A genetic error has allowed a single bee to create an army of immortal clones
Oldroyd’s team compared the genes of Cape honeybee workers to those of the queen and offspring of the queen in order to understand how clones could create millions of copies and remain functional.
The team then examined the DNA sequences produced by the Cape queen as well as the 25 larvae that she produced. They then did the same with four Cape honeybee worker bees and their 63 larves.
The researchers found that the offspring of queen bees that reproduce asexually had recombination levels (DNA mixing) that were 100 times higher than those of genetically identical worker bees that reproduce sexually. This suggests that Cape worker bees may have developed a mutation to prevent recombination. The workers can create copies of themselves without the threat of losing one-third of their genetic material due to asexual reshuffling.
Source:
https://www.livescience.com/bee-creates-perfect-clone-army.html
