scholarly journals Higher flight activity in the offspring of migrants compared to residents in a migratory insect

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1881) ◽  
pp. 20172829 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura J. Dällenbach ◽  
Alexandra Glauser ◽  
Ka S. Lim ◽  
Jason W. Chapman ◽  
Myles H. M. Menz
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Partial Migration ◽  
Flight Behaviour ◽  
Episyrphus Balteatus ◽  
Flight Duration ◽  
Migratory Flight ◽  
Tethered Flight ◽  
Flight Mills ◽  
Energy Conserving ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

Migration has evolved among many animal taxa and migratory species are found across all major lineages. Insects are the most abundant and diverse terrestrial migrants, with trillions of animals migrating annually. Partial migration, where populations consist of resident and migratory individuals, is ubiquitous among many taxa. However, the underlying mechanisms are relatively poorly understood and may be driven by physiological, behavioural or genetic variation within populations. We investigated the differences in migratory tendency between migratory and resident phenotypes of the hoverfly, Episyrphus balteatus , using tethered flight mills. Further, to test whether migratory flight behaviour is heritable and to disentangle the effects of environment during development, we compared the flight behaviour of laboratory-reared offspring of migrating, overwintering and summer animals. Offspring of migrants initiated more flights than those of resident individuals. Interestingly, there were no differences among wild-caught phenotypes with regard to number of flights or total flight duration. Low activity in field-collected migrants might be explained by an energy-conserving state that migrants enter into when under laboratory conditions, or a lack of suitable environmental cues for triggering migration. Our results strongly suggest that flight behaviour is heritable and that genetic factors influence migratory tendency in E. balteatus . These findings support the growing evidence that genetic factors play a role in partial migration and warrant careful further investigation.

Tethered flight and morphometric studies with Cicadulina storeyi and C. mbila leafhoppers (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) vectors of maize streak virus in Uganda

1998 ◽  
Vol 88 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.C.A. Downham ◽  
R.J. Cooter
Keyword(s):  
Wing Length ◽  
Maize Streak Virus ◽  
Conclusive Evidence ◽  
Morphometric Parameters ◽  
Streak Virus ◽  
Environmental Constraints ◽  
Flight Duration ◽  
Migratory Flight ◽  
Long Duration ◽  
Tethered Flight

AbstractTethered flight studies, carried out in southern Uganda with the leafhoppers Cicadulina storeyi China and C. mbila Naudé, showed that depending on species, the factors of age, gender, gravid status and rearing on virus infected maize had significant effects on flight, whereas host plant species and mated status appeared unimportant. Distributions of wing length (WL), body length (BL) and the parameters WL/BL and WL-BL were mostly uni-modal, but in two cases very weakly bi-modal. Regressions of log-transformed flight duration against these morphometric parameters were all non-significant, except for very weak (r2 = 0.01–0.04) relations with wing length. There was no conclusive evidence for the existence of separate short- and long-duration flight morphs among the leafhoppers. It is proposed that differences between our results and those of an earlier study of Zimbabwean Cicadulina populations, particularly in respect of the effects of gravid status on flight, and the existence of distinct flight morphs, are explicable in terms of the different seasonal and environmental constraints experienced by Ugandan and Zimbabwean populations. These favour long-range migratory flight at certain times of the year in Zimbabwe, but not in Uganda.

Cercal ablation modifies tethered flight behaviour of cockroach

Nature ◽  
1977 ◽  
Vol 268 (5620) ◽  
pp. 523-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
PETER J. FRASER
Keyword(s):  
Flight Behaviour ◽  
Tethered Flight

The Influence of Environment and Heredity on Flight Activity in the Milkweed Bug Oncopeltus

1968 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-184
Author(s):  
HUGH DINGLE
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Food Deprivation ◽  
Field Data ◽  
Corpus Allatum ◽  
Reproductive Value ◽  
Flight Period ◽  
Migratory Behaviour ◽  
Migratory Flight ◽  
Tethered Flight ◽  
Extra Activity

