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Title:   Author  item
                                            Evans, Jayitem
                                            WHEELER, DIANA - UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
  Submitted to: Bioessays
                                    Publication Type: Review Article
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 2/1/2001
                                    Publication  Date: N/A
                                    Citation: N/AInterpretive Summary:     During their immature stages, insect larvae can receive     information about their surroundings, then use this information     to change their growth patterns.  A striking example of this     is found in the honey bee, a species important     for agriculture worldwide.  Female honey bees become queens      or workers depending upon how they are treated while they are     developing.  This ability to change development in response     to cues is called a polyphenism, and is widespread in     insects.  We review the current evidence that genes play a     role in polyphenisms, drawing from literature from     grasshoppers, flies, and other important insect species.     Understanding polyphenisms offers one way of predicting how     both beneficial and pest insect species react to insecticides      and nutritional changes during their development. These     insights should help with the rearing of beneficial insects     and the efficient control of pest species.  This information will be     useful to researchers and other people, especially beekeepers who are     interested in pest control.
                                Technical Abstract:     Polyphenisms are differences between individuals that arise     not from differences at the genome level but through the     effects of specific cues received during development.  Here     we discuss polyphenisms and new attempts to unravel their     developmental bases in insects. We focus on social insects,      and on the honey bee, Apis mellifera, in particular. Along     with having great economic importance for their pollination     services and hive products, honey bees are emerging as a     model system for understanding the genetic and physiological     steps involved with polyphenisms.  Identification of these     cues and their mechanisms provides a novel means of studying     the interplay between genomes, gene expression and phenotypes     in both beneficial and pest insect species.


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