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Honeybee Genome Sequenced
mapkinase writes to let us know about articles in Nature on the completed sequencing of the honeybee genome. From the first article: "Two other insects have already been sequenced: the malaria-carrying mosquito Anopheles gambiae, and one of science's great model organisms, the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster. Like these, the bee is much easier to manipulate and study than, say, the monkey. But unlike the mosquito and the fruitfly, the bee's social behavior is of special interest." Another article in the same issue clarifies why this sequencing is important: "The genome is helping to reveal some of those [such as the bees' dance language and the division of labor in the hive] mechanisms. For instance, there are 65 spots in the genome that seem to code for short RNA molecules called microRNAs (miRNAs), molecular switches that can turn genes on or off. The researchers found that miRNA activity differs between bees doing different jobs."
So which micro RNA codes for BeeBeards?
Interesting that miRNA could be turned off and on. These play a role in helping dicer form the RISC, so I wonder what this may lead to, not only in terms of info on honeybee's social behavior, but RNAi.
Cogito, ergo sum, fosho!
How long before we can expect genetically milk and honey-producing cows? (or, indeed, cow overlords)
C'mon I want this to put on my cereal!
When the posters fear their moderators, there is tyranny; when the moderators fears the posters, there is liberty.
I bet this creates quite a buzz among genome researchers.
The first thing they should do is figure out how to resequnce bee's dna to make them live longer. Worker bee lives anywhere from 1 to 4 months, depending on the season and how much work it's doing.
Scientists have proven that the honeybee genome can't fly either. (However, Transcendental Meditation has offered to teach it to fly by butt-bouncing.)
It's probably 99% identical to whitebread.
Is it just me, or does the whole DNA/Genome decoding process sound like rather complex dis-assembly project? Every living thing on this planet is nothing but a quad-nary based executable with VERY VERY good error-correction duplication.
never bring a twinkie to a food fight.
besides their social behavior, there is a lot known about how the navigation system of honeybees works (i.e., how they find the hive after foraging). Understanding honeybee genetics could have an impact on understanding and designing autonomous systems for robotics.
NO CARRIER
Patent pending on the honeybee genome now, despite somewhere between thousands and billions of years' worth of prior art?
honeybee.dna.torrent link plz
Reuters' original online article about this misidentified the queen bee as Queen Elizabeth, stating that Britain's monarch was capable of laying "up to 2,000 eggs a day"o _te.html
they've corrected it, but you can see the original article here:
http://www.regrettheerror.com/2006/10/reuters_typ
I can understand sequencing the human genome, but why the honeybee?
It's an insect and therefore, can't possibly be as close to humans genetically as say, a monkey.
Am I missing something here?
I understand this is pretty cool, but what could all the buzz bee about?
This always confused me with the human genome project: For the most part, two different people will have somewhat different genes.
So when they sequence the human genome, how do they handle the variations? Does everyone in the project work from the same person's DNA?
There have been three developments in apiculture in the last 30 years or so that have driven down the availability of honey, thus driving up the price.
First, DDT got banned. Ever hear the Joni Mitchell song that goes, "Hey farmer farmer, take away the DDT now. Give me spots on apples, but leave me the birds and the bees, please." Unfortunately, the opposite happened: without DDT, honeybee competitors thrived, and stronger pesticides that actually did harm the bee were introduced.
The next problem was the spread of African or "killer" bees, which came to us via South America. These bees are basically the same as the European ones we've historically had, except for one trait: if they perceive hive attack, they don't stop attacking once the immediate threat is past, but follow the attacker until it is taught a lesson. They're somewhat more agressive in other ways, too, but it's been some years since I dealt with that.
Lastly, and possibly related to DDT removal, is a tracheal mite, Acarapis woodi, that kills off entire colonies. I don't think they've found any bees with defenses against the mites, nor against varroa jacobsoni, another deadly mite.
These threats have basically wiped out the cottage beekeeping industry. It got to be expensive, and no fun.
But if genetic alterations can be engineered to make the "attack until dead" gene recessive, the mite problem would be tolerable, even for hobbyists. The mites can be warded off -- that's a solvable problem, but having the hive attack you isn't. It's unlikely that genetics or DDT could do much to counter the mites directly, but you never know.
Raise your children as if you were teaching them to raise your grandchildren, because you are.
many bees died to bring us this information
What's all this buzzing about? I will say on the record that my DNA has not been collected in any way to further their research. I've got just the one WeeBeard (that I know of...heh heh). But, off the record, there was that one time in Tijuana when I woke up in a dumpster behind a roach-infested laundromat, surrounded by empty boxes of Tide, and with an unexplainable soreness in my groin. That was some night! The last thing I remember before I blacked out was some odd fellow running away from me. He was carrying some kind of jar filled with milky fluid right before he disappeared into a white, windowless van. I think he might have muttered something about an "army of giant, unstoppable, bearded killer bees." Oh well, it's probably nothing. See ya!
Every time I read about DNA being sequenced I wonder if this means 3 or 4 dimensions. Is it known already what switches one gene on or off during a lifespan ? Where are the time or trigger informations stored ? ... just wondering and really am no expert ...
mmm, as long as i get to eat honey life is sweet.