Diversity and evolution of chemical composition of cuticle in leaf-cutter ants (Formicidae: Attini: Atta-Genus group)

Abstract

Individual recognition mechanism among members of colonies is the main factor to ecologic sucess in social insects. Social insects use an elegant system of acceptance and rejection of cospecifics, through a complex mechanism of comparison of cuticular hydrocarbons' profiles (CHCs). CHCs are species-specific and highly discriminant. This high chemical specificity has been used as an extra tool in taxonomy to building phylogenetics trees and for biodiversity studies. Moreover, serveral authors had been used the CHCs to increase their results and corroborate genetic and mophological data, to studies of diversity and taxonomy. The aims of this work are: (1) analyse the chemical diversity of CHCs; (2) to contrast the phylogenetic tree of Atta-genus group by the use of CHCs; (3) test the congruence among phylogenetic data, obtained for CHCs profile analysis, with morphological and molecular data in the literature; (4) analyse the variation of CHCs in the Atta-genus group's genera collected in the Brazilian biomes, through identification of factors that have more influence in chemical composition in these sites; (5) contribute to understanding of diversity and evolution of interindividual recognition of ants, specifically Atta-genus group. (AU)