Population, evolutionary and genomic studies in bees

• Grant number: 13/12530-4
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: February 01, 2014
• End date: July 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Genetics - Animal Genetics
• Principal Investigator: Maria Cristina Arias
• Grantee: Maria Cristina Arias
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• City of the host institution: São Paulo

Abstract

This research proposal encompasses 4 subprojects that are currently in development in our laboratory and involve three graduate students. Our scientific interest has been focused on the understanding of phylogenetic relationships, population genetics, and phylogeography of native bees from subfamily Apinae. The advent of new molecular methodologies, such as genomic analysis in large scale, has motivated us to introduce these new approaches to answer relevant questions concerning bee evolution and behavior. The subproject 1, originally conceived as master project, was expanded for a PhD project. Two species of Bombus presenting large geographic distribution are being used as model for phylogeographic and population analysis. By being important pollinators, their populations decline is a major concerning, thus our molecular data plus ecological niche modeling will give support for species conservation programs. Subprojects 2 and 3 4 are innovative in our laboratory. We intend to implement genomic analysis of large scale. Transcriptoma data will be obtained for highly eussocial, primitively eussocial and solitary bee species. The molecular data bank and further analysis will certainly shed some light into several intriguing questions concerning evolution of social behavior and diapause mechanisms. Finally we are presenting a technical subproject (4) aiming at isolating and characterizing microsatellite loci for some species under interest for population studies. (AU)

Scientific publications

(13)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FRANCOSO, ELAINE; DE SOUZA ARAUJO, NATALIA; RICARDO, PAULO CSERI; SANTOS, PRISCILA KARLA FERREIRA; ZUNTINI, ALEXANDRE RIZZO; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Evolutionary perspectives on bee mtDNA from mito-OMICS analyses of a solitary species. Apidologie, v. 51, n. 4, FEB 2020. (10/20548-2, 09/07124-1, 12/18531-0, 13/03961-1, 13/12530-4)

ARAUJO, NATALIA DE SOUZA; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Mitochondrial genome characterization of Melipona bicolor: Insights from the control region and gene expression data. Gene, v. 705, p. 55-59, JUL 15 2019. (16/24669-5, 13/12530-4)

FERREIRA SANTOS, PRISCILA KARLA; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA; KAPHEIM, KAREN M.. Loss of developmental diapause as prerequisite for social evolution in bees. BIOLOGY LETTERS, v. 15, n. 8, AUG 2019. (16/24669-5, 13/12530-4)

ARAUJO, NATALIA S.; SANTOS, PRISCILA KARLA F.; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. RNA-Seq reveals that mitochondrial genes and long non-coding RNAs may play important roles in the bivoltine generations of the non-social Neotropical bee Tetrapedia diversipes. Apidologie, v. 49, n. 1, p. 3-12, FEB 2018. (12/18531-0, 13/12530-4)

FRANCOSO, ELAINE; ZUNTINI, ALEXANDRE RIZZO; CARNAVAL, ANA CAROLINA; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Comparative phylogeography in the Atlantic forest and Brazilian savannas: pleistocene fluctuations and dispersal shape spatial patterns in two bumblebees. BMC Evolutionary Biology, v. 16, DEC 7 2016. (10/20548-2, 13/50297-0, 09/07124-1, 13/03961-1, 13/12530-4)

SANTOS, PRISCILA K. F.; FRANCOSO, ELAINE; CORDEIRO, GUARACI DURAN; ALVES-DOS-SANTOS, ISABEL; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Genetic analyses reveal female philopatric behavior and nest usage by multiple females of the solitary oil-collecting bee Tetrapedia diversipes (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Apidologie, v. 51, n. 5, MAY 2020. (13/12530-4)

RICARDO, PAULO CSERI; ARAUJO, NATALIA DE SOUZA; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Investigating the molecular basis of cleptobiosis in eusocial stingless bees (Apidae: Hymenoptera). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology D-Genomics & Proteomics, v. 56, p. 10-pg., 2025-12-01. (16/24669-5, 22/09046-2, 19/23186-9, 13/12530-4)

RICARDO, PAULO CSERI; FRANCOSO, ELAINE; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Mitochondrial DNA intra-individual variation in a bumblebee species: A challenge for evolutionary studies and molecular identification. MITOCHONDRION, v. 53, p. 243-254, JUL 2020. (16/24669-5, 14/25023-6, 13/12530-4)

RICARDO, PAULO CSERI; FRANCOSO, ELAINE; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Fidelity of DNA polymerases in the detection of intraindividual variation of mitochondrial DNA. MITOCHONDRIAL DNA PART B-RESOURCES, v. 5, n. 1, p. 108-112, 2020. (16/24669-5, 13/12530-4)

SANTOS, PRISCILA K. F.; DO PRADO, LARISSA NUNES; CORDEIRO, GUARACI D.; ALVES-DOS-SANTOS, ISABEL; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. The high Wolbachia infection does not drive Tetrapedia diversipes (Hymenoptera: Apidae) sex bias and population genetic structure. Apidologie, v. 53, n. 6, p. 10-pg., 2022-12-01. (13/12530-4, 04/15801-0)

SANTOS, PRISCILA K. F.; DE SOUZA ARAUJO, NATALIA; FRANCOSO, ELAINE; WERREN, JOHN H.; KAPHEIM, KAREN M.; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. The genome of the solitary bee Tetrapedia diversipes (Hymenoptera, Apidae). G3-GENES, GENOMES, GENETICS, v. 15, n. 2, p. 7-pg., 2024-12-24. (12/18531-0, 13/12530-4, 16/24669-5)

FRANCOSO, ELAINE; ZUNTINI, ALEXANDRE RIZZO; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Combining phylogeography and future climate change for conservation of Bombus morio and B. pauloensis (Hymenoptera: Apidae). JOURNAL OF INSECT CONSERVATION, v. 23, n. 1, p. 63-73, FEB 2019. (09/07124-1, 13/03961-1, 10/20548-2, 13/12530-4)

SANTOS, PRISCILA KARLA F.; ARAUJO, NATALIA DE SOUZA; FRANCOSO, ELAINE; ZUNTINI, ALEXANDRE RIZZO; ARIAS, MARIA CRISTINA. Diapause in a tropical oil-collecting bee: molecular basis unveiled by RNA-Seq. BMC Genomics, v. 19, APR 27 2018. (12/18531-0, 13/12530-4)