Bees with an impaired insulin partner gene prefer proteins over carbs

A new study of food-choice behavior in honey bees, published April 1 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics, has identified a gene involved in bees' decisions to bring protein or nectar back to the colony. By taking control of the Insulin Receptor Substrate gene (IRS), an insulin partner gene in the bees' fat cells, researchers at Arizona State University and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences made the insects forego carbohydrates (sugar-containing nectar) and favor protein (pollen).

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