1. Most long flights of Oncopeltus, tested using tethered flight in the laboratory, took place during the middle of the day. This is consistent with field data from other Heteroptera. 2. In bugs reared at 23° C., regardless of length of photoperiod, 20% of males and 30% of females were migrants. Temperatures of 19° and 27° C. reduced these proportions. 3. A short photoperiod of 12 hr. of light failed to increase the proportion of migrants over that present at 16 hr. The period in the life-history during which migration took place, however, was lengthened considerably. In spite of the lengthened flight period and a delay in oviposition, migrants arrive at their destinations with reproductive value high and are therefore colonizers. 4. Food deprivation may increase somewhat the proportion of migrants if it occurs shortly after eclosion, although most of the extra activity seems to be due to additional non-migratory flight. If it occurs after oviposition has begun, food deprivation can result in migration at a time when it would ordinarily have ceased. 5. The proportion of migrants could be significantly increased by appropriate selection and breeding. The basis for migratory behaviour is thus, in part at least, genetic. 6. The data in general support the hypothesis that migration is elicited, enhanced, or suppressed in genotypical migrants by those environmental factors which influence ovary (and corpus allatum) development.

scholarly journals Migratory flight behaviour of the pollen beetleMeligethes aeneus

2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (6) ◽  
pp. 1076-1082 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice L Mauchline ◽  
Samantha M Cook ◽  
Wilf Powell ◽  
Jason W Chapman ◽  
Juliet L Osborne
Keyword(s):  
Flight Behaviour ◽  
Migratory Flight

Biological Aging and Longevity: Underlying Mechanisms and Potential Intervention Strategies

1994 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 304-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
George T. Baker ◽  
George R. Martin
Keyword(s):  
Life Span ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Physiological Function ◽  
Intervention Strategies ◽  
Biological Aging ◽  
Human Aging ◽  
Experimental Paradigm ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Physiological Fitness ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

Aging is characterized by numerous physical, physiological, biochemical, and molecular changes. The rates at which aging processes occur are highly variable among individuals and are thought to be governed by both environmental and genetic factors. Lifestyle factors such as exercise, dietary, and smoking habits have been demonstrated to alter many of the changes usually associated with human aging. However, at present caloric restriction is the only experimental paradigm that has consistently been demonstrated in animal models to extend not only physiological vigor but also life span. The positive effects of exercise on physiological fitness and the reduction in the risks of certain diseases have been well documented. However, its effects on life span are not as clear. This article explores some of the basic mechanisms thought to be involved causally in the processes of aging, and outlines current and potential interventive strategies to retard or ameliorate the rates of decline in physiological function with advancing age.

scholarly journals Hypoxia Regulation of ndrgs

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nguyet Le ◽  
Timothy Hufford ◽  
Rachel Brewster
Keyword(s):  
De Novo ◽  
Cell Damage ◽  
Normal Function ◽  
Transport Chain ◽  
Energy Conserving ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Conserved Gene ◽  
Excessive Oxygen

ABSTRACTMany organisms rely on oxygen to generate energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). During severe hypoxia, the production of ATP decreases due to diminished activity of the electron transport chain, leading to cell damage or death. Conversely, excessive oxygen causes oxidative stress that is equally damaging to cells. To mitigate pathological outcomes, organisms have evolved mechanisms to adapt to fluctuations in oxygen levels. Zebrafish embryos are remarkably hypoxia-tolerant, surviving anoxia (zero oxygen) for hours in a hypometabolic, energy-conserving state. To begin to unravel underlying mechanisms, we analyze here the distribution and hypoxia-dependent regulation of members of the N-myc Downstream Regulated Gene (Ndrg) family, Ndrg 1-4. These genes have primarily been studied in cancer cells, and hence little is understood about their normal function. We show here using in situ hybridization that, under normoxic conditions, ndrgs are expressed in metabolically-demanding organs of the zebrafish embryo, such as the brain, kidney, and heart. Following exposure of embryos to different severity and durations of hypoxia, we observed that ndrgs are differentially regulated and that ndrg1a is the most responsive member of this family, with nine-fold upregulation following prolonged anoxia. We further show that this treatment resulted in de novo expression of ndrg1a in tissues where it is not observed under normoxia, such as head vasculature, the inner ear, and somites. These findings provide an entry point into understanding the role of this conserved gene family in hypoxia adaptation of normal cells.

scholarly journals Chronic Orofacial Pain: Models, Mechanisms, and Genetic and Related Environmental Influences

