apart, indicating that this may be a supercolonial species. In contrast, we show that D. bureni exhibits high levels of aggression between nest sites. Dorymyrmex smithi is also a temporary social parasite of D. bureni and these two species form mixed nests with no apparent interspecific aggression between workers, but we show that both species interact aggressively in assays within and between sites when the workers are derived from pure species nests. These findings represent an important addition to our knowledge of supercolonial species, and they also lay the groundwork for further studies of the parasitic relationship between these species.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2021

Lack of parent-of-origin effects in Nasonia jewel wasp: a replication and extension study

In diploid cells, the paternal and maternal alleles are, on average, equally expressed. There are exceptions from this: a small number of genes express the maternal or paternal allele copy exclusively. This phenomenon, known as genomic imprinting, is common among eutherian mammals and some plant species; however, genomic imprinting in species with haplodiploid sex determination is not well characterized. Previous work reported no parent-of-origin effects in the hybrids of closely related haplodiploid Nasonia vitripennis and Nasonia giraulti jewel wasps, suggesting a lack of epigenetic reprogramming during embryogenesis in these species. Here, we replicate the gene expression dataset and observations using different individuals and sequencing technology, as well as reproduce these findings using the previously published RNA sequence data following our data analysis strategy. The major difference from the previous dataset is that they used an introgression strain as one of the parents and we found several loci that resisted introgression in that strain. Our results from both datasets demonstrate a species-of-origin effect, rather than a parent-of-origin effect. We present a reproducible workflow that others may use for replicating the results. Overall, we reproduced the original report of no parent-of-origin effects in the haplodiploid Nasonia using the original data with our new processing and analysis pipeline and replicated these results with our newly generated data.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2019

Functional insights from the GC-poor genomes of two aphid parasitoids, Aphidius ervi and Lysiphlebus fabarum

BackgroundParasitoid wasps have fascinating life cycles and play an important role in trophic networks, yet little is known about their genome content and function. Parasitoids that infect aphids are an important group with the potential for biocontrol, and infecting aphids requires overcoming both aphid defenses and their defensive endosymbionts. ResultsWe present the de novo genome assemblies, detailed annotation, and comparative analysis of two closely related parasitoid wasps that target pest aphids: Aphidius ervi and Lysiphlebus fabarum (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae). The genomes are small (139 and 141 Mbp), highly syntenic, and the most AT-rich reported thus far for any arthropod (GC content: 25.8% and 23.8%). This nucleotide bias is accompanied by skewed codon usage, and is stronger in genes with adult-biased expression. AT-richness may be the consequence of reduced genome size, a near absence of DNA methylation, and age-specific energy demands. We identify expansions of F-box/Leucine-rich-repeat proteins, suggesting that diversification in this gene family may be associated with their broad host range or with countering defenses from aphids endosymbionts. The absence of some immune genes (Toll and Imd pathways) resembles similar losses in their aphid hosts, highlighting the potential impact of symbiosis on both aphids and their parasitoids. ConclusionsThese findings are of fundamental interest for insect evolution and beyond. This will provide a strong foundation for further functional studies including coevolution with respect to their hosts, the basis of successful infection, and biocontrol. Both genomes are available at https://bipaa.genouest.org.

genomics↗