🧪 A single molecule lets one naked mole rat queen control reproduction in her entire colony (up to 300 members).

The queen produces isopropyl myristate - the same compound in your moisturizer - and patrols her 3 km tunnel network daily to spread it. The scent raises prolactin in all other females, keeping them infertile.

When researchers removed a queen and just sprayed the chemical, no fights broke out and no one bred for 12 weeks. Remove the scent, and war broke out within days.

Source: nature.com/articles/s41586-026…

#biology #science #nakedmolerat #eusociality

A queen odour mediates reproductive suppression in a eusocial mammal - Nature

Naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber) queens produce isopropyl myristate, a low-volatility ester that high-ranking animals detect and avoid, which alters prolactin and progesterone in other females to suppress reproduction and preserve eusocial hier…

^Nature