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Ortega-Insaurralde I, Latorre-Estivalis JM, Costa-da-Silva AL, Cano A, Insausti TC, Morales HS, Pontes G, de Astrada MB, Ons S, DeGennaro M, Barrozo RB. The pharyngeal taste organ of a blood-feeding insect functions in food recognition. BMC Biol 2024; 22:63. [PMID: 38481317 PMCID: PMC10938694 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-024-01861-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Obligate blood-feeding insects obtain the nutrients and water necessary to ensure survival from the vertebrate blood. The internal taste sensilla, situated in the pharynx, evaluate the suitability of the ingested food. Here, through multiple approaches, we characterized the pharyngeal organ (PO) of the hematophagous kissing bug Rhodnius prolixus to determine its role in food assessment. The PO, located antero-dorsally in the pharynx, comprises eight taste sensilla that become bathed with the incoming blood. RESULTS We showed that these taste sensilla house gustatory receptor neurons projecting their axons through the labral nerves to reach the subesophageal zone in the brain. We found that these neurons are electrically activated by relevant appetitive and aversive gustatory stimuli such as NaCl, ATP, and caffeine. Using RNA-Seq, we examined the expression of sensory-related gene families in the PO. We identified gustatory receptors, ionotropic receptors, transient receptor potential channels, pickpocket channels, opsins, takeouts, neuropeptide precursors, neuropeptide receptors, and biogenic amine receptors. RNA interference assays demonstrated that the salt-related pickpocket channel Rproppk014276 is required during feeding of an appetitive solution of NaCl and ATP. CONCLUSIONS We provide evidence of the role of the pharyngeal organ in food evaluation. This work shows a comprehensive characterization of a pharyngeal taste organ in a hematophagous insect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Ortega-Insaurralde
- Laboratorio de Neuroetología de Insectos, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - José Manuel Latorre-Estivalis
- Laboratorio de Insectos Sociales, Instituto de Fisiología Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE), CONICET, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Andre Luis Costa-da-Silva
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biomolecular Sciences Institute, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Agustina Cano
- Laboratorio de Neuroetología de Insectos, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | | | - Héctor Salas Morales
- Laboratorio de Neuroetología de Insectos, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gina Pontes
- Laboratorio de Ecofisiología de Insectos, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Martín Berón de Astrada
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de la Visión, Departamento de Fisiología Biología Molecular y Celular (FBMC), Instituto de Biociencias Biotecnología y Biología Traslacional (IB3), Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sheila Ons
- Laboratorio de Neurobiología de Insectos, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas (CENEXA), Centro Regional de Estudios Genómicos, CONICET, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Matthew DeGennaro
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biomolecular Sciences Institute, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Romina B Barrozo
- Laboratorio de Neuroetología de Insectos, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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2
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Manrique G, Rojas JC, Lorenzo Figueiras AN, Barrozo RB, Guerenstein PG. Highlights, challenges, and perspectives in basic and applied chemical ecology of triatomines. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2023; 59:101101. [PMID: 37595884 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2023.101101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/20/2023]
Abstract
Triatomines are vectors of Chagas disease. Due to failures in their control, there is an urgent need for more efficient and environmentally friendly monitoring and control tools. These hematophagous insects rely heavily on chemical information from the environment to detect hosts and cues/signals from conspecifics. Chemical ecology includes the elucidation of the functional role of chemicals mediating interactions between organisms. Studies on the chemical ecology of triatomines are leading to novel methods for their monitor and control. Thus, laboratory tests to develop chemical attractants and repellents are promissory and have led to the design of, for example, efficient baited traps. However, the monitoring and control tools proposed until now have not been as effective in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Manrique
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET-UBA, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Julio C Rojas
- Departamento de Ecología de Artrópodos y Manejo de Plagas, El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Carretera Antiguo Aeropuerto km 2.5, Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico
| | - Alicia N Lorenzo Figueiras
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET-UBA, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Romina B Barrozo
- Laboratorio de Neuroetología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET-UBA, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Pablo G Guerenstein
- Laboratorio de Estudio de la Biología de Insectos, Centro de Investigación Científica y Transferencia Tecnológica a la Producción (CONICET-UADER-Gob de Entre Ríos), Diamante, Entre Ríos, Argentina; Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos, Oro Verde, Entre Ríos, Argentina.
