Abstract
The honeybee is an important model organism for understanding epigenetic mechanisms. The genome encodes three phenotypically distinct but genetically indistinguishable organisms/castes (queens, workers and drones) that are determined during early post-embryonic development by differential nutrition. The molecular mechanisms responsible for this differential development are unknown but through previous BBSRC funding, we were the first to demonstrate that queen and worker honeybees have caste-specific chromatin epigenetic states that establish and orchestrate distinct patterns of gene expression that determine developmental trajectory. Building on this work, the PhD project will examine the role of specific dietary components as epigenetic modulators of phenotypic plasticity.
References
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