Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35418041›Full record

ArticleBMC ecology and evolution2022

A novel distribution of supergene genotypes is present in the socially polymorphic ant Formica neoclara.

Darin McGuire, Madison Sankovitz, Jessica Purcell

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC ecology and evolution, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
1.9field-weighted citation impact, top 14% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 11 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Genome Evolution in Social Insects.Genome biology and evolution · 2026
    Review
  2. Multiple Origins of a Sex Ratio Supergene in Formica Ants.Molecular biology and evolution · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Broad host use and frequent polyandry in the facultative dulotic speciesAnnals of the Entomological Society of America · 2024
    Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Darin McGuireDepartment of Entomology, University of California, Riverside 900 University Ave, Riverside, CA, 92507, USA. dmcgu004@ucr.edu.
Madison SankovitzDepartment of Entomology, University of California, Riverside 900 University Ave, Riverside, CA, 92507, USA.
Jessica PurcellDepartment of Entomology, University of California, Riverside 900 University Ave, Riverside, CA, 92507, USA.
University of California, Riverside · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSupergenes are chromosomal regions with tightly linked clusters of alleles that control compound phenotypic traits. Supergenes have been demonstrated to contribute to the maintenance of polymorphisms within populations in traits as diverse as mimetic wing coloration in butterflies, mating strategies in birds, and malarial susceptibility in mosquitoes. A large supergene also underlies variation in social organization in Formica ants. Alternative supergene haplotypes are associated with the presence of either a single queen (monogyny) or multiple queens (polygyny) within colonies. Here, we assess the social structure and supergene status of the North American species Formica neoclara.

resultsWe sequenced a subset of the genome in 280 individuals sampled in populations from California to northern British Columbia using ddRADseq. We determined that F. neoclara is socially polymorphic in queen number, and we show that the social polymorphism is associated with alternative haplotypes at the social supergene. Intriguingly, polygyne colonies can harbor workers that are homozygous for both haplotypes as well as heterozygotes.

conclusionsThis colony genetic composition contrasts with other Formica species, in which almost all individuals in polygyne colonies have the polygyne-associated haplotype. The social polymorphism is present in widely distributed and genetically subdivided populations of F. neoclara. In studying this system in F. neoclara, we expand our understanding of the functional evolution of supergene haplotypes as they diverge in different lineages.

Indexed as

AntsButterfliesAllelesAnimalsGenotypeHaplotypesCoadapted gene complexFormicinaePopulation geneticsQueen number

Identifiers

PMID35418041
PMCPMC9006578
OpenAlexW4223411086

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.