---
_id: '732'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: 'Background: Social insects form densely crowded societies in environments
    with high pathogen loads, but have evolved collective defences that mitigate the
    impact of disease. However, colony-founding queens lack this protection and suffer
    high rates of mortality. The impact of pathogens may be exacerbated in species
    where queens found colonies together, as healthy individuals may contract pathogens
    from infectious co-founders. Therefore, we tested whether ant queens avoid founding
    colonies with pathogen-exposed conspecifics and how they might limit disease transmission
    from infectious individuals. Results: Using Lasius Niger queens and a naturally
    infecting fungal pathogen Metarhizium brunneum, we observed that queens were equally
    likely to found colonies with another pathogen-exposed or sham-treated queen.
    However, when one queen died, the surviving individual performed biting, burial
    and removal of the corpse. These undertaking behaviours were performed prophylactically,
    i.e. targeted equally towards non-infected and infected corpses, as well as carried
    out before infected corpses became infectious. Biting and burial reduced the risk
    of the queens contracting and dying from disease from an infectious corpse of
    a dead co-foundress. Conclusions: We show that co-founding ant queens express
    undertaking behaviours that, in mature colonies, are performed exclusively by
    workers. Such infection avoidance behaviours act before the queens can contract
    the disease and will therefore improve the overall chance of colony founding success
    in ant queens.'
article_number: '219'
article_processing_charge: Yes
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Christopher
  full_name: Pull, Christopher
  id: 3C7F4840-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
  last_name: Pull
  orcid: 0000-0003-1122-3982
- first_name: Sylvia
  full_name: Cremer, Sylvia
  id: 2F64EC8C-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
  last_name: Cremer
  orcid: 0000-0002-2193-3868
citation:
  ama: Pull C, Cremer S. Co-founding ant queens prevent disease by performing prophylactic
    undertaking behaviour. <i>BMC Evolutionary Biology</i>. 2017;17(1). doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4">10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4</a>
  apa: Pull, C., &#38; Cremer, S. (2017). Co-founding ant queens prevent disease by
    performing prophylactic undertaking behaviour. <i>BMC Evolutionary Biology</i>.
    BioMed Central. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4">https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4</a>
  chicago: Pull, Christopher, and Sylvia Cremer. “Co-Founding Ant Queens Prevent Disease
    by Performing Prophylactic Undertaking Behaviour.” <i>BMC Evolutionary Biology</i>.
    BioMed Central, 2017. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4">https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4</a>.
  ieee: C. Pull and S. Cremer, “Co-founding ant queens prevent disease by performing
    prophylactic undertaking behaviour,” <i>BMC Evolutionary Biology</i>, vol. 17,
    no. 1. BioMed Central, 2017.
  ista: Pull C, Cremer S. 2017. Co-founding ant queens prevent disease by performing
    prophylactic undertaking behaviour. BMC Evolutionary Biology. 17(1), 219.
  mla: Pull, Christopher, and Sylvia Cremer. “Co-Founding Ant Queens Prevent Disease
    by Performing Prophylactic Undertaking Behaviour.” <i>BMC Evolutionary Biology</i>,
    vol. 17, no. 1, 219, BioMed Central, 2017, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4">10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4</a>.
  short: C. Pull, S. Cremer, BMC Evolutionary Biology 17 (2017).
date_created: 2018-12-11T11:48:12Z
date_published: 2017-10-13T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2023-09-28T11:31:32Z
day: '13'
ddc:
- '576'
- '592'
department:
- _id: SyCr
doi: 10.1186/s12862-017-1062-4
ec_funded: 1
external_id:
  isi:
  - '000412816800001'
file:
- access_level: open_access
  checksum: 3e24a2cfd48f49f7b3643d08d30fb480
  content_type: application/pdf
  creator: system
  date_created: 2018-12-12T10:17:18Z
  date_updated: 2020-07-14T12:47:55Z
  file_id: '5271'
  file_name: IST-2017-882-v1+1_12862_2017_Article_1062.pdf
  file_size: 949857
  relation: main_file
file_date_updated: 2020-07-14T12:47:55Z
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '        17'
isi: 1
issue: '1'
language:
- iso: eng
month: '10'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
project:
- _id: 25DC711C-B435-11E9-9278-68D0E5697425
  call_identifier: FP7
  grant_number: '243071'
  name: 'Social Vaccination in Ant Colonies: from Individual Mechanisms to Society
    Effects'
publication: BMC Evolutionary Biology
publication_identifier:
  issn:
  - '14712148'
publication_status: published
publisher: BioMed Central
publist_id: '6937'
pubrep_id: '882'
quality_controlled: '1'
related_material:
  record:
  - id: '819'
    relation: dissertation_contains
    status: public
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Co-founding ant queens prevent disease by performing prophylactic undertaking
  behaviour
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: c635000d-4b10-11ee-a964-aac5a93f6ac1
volume: 17
year: '2017'
...