关键词: 西方蜜蜂, 级型, 王浆主蛋白, 表达模式, 荧光定量PCR

Abstract: 【Aim】 Major royal jelly proteins play a vital role in honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) caste determination. The aim of this study was to study the expression pattern of major royal jelly protein 8 gene mrjp8 and its possible function in different castes of honeybee (Apis mellifera L.). 【Methods】 The expression level of mrjp8 in different developmental stages and tissues of different castes (worker, queen and drone) was determined using realtime quantitative PCR. 【Results】 The results showed that mrjp8 was highly expressed in the venom glands of 9 day-old adult worker bees with a level of 10 000 times higher than the reference, but significantly lowly expressed in other developmental stages and tissues. The expression of mrjp8 in workers was both time-and tissue-specific. In drones, the expression of mrjp8 was lowly expressed with a level similar to the reference. In queens, the expression of mrjp8 was non-tissue-specific with a level of 1 000 times as high as the reference. 【Conclusion】 Such expression pattern of mrjp8 hints its positive roles in worker defense and maintenance of the long life span of queens, and this provides a basis for future research of biological function and the evolution of mrjp8 and even the diversification of the whole major royal jelly protein gene family.

Key words: Apis mellifera, castes, major royal jelly proteins (MRJPs), expression pattern, real-time quantitative PCR