Fate of descending interneurons in the metamorphosing brain of an insect, the beetle Tenebrio molitor L

Metamorphosis of the central nervous system of Trichogramma telengai (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae)

During metamorphosis, the insect CNS undergoes both structural and allometric changes. Due to their extreme de-embryonization and parasitism, the formation of the CNS in egg parasitoids occurs at the late larval stage. Our study provides the first data on the morphological and volumetric changes of the CNS occurring during the pupal development of the parasitic wasp Trichogramma telengai Sorokina, 1987 (Trichogrammatidae). The prepupal-pupal development includes fusion and concentration of ganglia achieved by the loss of connectives. Volumetric analysis shows that during the pupal development the absolute body volume and CNS volume gradually decrease. The brain and thoracic synganglion slightly increase in volume during the pupal period and extremely decrease from late pupa to adult. The CNS neuropil volume increases from prepupa to adult. The mean cell diameter also decreases during the metamorphosis of the nervous system. The cell body rind volume decreases during pupal development; this decrease correlates with the decrease in the number of cells on the one hand and increase in the neuropilar volume on the other hand.

A review of insect stem cell types

Insect stem cells have been described from both embryonic and adult tissues from a diversity of insect species, although much of the focus in insect stem cell research has been on Drosophila. Insects are a vast and diverse group and it is surprising that a critical aspect of their development like stem cells has not received more attention. In this review we discuss the current state of knowledge of insect stem cell types. We examine what stem cell types have been identified from insects, and briefly discuss what is known about their regulation.

Metamorphosis in drosophila and other insects: the fate of neurons throughout the stages

The nervous system of insects is profoundly reorganised during metamorphosis, affecting the fate of different types of neuron in different ways. Almost all adult motor neurons derive from larval motor neurons that are respecified for adult functions. A subset of larval motor neurons, those which mediate larval- or ecdysis-specific behaviours, die before and immediately after eclosion, respectively. Many adult interneurons develop from larval interneurons, whereas those related to complex adult sense organs originate during larval life from persisting embryonic neuroblasts. Sensory neurons of larvae and adults derive from essentially two distinct sources. Larval sensory neurons are formed in the embryonic integument and - with few exceptions - die during metamorphosis. Their adult counterparts, on the other hand, arise from imaginal discs. Special emphasis is given in this review to the metamorphic remodelling of persisting neurons, both at the input and output levels, and to the associated behavioural changes. Other sections deal with the programmed death of motor neurons and its causes, as well as with the metamorphic interactions between motor neurons and their target muscles. Remodelling and apoptosis of these two elements appear to be under independent ecdysteroid control. This review focusses on the two most thoroughly studied holometabolous species, the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster and the tobacco hornworm moth Manduca sexta. While Manduca has a long tradition in neurodevelopmental studies due to the identification of many of its neurons, Drosophila has been increasingly used to investigate neural reorganisation thanks to neurogenetic tools and molecular approaches. The wealth of information available emphasises the strength of the insect model system used in developmental studies, rendering it clearly the most important system for studies at the cellular level.

From embryo to adult: anatomy and development of a leg sensory organ in Phormia regina, Meigen (Insecta: Diptera). II. Development and persistence of sensory neurons

The imaginal leg disc of Phormia regina contains eight neurons that arise during embryogenesis. Five of the neurons are associated with Keilin's organ, and of these five, two persist to the adult fly. Two new neurons arise at about the time of pupariation and flank each of these persisting neurons, forming two triplets of cells. Both triplets can be followed throughout metamorphosis; in the late pupa they are situated anteriorly and posteriorly at the tip of the fifth tarsomere. Two triplets of cuticular specializations are found at corresponding positions in the adult fly, each consisting of two campaniform sensilla and a trichoid hair. The central member of each set of sensilla, a campaniform sensillum, is associated with the persisting cell.

Reorganization of persistent motoneurons in a metamorphosing insect (Tenebrio molitor L., Coleoptera)

The present analysis outlines how the shape of motoneurons which persist through metamorphosis in the beetle Tenebrio molitor is regulated by cellular interactions. This study focused on the structural changes of prothoracic leg motoneurons. The fate of these neurons is described in normal metamorphic development, so as to provide a basis for experimental analysis. In a first experiment the prothoracic leg imaginal discs or part of these were extirpated in the prepupa or early pupa. In a second experiment the leg imaginal discs were rotated by 180 degrees in early larval instars of Tenebrio; the procedure caused a threefold leg anlage. Thereafter, the treated individuals continued to develop. In both experiments the effect of the operation on the structure of the dendritic trees of the persisting motoneurons was analyzed at the imaginal stage. In the first experiment the dendritic tree of the motoneurons is locally deleted. In the second experiment the branching index (quantitative description of dendritic arborization pattern) of the dendritic tree of the persisting motoneurons increased. Both experiments provided evidence that the shape of persistent leg motoneurons is stabilized and even regulated by cellular interactions during metamorphosis. Evidence is presented that sensory neurons are effective both in stabilization and regulation of the shape of persistent motoneurons.

Constant topological organization of the coleopteran metamorphosing nervous system: analysis of persistent elements in the nervous system of Tenebrio molitor

Evidence is provided that the topological organization of the larval neuropil is preserved during metamorphosis of Tenebrio molitor. Constancies in neuronal organization were due in part to persistence of individual neurons whose morphologies were individually followed. It appears that the phenomenologically static situation of the metamorphosing neuropil is achieved by stabilization and regulation due to cellular interactions. Comparisons are made with features of hemimetabolan postembryogenesis.