Genetics responsible for termite caste system

Researchers have discovered that the termite caste system is influenced by genetic inheritance, a finding which could lead to new ways of combating the pest.

Termites cause billions of dollars worth of damage across the globe each year, but it is the sterile workers which feed and build the colony that do most of this damage.

Until recently it was believed that termite caste was determined by environmental factors, however no details about the process were known.

In a paper entitled Sex-linked genetic influence on caste determination in a termite, published in Science, a team of researchers from The University of Sydney and Ibaraki University have discovered the gene that controls whether a termite egg becomes a royal or working-class termite.

“Depending on which version of the gene an offspring inherits, it will either be hard-wired to become a worker, or potentially develop into a king or queen,” said Sydney-based researcher, Dr Nathan Lo.

“Up until now, it was believed that such a genetic system was non-existent, with caste being determined purely by uncharacterised environmental stimuli acting on a totipotent genome.

“This is a major step in understanding the mystery of how termite eggs can turn into offspring with such different morphologies, and it should eventually help us to find highly specific compounds that do things like turn workers into royals, which would cause havoc in the colony,” said Lo.