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (13) ◽  
pp. 7112
Author(s):  
Barry J. Sessle
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Orofacial Pain ◽  
Trigeminal Neuropathic Pain ◽  
Behavioural Characteristics ◽  
Pain Models ◽  
Chronic Orofacial Pain ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Animal Strains

Chronic orofacial pain conditions can be particularly difficult to diagnose and treat because of their complexity and limited understanding of the mechanisms underlying their aetiology and pathogenesis. Furthermore, there is considerable variability between individuals in their susceptibility to risk factors predisposing them to the development and maintenance of chronic pain as well as in their expression of chronic pain features such as allodynia, hyperalgesia and extraterritorial sensory spread. The variability suggests that genetic as well as environmental factors may contribute to the development and maintenance of chronic orofacial pain. This article reviews these features of chronic orofacial pain, and outlines findings from studies in animal models of the behavioural characteristics and underlying mechanisms related to the development and maintenance of chronic orofacial pain and trigeminal neuropathic pain in particular. The review also considers the role of environmental and especially genetic factors in these models, focussing on findings of differences between animal strains in the features and underlying mechanisms of chronic pain. These findings are not only relevant to understanding underlying mechanisms and the variability between patients in the development, expression and maintenance of chronic orofacial pain, but also underscore the importance for considering the strain of the animal to model and explore chronic orofacial pain processes.

scholarly journals Quantifying flight aptitude variation in wild A. gambiae s.l. in order to identify long-distance migrants

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roy Faiman ◽  
Alpha Seydou YARO ◽  
Moussa Diallo ◽  
Adama Dao ◽  
Djibril Samake ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sensu Stricto ◽  
Flight Activity ◽  
Malaria Vectors ◽  
Anopheles Coluzzii ◽  
Wing Size ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Flight Duration ◽  
Tethered Flight ◽  
Gravid Females

Abstract Background In the West African Sahel, mosquito reproduction is halted during the 5-7 month-long dry season, due to the absence of surface waters required for larval development. However, recent studies have suggested that both Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto (s.s.) and Anopheles arabiensis repopulate this region via migration from distant locations where larval sites are perennial. Anopheles coluzzii engages in more regional migration, presumably within the Sahel, following shifting resources correlating with the ever-changing patterns of Sahelian rainfall. Understanding mosquito migration is key to controlling malaria—a disease that continues to claim more than 400,000 lives annually, especially those of African children. Using tethered flight data of wild mosquitoes, the distribution of flight parameters were evaluated as indicators of long-range migrants versus appetitive flyers, and the species specific seasonal differences and gonotrophic states compared between two flight activity modalities. Morphometrical differences were evaluated in the wings of mosquitoes exhibiting high flight activity (HFA) vs. low flight activity (LFA).Methods A novel tethered-flight assay was used to characterize flight in the three primary malaria vectors- An. arabiensis, An. coluzzii and An. gambiae s.s. The flights of tethered wild mosquitoes were audio-recorded from 21:00h to 05:00h in the following morning and three flight aptitude indices were examined: total flight duration, longest flight bout, and the number of flight bouts during the assay.Results The distributions of all flight indices were strongly skewed to the right, indicating that the population consisted of a majority of low-flight activity (LFA) mosquitoes and a minority of high-flight activity (HFA) mosquitoes. The median total flight was 586 seconds and the maximum value was 16,110 seconds (~4.5 h). In accordance with recent results, flight aptitude peaked in the wet season, and was higher in gravid females than in non-blood-fed females. Flight aptitude was also found to be higher in An. coluzzii compared to An. arabiensis, with intermediate values in An. gambiae s.s., but displaying no statistical difference. Evaluating differences in wing size and shape between LFA individuals and HFA ones, the wing size of HFA An. coluzzii was larger than that of LFAs during the wet season—its length was wider than predicted by allometry alone, indicating a change in wing shape. No statistically significant differences were found in the wing size/shape of An. gambiae s.s. or An. arabiensis.Conclusions The partial agreement between the tethered flight results and recent results based on aerial sampling of these species suggest a degree of discrimination between appetitive flyers and long-distance migrants although identifying HFAs as long-distance migrants is not recommended without further investigation.

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