Latent gene network expression underlies partial re-evolution of a polyphenic trait in the worker caste of ants

Polyphenisms–where alternative phenotypes develop from a single genome in response to environmental cues–are not only widespread in nature, but also occur at multiple levels of biological organization, from cells to individuals to societies. Polyphenism is thought to promote phenotypic diversification through the gain, loss, and re-evolution of alternative phenotypes. After the origin of a…