Why workers forfeit direct reproduction is a crucial question in eusocial evolution. Worker reproduction provides an excellent opportunity to understand the mechanism of kin conflict resolution between the queen and workers. We evaluated behavioral and physiological differences among females in the paper wasp Polistes chinensis antennalis to examine why some workers reproduce under queenright conditions. Reproductive workers were old and foraged less early in the season; their cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profiles overlapped with those of queens but were significantly different. The distinct CHC profile of the eggs of the queen likely represented a cue for policing against those by workers. Juvenile hormone (JH) and dopamine seemed to be associated with gonadotropic function, and the JH level of reproductive workers was similar to that of the queen. The high JH level of reproductive workers likely facilitated their reproduction even under queenright conditions. Gene expression levels of the queen and reproductive workers differed only in vitellogenin. These results suggest that worker reproduction is facilitated by an increase in JH level; however, CHC is not a fertility-linked signal, but a queen-linked signal; consequently, reproductive workers without a queen-linked signal might be allowed to stay within the colony.

中文翻译：

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生殖工人在黄蜂中不足以表明其生殖能力

为什么工人放弃直接繁殖是社会发展中的关键问题。工人繁殖为了解女王与工人之间解决亲戚冲突的机制提供了极好的机会。我们评估了黄蜂Polistes chinensisennalis的雌性在行为和生理上的差异，以研究为什么某些工人在皇后条件下繁殖。生殖工人年龄较大，在本季节初期较少觅食。它们的表皮碳氢化合物（CHC）剖面与皇后区的剖面重叠，但差异显着。皇后卵的独特的CHC特征可能代表了对工人卵进行警戒的线索。少年激素（JH）和多巴胺似乎与促性腺功能有关，生殖工作者的JH水平与女王的相似。即使在皇后条件下，生殖工作者的高JH水平也可能促进了他们的生殖。皇后和生殖工作者的基因表达水平仅在卵黄蛋白原上有所不同。这些结果表明，JH水平的提高促进了工人的再生产。但是，CHC不是与生育力相关的信号，而是与女王相关的信号。因此，可能会允许没有女王信号的生殖工作者留在该殖民地内。