Fujita Toshiyuki, Kozuka-Hata Hiroko, Hori Yutaro, Takeuchi Jun, Kubo Takeo, Oyama Masaaki
Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
Medical Proteomics Laboratory, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
PLoS One. 2018 Feb 15;13(2):e0191344. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0191344. eCollection 2018.
The honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) uses various chemical signals produced by the worker exocrine glands to maintain the functioning of its colony. The roles of worker postcerebral glands (PcGs), thoracic glands (TGs), and mandibular glands (MGs) and the functional changes they undergo according to the division of labor from nursing to foraging are not as well studied. To comprehensively characterize the molecular roles of these glands in workers and their changes according to the division of labor of workers, we analyzed the proteomes of PcGs, TGs, and MGs from nurse bees and foragers using shotgun proteomics technology. We identified approximately 2000 proteins from each of the nurse bee or forager glands and highlighted the features of these glands at the molecular level by semiquantitative enrichment analyses of frequently detected, gland-selective, and labor-selective proteins. First, we found the high potential to produce lipids in PcGs and MGs, suggesting their relation to pheromone production. Second, we also found the proton pumps abundant in TGs and propose some transporters possibly related to the saliva production. Finally, our data unveiled candidate enzymes involved in labor-dependent acid production in MGs.
蜜蜂（西方蜜蜂）利用工蜂外分泌腺产生的各种化学信号来维持蜂群的正常运转。工蜂脑后腺（PcGs）、胸腺（TGs）和下颌腺（MGs）的作用以及它们根据从哺育到觅食的分工所经历的功能变化尚未得到充分研究。为了全面描述这些腺体在工蜂中的分子作用及其根据工蜂分工的变化，我们使用鸟枪法蛋白质组学技术分析了哺育蜂和觅食蜂的PcGs、TGs和MGs的蛋白质组。我们从每只哺育蜂或觅食蜂的腺体中鉴定出约2000种蛋白质，并通过对频繁检测到的、腺体选择性和劳动选择性蛋白质的半定量富集分析，突出了这些腺体在分子水平上的特征。首先，我们发现PcGs和MGs具有很高的产生脂质的潜力，表明它们与信息素的产生有关。其次，我们还发现TGs中富含质子泵，并提出了一些可能与唾液产生有关的转运蛋白。最后，我们的数据揭示了参与MGs中劳动依赖性酸产生的候选酶。