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3
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Garcia Guizzo M, Meneses C, Amado Cecilio P, Hessab Alvarenga P, Sonenshine D, Ribeiro JM. Optimizing tick artificial membrane feeding for Ixodes scapularis. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16170. [PMID: 37758795 PMCID: PMC10533868 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43200-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Artificial membrane feeding (AMF) is a powerful and versatile technique with a wide range of applications in the study of disease vectors species. Since its first description, AMF has been under constant optimization and standardization for different tick species and life stages. In the USA, Ixodes scapularis is the main vector of tick-borne zoonoses including the pathogens causing Lyme disease in humans and animals. Seeking to improve the overall fitness of I. scapularis adult females fed artificially, here, we have optimized the AMF technique, considerably enhancing attachment rate, engorgement success, egg laying, and egg hatching compared to those described in previous studies. Parameters such as the membrane thickness and the light/dark cycle to which the ticks were exposed were refined to more closely reflect the tick's natural behavior and life cycle. Additionally, ticks were fed on blood only, blood + ATP or blood + ATP + gentamicin. The artificial feeding of ticks on blood only was successful and generated a progeny capable of feeding naturally on a host, i.e., mice. Adding ATP as a feeding stimulant did not improve tick attachment or engorgement. Notably, the administration of gentamicin, an antibiotic commonly used in tick AMF to prevent microbial contamination, negatively impacted Rickettsia buchneri endosymbiont levels in the progeny of artificially fed ticks. In addition, gentamicin-fed ticks showed a reduction in oviposition success compared to ticks artificially fed on blood only, discouraging the use of antibiotics in AMF. Overall, our data suggest that the AMF of adult females on blood only, in association with the natural feeding of their progeny on mice, might be used as an integrated approach in tick rearing, eliminating the use of protected species under the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). Of note, although optimized for I. scapularis adult ticks, I. scapularis nymphs, other tick species, and sand flies could also be fed using the membrane described in this study, indicating that it might be a suitable alternative for the artificial feeding of a variety of hematophagous species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melina Garcia Guizzo
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA.
| | - Claudio Meneses
- Vector Molecular Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Pedro Amado Cecilio
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Patricia Hessab Alvarenga
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Daniel Sonenshine
- Vector Molecular Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Jose M Ribeiro
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA.
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King BH, Gunathunga PB. Gustation in insects: taste qualities and types of evidence used to show taste function of specific body parts. JOURNAL OF INSECT SCIENCE (ONLINE) 2023; 23:11. [PMID: 37014302 PMCID: PMC10072106 DOI: 10.1093/jisesa/iead018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
The insect equivalent of taste buds are gustatory sensilla, which have been found on mouthparts, pharynxes, antennae, legs, wings, and ovipositors. Most gustatory sensilla are uniporous, but not all apparently uniporous sensilla are gustatory. Among sensilla containing more than one neuron, a tubular body on one dendrite is also indicative of a taste sensillum, with the tubular body adding tactile function. But not all taste sensilla are also tactile. Additional morphological criteria are often used to recognize if a sensillum is gustatory. Further confirmation of such criteria by electrophysiological or behavioral evidence is needed. The five canonical taste qualities to which insects respond are sweet, bitter, sour, salty, and umami. But not all tastants that insects respond to easily fit in these taste qualities. Categories of insect tastants can be based not only on human taste perception, but also on whether the response is deterrent or appetitive and on chemical structure. Other compounds that at least some insects taste include, but are not limited to: water, fatty acids, metals, carbonation, RNA, ATP, pungent tastes as in horseradish, bacterial lipopolysaccharides, and contact pheromones. We propose that, for insects, taste be defined not only as a response to nonvolatiles but also be restricted to responses that are, or are thought to be, mediated by a sensillum. This restriction is useful because some of the receptor proteins in gustatory sensilla are also found elsewhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- B H King
- Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA
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5
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Pontes G, Latorre-Estivalis JM, Gutiérrez ML, Cano A, Berón de Astrada M, Lorenzo MG, Barrozo RB. Molecular and functional basis of high-salt avoidance in a blood-sucking insect. iScience 2022; 25:104502. [PMID: 35720264 PMCID: PMC9204723 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.104502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 04/14/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Salts are essential nutrients required for many physiological processes, and accordingly, their composition and concentration are tightly regulated. Taste is the ultimate sensory modality involved in resource quality assessment, resulting in acceptance or rejection. Here we found that high salt concentrations elicit feeding avoidance in the blood-sucking bug Rhodnius prolixus and elucidate the molecular and neurophysiological mechanisms involved. We found that high-salt avoidance is mediated by a salt-sensitive antennal gustatory receptor neuron (GRN). Using RNAi, we demonstrate that this process requires two amiloride-sensitive pickpocket channels (PPKs; Rpro PPK014276 and Rpro PPK28) expressed within these cells. We found that antennal GRNs project to the insect primary olfactory center, the antennal lobes, revealing these centers as potential sites for the integration of taste and olfactory host-derived cues. Moreover, the identification of the gustatory basis of high-salt detection in a hematophagous insect suggests novel targets for the prevention of biting and feeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gina Pontes
