https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-026-10839-z
https://www.cas.cn/syky/202609/t20260916_5120386.shtml
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a widespread role in the regulation of gene expression. In the ant caste differentiation system, individuals with identical genetic backgrounds follow distinct developmental trajectories to become queens and workers that are highly differentiated in morphology, physiology, and behavior. Thus, this system provides an ideal model for investigating how individuals sharing the same genome arrive at different developmental fates.
A research team including scientists from the CAS Kunming Institute of Zoology conducted a comprehensive study combining transcriptomic analysis across the full developmental trajectories of two ant species with functional experiments. They examined the patterns of lncRNA expression changes associated with the establishment of caste fates and the roles these RNAs play within the overall developmental regulatory network.
The team constructed lncRNA profiles for the Pharaoh ant (*Monomorium pharaonis*) and a leaf-cutter ant species across various developmental stages. Changes in lncRNA expression were closely linked to developmental timing and caste differentiation. As development progressed, the differences in lncRNA expression between queens and workers widened, while differences within the same caste narrowed—a pattern characteristic of “developmental canalization.”
The study further linked lncRNAs to juvenile hormone (JH), a key endocrine signal regulating caste differentiation. When worker larvae were treated with JH, their global lncRNA expression profiles gradually shifted toward the state characteristic of natural reproductive ants. A total of 168 JH-upregulated and 149 JH-downregulated lncRNAs were identified; the direction of these changes and their tissue-specific patterns closely mirrored those of protein-coding genes. This demonstrates that lncRNAs do not function as an auxiliary system independent of classical regulatory networks but are instead integrated into the caste development network comprising hormones, transcription factors, and protein-coding genes.
The findings reveal that lncRNAs constitute a crucial regulatory layer in caste differentiation, offering new insights into the formation and maintenance of the ant “superorganism” and suggesting that major evolutionary transitions across different levels may share common regulatory principles.