Octopaminergic innervation and a neurohaemal release site in the antennal heart of the locust Schistocerca gregaria

Short-term exposure to high pCO2 leads to decreased branchial cytochrome C oxidase activity in the presence of octopamine in a decapod

In a recent mechanistic study, octopamine was shown to promote proton transport over the branchial epithelium in green crabs, Carcinus maenas. Here, we follow up on this finding by investigating the involvement of octopamine in an environmental and physiological context that challenges acid-base homeostasis, the response to short-term high pCO2 exposure (400 Pa) in a brackish water environment. We show that hyperregulating green crabs experienced a respiratory acidosis as early as 6 h of exposure to hypercapnia, with a rise in hemolymph pCO2 accompanied by a simultaneous drop of hemolymph pH. The slightly delayed increase in hemolymph HCO3- observed after 24 h helped to restore hemolymph pH to initial values by 48 h. Circulating levels of the biogenic amine octopamine were significantly higher in short-term high pCO2 exposed crabs compared to control crabs after 48 h. Whole animal metabolic rates, intracellular levels of octopamine and cAMP, as well as branchial mitochondrial enzyme activities for complex I + III and citrate synthase were unchanged in posterior gill #7 after 48 h of hypercapnia. However, application of octopamine in gill respirometry experiments suppressed branchial metabolic rate in posterior gills of short-term high pCO2 exposed animals. Furthermore, branchial enzyme activity of cytochrome C oxidase decreased in high pCO2 exposed crabs after 48 h. Our results indicate that hyperregulating green crabs are capable of quickly counteracting a hypercapnia-induced respiratory acidosis. The role of octopamine in the acclimation of green crabs to short-term hypercapnia seems to entail the alteration of branchial metabolic pathways, possibly targeting mitochondrial cytochrome C in the gill. Our findings help advancing our current limited understanding of endocrine components in hypercapnia acclimation. SUMMARY STATEMENT: Acid-base compensation upon short-term high pCO2 exposure in hyperregulating green crabs started after 6 h and was accomplished by 48 h with the involvement of the biogenic amine octopamine, accumulation of hemolymph HCO3-, and regulation of mitochondrial complex IV (cytochrome C oxidase).

Evolutionary morphology of the antennal heart in stick and leaf insects (Phasmatodea) and webspinners (Embioptera) (Insecta: Eukinolabia)

The morphology of the antennal hearts in the head of Phasmatodea and Embioptera was investigated with particular reference to phylogenetically relevant key taxa. The antennal circulatory organs of all examined species have the same basic construction: they consist of antennal vessels that are connected to ampullae located in the head near the antenna base. The ampullae are pulsatile due to associated muscles, but the points of attachment differ between the species studied. All examined Phasmatodea species have a Musculus (M.) interampullaris which extends between the two ampullae plus a M. ampulloaorticus that runs from the ampullae to the anterior end of the aorta; upon contraction, all these muscles dilate the lumina of both ampullae at the same time. In Embioptera, only the australembiid Metoligotoma has an M. interampullaris. All other studied webspinners instead have a M. ampullofrontalis which extends between the ampullae and the frontal region of the head capsule; these species do not have M. ampulloaorticus. Outgroup comparison indicates that an antennal heart with a M. interampullaris is the plesiomorphic character state among Embioptera and the likely ground pattern of the taxon Eukinolabia. Antennal hearts with a M. ampullofrontalis represent a derived condition that occurs among insects only in some embiopterans. These findings help to further clarify the controversially discussed internal phylogeny of webspinners by supporting the view that Australembiidae are the sister group of the remaining Embioptera.

The Insect Circulatory System: Structure, Function, and Evolution

Although the insect circulatory system is involved in a multitude of vital physiological processes, it has gone grossly understudied. This review highlights this critical physiological system by detailing the structure and function of the circulatory organs, including the dorsal heart and the accessory pulsatile organs that supply hemolymph to the appendages. It also emphasizes how the circulatory system develops and ages and how, by means of reflex bleeding and functional integration with the immune system, it supports mechanisms for defense against predators and microbial invaders, respectively. Beyond that, this review details evolutionary trends and novelties associated with this system, as well as the ways in which this system also plays critical roles in thermoregulation and tracheal ventilation in high-performance fliers. Finally, this review highlights how novel discoveries could be harnessed for the control of vector-borne diseases and for translational medicine, and it details principal knowledge gaps that necessitate further investigation.

