Isolation disrupts social interactions and destabilizes brain development in bumblebees. Author Z Yan Wang, Grace McKenzie-Smith, Weijie Liu, Hyo Cho, Talmo Pereira, Zahra Dhanerawala, Joshua Shaevitz, Sarah Kocher Publication Year 2022 Type Journal Article Abstract Social isolation, particularly in early life, leads to deleterious physiological and behavioral outcomes. Here, we leverage new high-throughput tools to comprehensively investigate the impact of isolation in the bumblebee, Bombus impatiens, from behavioral, molecular, and neuroanatomical perspectives. We reared newly emerged bumblebees in complete isolation, in small groups, or in their natal colony, and then analyzed their behaviors while alone or paired with another bee. We find that when alone, individuals of each rearing condition show distinct behavioral signatures. When paired with a conspecific, bees reared in small groups or in the natal colony express similar behavioral profiles. Isolated bees, however, showed increased social interactions. To identify the neurobiological correlates of these differences, we quantified brain gene expression and measured the volumes of key brain regions for a subset of individuals from each rearing condition. Overall, we find that isolation increases social interactions and disrupts gene expression and brain development. Limited social experience in small groups is sufficient to preserve typical patterns of brain development and social behavior. Keywords Animals, Brain, Social Behavior, Bees, Social Interaction, Social Isolation Journal Curr Biol Volume 32 Issue 12 Pages 2754-2764.e5 Date Published 2022 Jun 20 ISSN Number 1879-0445 DOI 10.1016/j.cub.2022.04.066 Alternate Journal Curr Biol PMCID PMC9233014 PMID 35584698 PubMedPubMed CentralGoogle ScholarBibTeXEndNote X3 XML