Considering the Longevity of Eusocial Insect Queens

Eusocial species are characterized by reproductive and non-reproductive castes, such as the familiar division of queens and workers in common insect species. Eusociality is more common in insects and less so in other classes of life, although there are a few eusocial mammals, such as the naked mole-rat. For researchers who investigate the comparative biology of aging, one of the more interesting aspects of eusociality is that queens live longer than workers, many times longer in some species, while being genetically identical. Why is this? Comparing very similar species with divergent life spans is a desirable starting point if trying to reverse engineer the relationship between metabolism and longevity. In principle divergence within the same species should be an even better option, further narrowing the search for relevant mechanisms. These days the comparative biology of aging is becoming ever less an abstract field of pure scientific inquiry. Practical applications for human medicine likely lie ahead. Determining how any specific aspect of cellular biochemistry contributes to species longevity, or other desirable traits such as the ability to regenerate organs, might deliver the basis for human therapies. Or it might not; it is hard to say in advance whether any specific set of mechanisms could be ported over into our species, or even has any great relevance to our biochemistry. How Can Ant and Termite Queens Live So Long? A view of the anima...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs