Extent and complexity of RNA processing in honey bee queen and worker caste development
Xu Jiang He,
Andrew B. Barron,
Liu Yang,
Hu Chen,
Yu Zhu He,
Li Zhen Zhang,
Qiang Huang,
Zi Long Wang,
Xiao Bo Wu,
Wei Yu Yan,
Zhi Jiang Zeng
Affiliations
Xu Jiang He
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China; Jiangxi Province Honeybee Biology and Beekeeping Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Andrew B. Barron
Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia
Liu Yang
Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, Hubei 430021, P. R. of China
Hu Chen
Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, Hubei 430021, P. R. of China
Yu Zhu He
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Li Zhen Zhang
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Qiang Huang
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Zi Long Wang
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Xiao Bo Wu
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Wei Yu Yan
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China
Zhi Jiang Zeng
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China; Jiangxi Province Honeybee Biology and Beekeeping Nanchang, Jiangxi 330045, P. R. of China; Corresponding author
Summary: The distinct honeybee (Apis mellifera) worker and queen castes have become a model for the study of genomic mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity. Here we performed a nanopore-based direct RNA sequencing with exceptionally long reads to compare the mRNA transcripts between queen and workers at three points during their larval development. We found thousands of significantly differentially expressed transcript isoforms (DEIs) between queen and worker larvae. These DEIs were formatted by a flexible splicing system. We showed that poly(A) tails participated in this caste differentiation by negatively regulating the expression of DEIs. Hundreds of isoforms uniquely expressed in either queens or workers during their larval development, and isoforms were expressed at different points in queen and worker larval development demonstrating a dynamic relationship between isoform expression and developmental mechanisms. These findings show the full complexity of RNA processing and transcript expression in honey bee phenotypic plasticity.
