Tapeworm Infection Extends Ant Lifespan and Alters Social Role

Researchers studying the ant *Temnothorax nylanderi* discovered that workers infected with the tapeworm *Anomotaenia brevis* live up to ten times longer than uninfected workers and adopt queen-like characteristics. Infected ants turn pale yellow, reduce their foraging activity, and emit pheromones that cause nest-mates to treat them as royalty, providing food and grooming. The parasite completes its life cycle when woodpeckers consume the immobilized, infected ants, allowing the tapeworm to mature in the bird’s gut and release eggs in the bird’s droppings.

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The study, published in *BMC Genomics*, compared gene expression in the brains and fat bodies of infected workers, uninfected workers, and queens. Gene activity in the fat bodies of infected ants resembled that of queens, especially in pathways linked to metabolism, immune function, stress resistance, and aging. By contrast, brain gene expression in infected workers diverged sharply from queens, showing suppressed signaling molecules and receptors. This pattern suggests the parasite manipulates host physiology indirectly, targeting conserved regulatory networks rather than injecting its own neuroactive compounds.

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• Typical worker lifespan: 1–2 years.

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• Queen lifespan: up to 20 years.

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• Infected worker lifespan: several years, approaching queen longevity.

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• Visible phenotype: pale-yellow coloration and reduced activity.

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Lead author Susanne Foitzik, a behavioral ecologist at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, emphasized that the infection does not merely make ants sick but triggers a targeted physiological shift. First author Giulia Blasi, a biologist at the same university, highlighted that the parasite’s influence is tissue-specific, engaging metabolic and aging networks while leaving neuronal profiles largely unchanged. Both researchers propose that these changes facilitate parasite transmission by keeping infected ants alive and socially favored within the colony.

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• “Our genetic analyses show that the infection does not simply make the ants sick, but alters their physiology in a highly targeted way,” — Susanne Foitzik, lead author of the study and a behavioral ecologist at JGU

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• “The data rather suggest that the parasite influences the ant indirectly by intervening in the host's own regulatory networks, which control metabolism, the immune system, aging, and behavior, among other processes,” — Giulia Blasi, first author of the study and a biologist at JGU

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• “Queens and workers of social insects share the same genetic basis, but differ greatly in lifestyle and lifespan,” — Susanne Foitzik, lead author of the study and a behavioral ecologist at JGU

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• “The effect of the infection is therefore tissue-specific,” — Giulia Blasi, first author of the study and a biologist at JGU

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