In order to interpret the molecular mechanisms that modulating the organism variations and selection signatures to drive adaptive evolutionary changes are indispensable goals in the new evolutionary ecological genetics. Here, we identified the gene locus associated to royal jelly production through whole-genome sequencing of the DNA from eight populations of honeybees. The analysis of the samples was composed of 120 individuals and each pointed extremely opposite trait values for a given phenotype. We identified functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) candidate that might be essential in regulating the phenotypic traits of honeybee populations. Moreover, selection signatures were investigated using pooling sequencing of eight distinct honeybee populations, and the results provided the evidence of signatures of recent selection among populations under different selection objectives. Furthermore, gene ontology (GO) annotation and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses indicated that selected genes were potentially involved in several biological processes and molecular functioning, which could directly or indirectly influence the production of royal jelly. Our findings can be used to understand the genomic signatures, as well as implicate a profound glance on genomic regions that control the production trait of royal jelly in honey bees.

中文翻译：

---

蜜蜂的种群基因组学揭示了蜂王浆生产必不可少的选择特征。

为了解释调节生物多样性和选择特征以驱动适应性进化变化的分子机制，是新的进化生态遗传学中必不可少的目标。在这里，我们通过对八种蜜蜂的DNA进行全基因组测序，确定了与蜂王浆生产相关的基因座。样品的分析由120个个体组成，每个个体针对给定的表型指出极为相反的性状值。我们确定功能单核苷酸多态性（SNPs）候选者，可能对调节蜜蜂种群的表型特征至关重要。此外，还使用8个不同的蜜蜂种群的合并测序研究了选择特征，结果提供了不同选择目标下人群近期选择特征的证据。此外，基因本体论（GO）注释和《京都议定书》的基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）途径分析表明，选定的基因可能参与了多个生物过程和分子功能，这可能直接或间接影响蜂王浆的产生。我们的发现可用于理解基因组特征，并深刻地了解控制蜜蜂蜂王浆生产特性的基因组区域。基因本体论（GO）注释和《京都议定书》的基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）途径分析表明，选定的基因可能参与了多个生物过程和分子功能，可能直接或间接影响蜂王浆的产生。我们的发现可用于理解基因组特征，并深刻地了解控制蜜蜂蜂王浆生产特性的基因组区域。基因本体论（GO）注释和《京都议定书》的基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）途径分析表明，选定的基因可能参与了多个生物过程和分子功能，可能直接或间接影响蜂王浆的产生。我们的发现可用于理解基因组特征，并深刻地了解控制蜜蜂蜂王浆生产特性的基因组区域。