Genomic analysis reveals a marked reduction in immunity-related genes in honey bees, suggesting reliance on social barriers or specialized pathogen interactions.
Key Points
To characterize the individual immune repertoire and molecular signalling pathways encoded within the honey bee (Apis mellifera) genome.
Conducted a genome-wide survey of immune-related genes and pathways in Apis mellifera.
Identified orthologues across four canonical immune signalling pathways and evaluated gene counts across 17 immune-related gene families against Drosophila and Anopheles genomes.
Identified plausible orthologues for nearly all predicted components across four core insect immune signalling pathways.
Found honey bees possess approximately one-third as many immunity-related genes across 17 gene families compared to Drosophila and Anopheles genomes.