PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Worker wasps grow visual brains, queens stay in the dark

Paperwasps in different castes develop different-sized sensory brain structures

2014-01-07
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Rachel Ewing
raewing@drexel.edu
215-895-2614
Drexel University
Worker wasps grow visual brains, queens stay in the dark Paperwasps in different castes develop different-sized sensory brain structures

PHILADELPHIA (Jan. 6, 2014)— A queen in a paperwasp colony largely stays in the dark. The worker wasps, who fly outside to seek food and building materials, see much more of the world around them. A new study indicates that the brain regions involved in sensory perception also develop differently in these castes, according to the different behavioral reliance on the senses. The study is published in Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.

"The wasps in different castes within a colony don't differ much genetically. The differences we see show the signature of the environment on brain development," said Sean O'Donnell, PhD, a professor in Drexel University's College of Arts and Sciences who led the study.

O'Donnell's team found that the queen wasps had smaller brain regions for processing visual information than the workers in their own colonies. The pattern held across most of the 12 species of paperwasps they studied.

Most other research in how animals' environments affect their nervous systems – known as neuroecology – emphasizes comparisons between the brains of different species with diverse lifestyles and behaviors, such as comparisons between nocturnal and diurnal species of birds or bats.

"The strong behavioral and ecological differences between individuals within insect colonies make them powerful tools for studying how individual brain differences come about, and their functional significance," O'Donnell said.

To test how queen-worker brain differences come about, O'Donnell's team also compared differences in queen and worker wasps' brain development across different wasp species they studied.

In species where adult wasps fight for the queen position, it would make sense for the caste brain differences to be less pronounced than in species where adult wasps emerge with their caste roles already established – if brain development followed a preordained program for each assigned role.

Instead, the researchers found larger differences between worker and queen wasp brains in species where adult wasps fought for dominance – a finding that suggests brain plasticity, or development in adulthood in response to environmental and behavioral needs.

O'Donnell noted that sampling juvenile wasps at multiple stages of brain development would help confirm the finding suggested by his study that only looked at adult wasp brains.



INFORMATION:

Link to paper: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00265-013-1667-6



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Babbling babies -- responding to one-on-one 'baby talk' -- master more words

2014-01-07
Babbling babies -- responding to one-on-one 'baby talk' -- master more words AUDIO: A parent demonstrates babytalk ( "parentese ") with child. Click here for ...

Erythropoietin and the regulation of cancer stem cell growth and survival

2014-01-07
Erythropoietin and the regulation of cancer stem cell growth and survival In recent years, non-hematopoietic effects of erythropoietin (EPO), via its binding to the EPO receptor in non-hematopoietic tissues, including cancerous tissues, has been reported by many different ...

Development of a novel dual JAK/Src kinase inhibitor

2014-01-07
Development of a novel dual JAK/Src kinase inhibitor Inhibitors of both JAK and Src kinases represent promising targets for cancer therapeutics because of the central importance of these kinases in tumor cell proliferation and survival. Furthermore, in cancer cells activation ...

Out-of-pocket costs play major role in treatment adherence for cancer patients

2014-01-07
Out-of-pocket costs play major role in treatment adherence for cancer patients The cost of insurance co-payments for cutting-edge pharmaceuticals can vary widely from patient to patient. When the patient's share of prescription costs becomes ...

NASA's Fermi makes first gamma-ray study of a gravitational lens

2014-01-07
NASA's Fermi makes first gamma-ray study of a gravitational lens

Ear tubes vs. watchful waiting: Tubes do not improve long-term development

2014-01-07
Ear tubes vs. watchful waiting: Tubes do not improve long-term development Watchful waiting or ear tube surgery? It is a decision faced by millions of families of children with recurrent or chronic otitis media with effusion (non-infected ...

Including women on convening committees increases women speakers at scientific meetings

2014-01-07
Including women on convening committees increases women speakers at scientific meetings Women are currently underrepresented among speakers at scientific meetings, both in absolute terms and relative to their representation among attendees, but a new study suggests ...

'Traffic light' food labels, positioning of healthy items produce lasting choice changes

2014-01-07
'Traffic light' food labels, positioning of healthy items produce lasting choice changes The use of color-coded "traffic light" food labels and changes in the way popular items are displayed appear to have produced a long-term increase in the choice ...

Boost careers of female scientists: Make sure women help choose meeting speakers

2014-01-07
Boost careers of female scientists: Make sure women help choose meeting speakers January 7, 2014 — (BRONX, NY) — More women are choosing science careers, yet women are notoriously underrepresented in senior academic positions—often because they ...

Similar characteristics of brain DTI for healthy adult rhesus monkey and young people

2014-01-06
Similar characteristics of brain DTI for healthy adult rhesus monkey and young people Diffusion-tensor imaging can be used to observe the microstructure of brain tissue. Fractional anisotropy reflects the integrity of white matter fibers. Fractional anisotropy of ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Exercise as an anti-ageing intervention to avoid detrimental impact of mental fatigue

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

Antibiotic resistance among key bacterial species plateaus over time

‘Some insects are declining but what’s happening to the other 99%?’

Powerful new software platform could reshape biomedical research by making data analysis more accessible

Revealing capillaries and cells in living organs with ultrasound

American College of Physicians awards $260,000 in grants to address equity challenges in obesity care

Researchers from MARE ULisboa discover that the European catfish, an invasive species in Portugal, has a prolonged breeding season, enhancing its invasive potential

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD, FAACR, honored with the 2025 AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research

Solar cells made of moon dust could power future space exploration

Deporting immigrants may further shrink the health care workforce

Border region emergency medical services in migrant emergency care

Resident physician intentions regarding unionization

[Press-News.org] Worker wasps grow visual brains, queens stay in the dark
Paperwasps in different castes develop different-sized sensory brain structures