A population of descending tyraminergic/octopaminergic projection neurons of the insect deutocerebrum

In this study, we describe a cluster of tyraminergic/octopaminergic neurons in the lateral dorsal deutocerebrum of desert locusts (Schistocerca gregaria) with descending axons to the abdominal ganglia. In the locust, these neurons synthesize octopamine from tyramine stress-dependently. Electrophysiological recordings in locusts reveal that they respond to mechanosensory touch stimuli delivered to various parts of the body including the antennae. A similar cluster of tyraminergic/octopaminergic neurons was also identified in the American cockroach (Periplaneta americana) and the pink winged stick insect (Sipyloidea sipylus). It is suggested that these neurons release octopamine in the ventral nerve cord ganglia and, most likely, convey information on arousal and/or stressful stimuli to neuronal circuits thus contributing to the many actions of octopamine in the central nervous system.

Insect heart rhythmicity is modulated by evolutionarily conserved neuropeptides and neurotransmitters

Insects utilize an open circulatory system to transport nutrients, waste, hormones and immune factors throughout the hemocoel. The primary organ that drives hemolymph circulation is the dorsal vessel, which is a muscular tube that traverses the length of the body and is divided into an aorta in the head and thorax, and a heart in the abdomen. The dorsal vessel is myogenic, but its rhythmicity is modulated by neuropeptides and neurotransmitters. This review summarizes how neuropeptides such as crustacean cardioactive peptide (CCAP), FMRFamide-like peptides, proctolin, allatotropin and allatostatin modulate the heart contraction rate and the directionality of heart contractions. Likewise, it discusses how neurotransmitters such as serotonin, octopamine, glutamate and nitric oxide influence the heart rate, and how transcriptomic and proteomic approaches are advancing our understanding of insect circulatory physiology. Finally, this review argues that the immune system may modulate heart rhythmicity, and discusses how the myotropic activity of cardioactive factors extends to the accessory pulsatile organs, such as the auxiliary hearts of the antennae.

Structural and Molecular Properties of Insect Type II Motor Axon Terminals

A comparison between the axon terminals of octopaminergic efferent dorsal or ventral unpaired median neurons in either desert locusts (Schistocerca gregaria) or fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) across skeletal muscles reveals many similarities. In both species the octopaminergic axon forms beaded fibers where the boutons or varicosities form type II terminals in contrast to the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) or type I terminals. These type II terminals are immunopositive for both tyramine and octopamine and, in contrast to the type I terminals, which possess clear synaptic vesicles, only contain dense core vesicles. These dense core vesicles contain octopamine as shown by immunogold methods. With respect to the cytomatrix and active zone peptides the type II terminals exhibit active zone-like accumulations of the scaffold protein Bruchpilot (BRP) only sparsely in contrast to the many accumulations of BRP identifying active zones of NMJ type I terminals. In the fruit fly larva marked dynamic changes of octopaminergic fibers have been reported after short starvation which not only affects the formation of new branches (“synaptopods”) but also affects the type I terminals or NMJs via octopamine-signaling (Koon et al., 2011). Our starvation experiments of Drosophila-larvae revealed a time-dependency of the formation of additional branches. Whereas after 2 h of starvation we find a decrease in “synaptopods”, the increase is significant after 6 h of starvation. In addition, we provide evidence that the release of octopamine from dendritic and/or axonal type II terminals uses a similar synaptic machinery to glutamate release from type I terminals of excitatory motor neurons. Indeed, blocking this canonical synaptic release machinery via RNAi induced downregulation of BRP in neurons with type II terminals leads to flight performance deficits similar to those observed for octopamine mutants or flies lacking this class of neurons (Brembs et al., 2007).