Analysis of compounds from exocrine glands in the eusocial wasp Polybia occidentalis

• Grant number: 17/14967-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: October 01, 2017
• End date: January 01, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Animal Behavior
• Principal Investigator: Fábio Santos do Nascimento
• Grantee: Amanda Prato da Silva
• Supervisor: Francesca Romana Dani
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
• Associated to the scholarship: 16/11887-4 - Variation of cuticular hydrocarbons and secretion contents of exocrine glands in workers of Polybia occidentalis (Hymenoptera: Vespidae, Epiponini), BP.MS

Abstract

Social insects form colonies in which each individual perfoms different tasks, resulting in a self-organized system. In most of eusocial bees and wasps the division of labor among members of the colony occurs through age polyethism, in which younger workers perform tasks inside the nest and when getting older start activities out of the nest, mainly foraging. This complex organization needs a mechanism to coordinate the various activities in the nest, one is chemical communication mediated by pheromones. Pheromones are produced by exocrine glands and are released outside the body to be detected by other individuals that can respond in a specific mode, therefore, they are essential for communication and social regulation. The main objective of the project is learning the techniques used in the extraction and analysis of compounds emitted from exocrine glands. Samples will be prepared from the swarming founding social wasp Polybia occidentalis. The same methods and techniques will be used in future experiments in the Laboratório de Comportamento e Ecologia de Insetos Sociais na Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto - USP, using treated individuals with hormones and collected in natural nests according to their tasks as proposed in the initial Masters project.