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - José Manuel Latorre-Estivalis
- Grupo de Comportamento de Vetores e Interação com Patógenos-CNPq, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou/FIOCRUZ, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - María Laura Gutiérrez
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustina Cano
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Martin Berón de Astrada
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de la Visión, Instituto de Biociencias, Biotecnología y Biología Traslacional, Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Marcelo G. Lorenzo
- Grupo de Comportamento de Vetores e Interação com Patógenos-CNPq, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou/FIOCRUZ, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Romina B. Barrozo
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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6
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de Sousa RT, Darnell R, Wright GA. Behavioural regulation of mineral salt intake in honeybees: a self-selection approach. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210169. [PMID: 35491591 PMCID: PMC9058550 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Minerals are required in small amounts to sustain metabolic activity in animals, but mineral deficiencies can also lead to metabolic bottlenecks and mineral excesses can induce toxicity. For these reasons, we could reasonably expect that micronutrients are actively regulated around nutritional optima. Honeybees have co-evolved with flowering plants such that their main sources of nutrients are floral pollen and nectar. Like other insects, honeybees balance their intake of multiple macronutrients during food consumption using a combination of pre- and post-ingestive mechanisms. How they regulate their intake of micronutrients using these mechanisms has rarely been studied. Using two-choice feeding assays, we tested whether caged and broodless young workers preferred solutions containing individual salts (NaCl, KCl, CaCl2, MgCl2) or metals (FeCl3, CuCl2, ZnCl2, MnCl2) in a concentration-dependent manner. We found that young adult workers could only self-select and optimize their dietary intake around specific concentrations of sodium, iron and copper. Bees largely avoided high concentration mineral solutions to minimize toxicity. These experiments demonstrate the limits of the regulation of intake of micronutrients in honeybees. This is the first study to compare this form of behaviour in one organism for eight different micronutrients. This article is part of the theme issue 'Natural processes influencing pollinator health: from chemistry to landscapes'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raquel T. de Sousa
- John Krebs Field Station, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 8QJ, UK,Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
| | - Robyn Darnell
- Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
| | - Geraldine A. Wright
- John Krebs Field Station, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 8QJ, UK
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7
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Ortega-Insaurralde I, Barrozo RB. The closer the better: Sensory tools and host-association in blood-sucking insects. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 136:104346. [PMID: 34896372 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2021.104346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2021] [Revised: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Many hematophagous insects acquire medical and veterinary relevance because they transmit disease causing pathogens to humans. Hematophagy is only fulfilled once a blood feeder successfully locates a vertebrate host by means of fine sensory systems. In nature, blood-sucking insects can exploit environments with differential association with their hosts. Given the relevance of the sensory systems during host searching, we review the current state of knowledge of the sensory machinery of four blood-sucking insects: human lice, bed bugs, kissing bugs and mosquitoes. Each one is representative of highly anthropophilic behaviours and a different degree of association with human hosts. We compare the number, arrangement and functional type of cuticular sensory structures dispersed on the main sensory organs. We also compare the genetic machinery potentially involved in the detection of host stimuli. Finally, we discuss the sensory diversity of the insects studied here.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Ortega-Insaurralde
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA, UBA-CONICET), Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Romina B Barrozo
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA, UBA-CONICET), Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental (DBBE), Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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8
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Latorre-Estivalis JM, Almeida FC, Pontes G, Dopazo H, Barrozo RB, Lorenzo MG. Evolution of the insect PPK gene family. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:6352500. [PMID: 34390578 PMCID: PMC8438182 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Insect pickpocket (PPK) receptors mediate diverse functions, among them the detection of mechano- and chemo-sensory stimuli. Notwithstanding their relevance, studies on their evolution only focused on Drosophila. We have analyzed the genomes of 26 species of 8 orders including holometabolous and hemimetabolous insects (Blattodea, Orthoptera, Hemiptera, Phthiraptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, and Diptera), to characterize the evolution of this gene family. PPKs were detected in all genomes analyzed, with 578 genes distributed in 7 subfamilies. According to our phylogeny ppk17 is the most divergent member, composing the new subfamily VII. PPKs evolved under a gene birth-and-death model that generated lineage-specific expansions usually located in clusters, while purifying selection affected several orthogroups. Subfamily V was the largest, including a mosquito-specific expansion that can be considered a new target for pest control. PPKs present a high gene turnover generating considerable variation. On one hand, Musca domestica (59), Aedes albopictus (51), Culex quinquefasciatus (48), and Blattella germanica (41) presented the largest PPK repertoires. On the other hand, Pediculus humanus (only ppk17), bees and ants (6-9) had the smallest PPK sets. A subset of prevalent PPKs was identified, indicating very conserved functions for these receptors. Finally, at least twenty percent of the sequences presented calmodulin-binding motifs, suggesting that these PPKs may amplify sensory responses similarly as proposed for D. melanogaster ppk25. Overall, this work characterized the evolutionary history of these receptors revealing relevant unknown gene sequence features and clade-specific expansions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jose Manuel Latorre-Estivalis
