Honeybee Genome Sequenced

mapkinase writes to let us know about articles in Nature on the completed sequencing of the honeybee genome. From the first article: "Two other insects have already been sequenced: the malaria-carrying mosquito Anopheles gambiae, and one of science's great model organisms, the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster. Like these, the bee is much easier to manipulate and study than, say, the monkey. But unlike the mosquito and the fruitfly, the bee's social behavior is of special interest." Another article in the same issue clarifies why this sequencing is important: "The genome is helping to reveal some of those [such as the bees' dance language and the division of labor in the hive] mechanisms. For instance, there are 65 spots in the genome that seem to code for short RNA molecules called microRNAs (miRNAs), molecular switches that can turn genes on or off. The researchers found that miRNA activity differs between bees doing different jobs."

How cool.

[DrunkenTerror]

I bet this creates quite a buzz among genome researchers.

Re:Honey bee genome sequenced?

[Anonymous Coward]

And you didn't even get first post :)

Reuters Error

[saviorsloth]

Reuters' original online article about this misidentified the queen bee as Queen Elizabeth, stating that Britain's monarch was capable of laying "up to 2,000 eggs a day"
they've corrected it, but you can see the original article here:
http://www.regrettheerror.com/2006/10/reuters_typo _te.html [regrettheerror.com]

Re:so when can we download it?

[Anonymous Coward]

Careful! I've heard that bad things happen if you play Region 5 bees (Africa) with Region 2 (Europe) players imported to Region 1.

Pretty cool, but

[QuantumFTL]

I understand this is pretty cool, but what could all the buzz bee about?

Re:Honey bee genome sequenced?

[kfg]

Gee thanks, now I'm going to spend the rest of the day imagining cows flitting from flower to flower gathering pollen.

KFG

Re:How cool.

[Renfield Spiffioso]

Yes, they'll have plenty of information to comb through.

Re:softICE, anyone?

[Stealth Potato]

Considering the number of live sacrifices I had to make to ensure the success of my last x86 project, yes, I'd say that sounds reasonable.