Telomerase is an enzyme that adds repeats of DNA sequences to the ends of chromosomes, thereby preventing their shortening. Telomerase activity is associated with proliferative status of cells, organismal development, and aging. We report an analysis of telomerase activity and telomere length in the honeybee, Apis mellifera. Telomerase activity was found to be regulated in a development and caste-specific manner. During the development of somatic tissues of larval drones and workers, telomerase activity declined to 10 % of its level in embryos and remained low during pupal and adult stages but was upregulated in testes of late pupae, where it reached 70 % of the embryo level. Upregulation of telomerase activity was observed in the ovaries of late pupal queens, reaching 160 % of the level in embryos. Compared to workers and drones, queens displayed higher levels of telomerase activity. In the third larval instar of queens, telomerase activity reached the embryo level, and an enormous increase was observed in adult brains of queens, showing a 70-fold increase compared to a brain of an adult worker. Southern hybridization of terminal TTAGG fragments revealed a high variability of telomeric length between different individuals, although the same pattern of hybridization signals was observed in different tissues of each individual.

Faculty of Science University of South Bohemia České Budějovice Czech Republic

Institute of Entomology Biology Centre AS CR Branišovská 31 České Budějovice 37005 Czech Republic

Zobrazit více v PubMed

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1998 Dec 8;95(25):14763-8 PubMed

Physiol Rev. 2008 Apr;88(2):557-79 PubMed

Dev Genet. 1996;18(2):173-9 PubMed

J Invest Dermatol. 2002 Nov;119(5):1014-9 PubMed

Age (Dordr). 2014 Feb;36(1):89-101 PubMed

Lancet. 2003 Feb 1;361(9355):393-5 PubMed

PLoS One. 2009 Aug 03;4(8):e6481 PubMed

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012 Mar 13;109(11):4209-14 PubMed

Chromosome Res. 2014 Dec;22(4):495-503 PubMed

Nurs Res. 2014 Jan-Feb;63(1):36-50 PubMed

Chromosome Res. 1999;7(6):449-60 PubMed

Age (Dordr). 2008 Sep;30(2-3):177-85 PubMed

Curr Opin Cell Biol. 2006 Jun;18(3):254-60 PubMed

Trends Ecol Evol. 2007 Feb;22(2):80-6 PubMed

Annu Rev Biochem. 1996;65:337-65 PubMed

Nucleic Acids Res. 2014 Feb;42(3):e21 PubMed

Eur J Biochem. 2000 May;267(10):3025-31 PubMed

Nucleic Acids Res. 2010 Sep;38(17):5609-22 PubMed

Microbiol Mol Biol Rev. 2002 Sep;66(3):407-25, table of contents PubMed

Genome. 2004 Feb;47(1):163-78 PubMed

FEBS Lett. 2010 Sep 10;584(17):3741-51 PubMed

Brain. 2011 Jul;134(Pt 7):2044-56 PubMed

Exp Gerontol. 2001 Apr;36(4-6):695-711 PubMed

Braz J Biol. 2002 Nov;62(4A):641-9 PubMed

EMBO Mol Med. 2012 Aug;4(8):691-704 PubMed

Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2000 Oct;1(1):72-6 PubMed

Exp Gerontol. 2006 Jun;41(6):553-6 PubMed

Development. 2004 Aug;131(16):4059-70 PubMed

Genome Res. 2006 Nov;16(11):1345-51 PubMed

Mutat Res. 2012 Feb 1;730(1-2):85-9 PubMed

J Invertebr Pathol. 2010 Jan;103 Suppl 1:S80-95 PubMed

Genetica. 2002 Jun;115(2):179-87 PubMed

J Neurosci. 2009 Nov 18;29(46):14394-407 PubMed

Z Gerontol Geriatr. 2007 Oct;40(5):314-24 PubMed

Med Hypotheses. 2010 Oct;75(4):387-90 PubMed

Extended longevity of termite kings and queens is accompanied by extranuclear localization of telomerase in somatic organs and caste-specific expression of its isoforms

Thioredoxin System in Insects: Uncovering the Roles of Thioredoxins and Thioredoxin Reductase beyond the Antioxidant Defences

Telomeres and telomerase: active but complex players in life-history decisions

Telomeric DNA sequences in beetle taxa vary with species richness

Long-lived termite kings and queens activate telomerase in somatic organs

Seasonality in telomerase activity in relation to cell size, DNA replication, and nutrients in the fat body of Apis mellifera