Draft genome of the globally widespread and invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile)

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 108; no. 14; pp. 5673 - 5678
• Main Authors: Smith, Christopher D, Zimin, Aleksey, Holt, Carson, Abouheif, Ehab, Benton, Richard, Cash, Elizabeth, Croset, Vincent, Currie, Cameron R, Elhaik, Eran, Elsik, Christine G, Fave, Marie-Julie, Fernandes, Vilaiwan, Gadau, Jürgen, Gibson, Joshua D, Graur, Dan, Grubbs, Kirk J, Hagen, Darren E, Helmkampf, Martin, Holley, Jo-Anne, Hu, Hao, Viniegra, Ana Sofia Ibarraran, Johnson, Brian R, Johnson, Reed M, Khila, Abderrahman, Kim, Jay W, Laird, Joseph, Mathis, Kaitlyn A, Moeller, Joseph A, Muñoz-Torres, Monica C, Murphy, Marguerite C, Nakamura, Rin, Nigam, Surabhi, Overson, Rick P, Placek, Jennifer E, Rajakumar, Rajendhran, Reese, Justin T, Robertson, Hugh M, Smith, Chris R, Suarez, Andrew V, Suen, Garret, Suhr, Elissa L, Tao, Shu, Torres, Candice W, van Wilgenburg, Ellen, Viljakainen, Lumi, Walden, Kimberly K.O, Wild, Alexander L, Yandell, Mark, Yorke, James A, Tsutsui, Neil D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences 05-04-2011; National Acad Sciences
• Subjects: Abundance; Animal behavior; Animals; Ants; Ants - genetics; Ants - physiology; Apis mellifera; Apoptosis; Base Sequence; Biological Sciences; California; CpG islands; cytochrome P-450; Cytochrome P450; desaturase; DNA Methylation; Drosophila; Formicidae; funding; Gene expression; Gene Library; Genes; Genetics, Population; Genome, Insect - genetics; Genomes; genomics; Genomics - methods; Hierarchy, Social; Insect behavior; Insect castes; Insect colonies; Insect genetics; Insect genomes; Insect pests; Insects; Linepithema humile; Molecular Sequence Data; Nasonia vitripennis; Nonnative species; Nucleotide sequence; nucleotide sequences; Nucleotides; odor compounds; Odorant receptors; Pathogens; Phylogeny; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide - genetics; receptors; Receptors, Odorant - genetics; RNA interference; RNA-mediated interference; Royal jelly; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Social insects; taste; Terrestrial ecosystems; Tribolium; California
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1008617108

Ants are some of the most abundant and familiar animals on Earth, and they play vital roles in most terrestrial ecosystems. Although all ants are eusocial, and display a variety of complex and fascinating behaviors, few genomic resources exist for them. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of a particularly widespread and well-studied species, the invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile), which was accomplished using a combination of 454 (Roche) and Illumina sequencing and community-based funding rather than federal grant support. Manual annotation of >1,000 genes from a variety of different gene families and functional classes reveals unique features of the Argentine ant's biology, as well as similarities to Apis mellifera and Nasonia vitripennis. Distinctive features of the Argentine ant genome include remarkable expansions of gustatory (116 genes) and odorant receptors (367 genes), an abundance of cytochrome P450 genes (>110), lineage-specific expansions of yellow/major royal jelly proteins and desaturases, and complete CpG DNA methylation and RNAi toolkits. The Argentine ant genome contains fewer immune genes than Drosophila and Tribolium, which may reflect the prominent role played by behavioral and chemical suppression of pathogens. Analysis of the ratio of observed to expected CpG nucleotides for genes in the reproductive development and apoptosis pathways suggests higher levels of methylation than in the genome overall. The resources provided by this genome sequence will offer an abundance of tools for researchers seeking to illuminate the fascinating biology of this emerging model organism.