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Title:   Author  item
                                            Corona, Miguelitem
                                            LIBBRECHT, ROMAIN - University Of Lausanneitem
                                            WHEELER, DIANA - University Of Arizona
  Submitted to: Current Opinion in Insect Science
                                    Publication Type: Review Article
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 2/7/2016
                                    Publication  Date: 3/13/2016
                                    Citation: Corona, M.V., Libbrecht, R., Wheeler, D.E. 2016. Molecular mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity in social insects. Current Opinion in Insect Science. 13:55-60. doi: 10.1016/j.cois.2015.12.003.Interpretive Summary:
                                Technical Abstract: Polyphenism in insects, whereby a single genome expresses different phenotypes in response to environmental cues, is a fascinating biological phenomenon. Social insects are especially intriguing examples of phenotypic plasticity because division of labor results in the development of extreme morphological phenotypes. Although sociality evolved independently in ants, bees, wasps and termites, similar genetic pathways regulate phenotypic plasticity in these different groups of social insects. The Insulin/insulin-like growth signaling (IIS) plays a key role in this process. Recent research reveals that IIS interacts with other pathways including target of rapamycin (Tor), epidermic growth factor receptor (egfr), juvenile hormone (JH) and vitellogenin (Vg) to regulate caste differentiation.


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