You Are What You Eat---Snap shot of cross species gene regulation

[xkm1948]

The saying “you are what you eat” is particularly true for female honey bees, which grow up to be either small, sterile workers or large, fertile queens depending on their diet. Previously, many researchers thought that something in the food fed to young queens—a secretion called royal jelly—was what made the difference. Now, a new study suggests it’s signaling molecules in the grub of young worker bees that keeps their sexual development in check. That diet, a mixture of pollen and honey called “beebread,” is shot through with a special kind of microRNA (miRNA), noncoding RNA molecules that help regulate gene expression. To find out whether these miRNAs were the culprit, scientists added them to the diet of larvae raised in the lab. These larvae developed more slowly, with smaller bodies and smaller ovaries than larvae fed food without the supplement, the team reports today in PLOS Genetics. The researchers also found that one common, plant-derived miRNA in beebread switches off a gene that helps larvae turn into queens. After being eaten with food, the miRNAs might enter the bee’s gut and spread throughout the rest of the body, where they could help regulate key genes, the scientists say. Although plant miRNAs alone aren’t likely to turn queens into workers, queens-to-be probably don’t want to eat the commoners’ bread.

TL, DR:
Subtle environment cues can drastically change the phenotype of individual organism, while the genome remain exact the same(Queen bees and worker female bees share the same genome). This is a great example of epigenetics.

If applied to human, it would be the early childhood nutrition and psychological health can alter one's epigenome. And subsequently one's health and etc.

In short, our genome is lot flexable than traditional biology text books make you believe. It actually reflects to the environmental conditions.



http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/08/why-some-baby-bees-are-destined-become-workers-or-queens

 

[the54thvoid]

I had read in New Scientist a while back that environmental stresses can alter DNA (as such putting it in layman's terms). So even though evolution is over in terms of natural mutations aiding survivability (in modern 1st world life, illnesses and hereditary disabilities that are 'normal' would have otherwise been deselected by mortality), DNA can still evolve due to environment.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

In short, our genome is lot flexable than traditional biology text books make you believe. It actually reflects to the environmental conditions.

That's not exactly news. A pretty strong argument that people not exposed to milk in infancy have a tendency to become lactose intolerant, for example. A similar case can be made for a lot of allergies.

I had read in New Scientist a while back that environmental stresses can alter DNA (as such putting it in layman's terms). So even though evolution is over in terms of natural mutations aiding survivability (in modern 1st world life, illnesses and hereditary disabilities that are 'normal' would have otherwise been deselected by mortality), DNA can still evolve due to environment.

Exactly. There's the template (genetics) and then there's adaptions as a result of living. The big question that hasn't been definitively answered is if the latter can find its way into gamete cells. Problem is, it's difficult to differentiate between natural meiosis and that...should it occur. It would require mapping and comparing the genome of the source as an infant, as an adult and a lot of gametes.


Edit: On the surface, this discovery is fantastic. We may be able to artificially spur formation of new queens, and thus hives, to combat the decline in honey bee populations.

 

[xkm1948]

This is related to my research. DNA methylation as epigenetic regulation. Human, along with millions of other species, have genome plasticity. Would love to share more if I have time.

 

[uuuaaaaaa]

This is related to my research. DNA methylation as epigenetic regulation. Human, along with millions of other species, have genome plasticity. Would love to share more if I have time.

I'm interested in listening to what you have to say!