- Laboratorio de Insectos Sociales, Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIByNE), Universidad de Buenos Aires - CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Francisca C Almeida
- Laboratorio de Genética Evolutiva, Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gina Pontes
- Laboratorio de Eco-Fisiología de Insectos del Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Hernán Dopazo
- Laboratorio de Genómica de Poblaciones y Evolución. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires (IEGEBA). CONICET. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires. Argentina
| | - Romina B Barrozo
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA - UBA - CONICET), Departamento de Biología y Biodiversidad Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Marcelo Gustavo Lorenzo
- Vector Behaviour and Pathogen Interaction Group, Instituto René Rachou - FIOCRUZ, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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9
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Muñoz IJ, Schilman PE, Barrozo RB. Impact of alkaloids in food consumption, metabolism and survival in a blood-sucking insect. Sci Rep 2020; 10:9443. [PMID: 32523008 PMCID: PMC7287067 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-65932-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The sense of taste provides information about the “good” or “bad” quality of a food source, which may be potentially nutritious or toxic. Most alkaloids taste bitter to humans, and because bitter taste is synonymous of noxious food, they are generally rejected. This response may be due to an innate low palatability or due to a malaise that occurs after food ingestion, which could even lead to death. We investigated in the kissing bug Rhodnius prolixus, whether alkaloids such as quinine, caffeine and theophylline, are merely distasteful, or if anti-appetitive responses are caused by a post-ingestion physiological effect, or both of these options. Although anti-appetitive responses were observed for the three alkaloids, only caffeine and theophylline affect metabolic and respiratory parameters that reflected an underlying physiological stress following their ingestion. Furthermore, caffeine caused the highest mortality. In contrast, quinine appears to be a merely unpalatable compound. The sense of taste helps insects to avoid making wrong feeding decisions, such as the intake of bitter/toxic foods, and thus avoid potentially harmful effects on health, a mechanism preserved in obligate hematophagous insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacio J Muñoz
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET; Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, UBA, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Laboratorio de Ecofisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET; Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, UBA, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Pablo E Schilman
- Laboratorio de Ecofisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET; Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, UBA, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Romina B Barrozo
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET; Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, UBA, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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10
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Masagué S, Cano A, Asparch Y, Barrozo RB, Minoli S. Sensory discrimination between aversive salty and bitter tastes in an haematophagous insect. Eur J Neurosci 2020; 51:1867-1880. [PMID: 32048391 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2019] [Revised: 02/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Sensory aversion is essential for avoiding prospective dangers. We studied the chemical perception of aversive compounds of different gustatory modalities (salty, bitter) in the haematophagous bug, Rhodnius prolixus. Over a walking arena, insects avoided a substrate embedded with 1M NaCl or KCl if provided with water as an alternative. However, no preferences were expressed when both salts were opposed to each other. A pre-exposure to amiloride interfered with the repellency of NaCl and KCl equally, suggesting that amiloride-sensitive receptors are involved in the detection of both salts. Discriminative experiments were then performed to determine whether R. prolixus can distinguish between these salts. An aversive operant conditioning involving either NaCl or KCl modulated the repellency of the conditioned salt, but also of the novel salt. Repellency levels of both salts were rigid to a chemical pre-exposure to any of both salts. When gustatory modalities were crossed by presenting as a choice NaCl and a bitter molecule as caffeine (Caf), no innate preferences were expressed. Aversive operant conditionings with either NaCl or Caf rendered unspecific changes in the repellency of both compounds. A chemical pre-exposure to Caf modulated the response to Caf but not to NaCl, suggesting the existence of two independent neural pathways for the detection of salts and bitter compounds. Overall results suggest that R. prolixus cannot discriminate molecules of the same gustatory modality (i.e. salty), but can distinguish between salty and bitter tastes. The potential use of aversive gustatory stimuli as a complement of commercially available olfactory repellents is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Santiago Masagué
- Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustina Cano
- Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Yamila Asparch
- Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Romina B Barrozo
- Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sebastian Minoli
- Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto Biodiversidad Biología Experimental Aplicada, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Barrozo RB. Food recognition in hematophagous insects. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2019; 34:55-60. [PMID: 31247418 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2019.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2018] [Revised: 02/20/2019] [Accepted: 03/01/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Hematophagous insects use heat, odors, visual cues and humidity emitted by vertebrate hosts to find them in space and time. Once they reach a host, they integrate multimodal information from its skin, and decide whether to bite or not. If skin conditions fulfil the insect's expectations, it bites and pumps a small quantity of blood. Again, only if the sampled blood fulfils the insect's feeding requirements, it continues with a full ingestion. Taste is involved in both timely linked evaluation processes via contact chemoreceptors located in different parts of their bodies, driving jointly food acceptance or rejection. However, the whole picture of how blood-sucking insects evaluate the quality of a potential host is poorly understood. Here, I summarize the actual knowledge about the feeding decision-making in blood-sucking insects. Being typically involved in the transmission of diseases to humans or livestock, a deeper understanding about factors affecting an essential process as feeding in these insects could help us to find new strategies to reduce interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romina B Barrozo
- Grupo de Neuroetología de Insectos Vectores, Laboratorio Fisiología de Insectos, IBBEA, CONICET - UBA, Departamento Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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12
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Latorre-Estivalis JM, Lorenzo MG. Molecular bases of sensory processes in kissing bugs, vectors of Chagas disease. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2019; 34:80-84. [PMID: 31247423 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2019.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2019] [Revised: 03/20/2019] [Accepted: 03/31/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Sensory processes represent an information gathering interface between animals and their surrounding world. Therefore, they serve to scan the environment for resources and threats. The behavior of kissing bugs has been studied to aid their control because they transmit Chagas disease to humans. Besides, a few triatomines represent important insect models since Wigglesworth times. These hematophagous insects rely on different sensory systems to scan their environment for blood-sources, mating partners, and hiding places. The study of the molecular bases of sensory processes has undergone a dramatic progress due the advent of new technologies allowing mass-sequencing of genes. Here, we focus on reviewing the fundamental knowledge gathered to date about the molecular bases of kissing bug sensory processes.
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Minoli S, Cano A, Pontes G, Magallanes A, Roldán N, Barrozo RB. Learning Spatial Aversion Is Sensory-Specific in the Hematophagous Insect Rhodnius prolixus. Front Psychol 2018; 9:989. [PMID: 30038588 PMCID: PMC6047214 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2018] [Accepted: 05/28/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Even though innate behaviors are essential for assuring quick responses to expected stimuli, experience-dependent behavioral plasticity confers an advantage when unexpected conditions arise. As being rigidly responsive to too many stimuli can be biologically expensive, adapting preferences to time-dependent relevant environmental conditions provide a cheaper and wider behavioral reactivity. According to their specific life habits, animals prioritize different sensory modalities to maximize environment exploitation. Besides, when mediating learning processes, the salience of a stimulus usually plays a relevant role in determining the intensity of an association. Then, sensory prioritization might reflect an heterogeneity in the cognitive abilities of an individual. Here, we analyze in the kissing bug Rhodnius prolixus if stimuli from different sensory modalities generate different cognitive capacities under an operant aversive paradigm. In a 2-choice walking arena, by registering the spatial distribution of insects over an experimental arena, we evaluated firstly the innate responses of bugs confronted to mechanical (rough substrate), visual (green light), thermal (32°C heated plate), hygric (humidified substrate), gustatory (sodium chloride), and olfactory (isobutyric acid) stimuli. In further experimental series bugs were submitted to an aversive operant conditioning by pairing each stimulus with a negative reinforcement. Subsequent tests allowed us to analyze if the innate behaviors were modulated by such previous aversive experience. In our experimental setup mechanical and visual stimuli were neutral, the thermal cue was attractive, and the hygric, gustatory and olfactory ones were innately aversive. After the aversive conditioning, responses to the mechanical, the visual, the hygric and the gustatory stimuli were modulated while responses to the thermal and the olfactory stimuli remained rigid. We present evidences that the spatial learning capacities of R. prolixus are dependent on the sensory modality of the conditioned stimulus, regardless their innate valence (i.e., neutral, attractive, or aversive). These differences might be given by the biological relevance of the stimuli and/or by evolutionary aspects of the life traits of this hematophagous insect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Minoli
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental-FCEN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | | | - Gina Pontes
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental-FCEN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Amorina Magallanes
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental-FCEN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Nahuel Roldán
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental-FCEN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Romina B. Barrozo
- Laboratorio de Fisiología de Insectos, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental-FCEN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Nitric oxide contributes to high-salt perception in a blood-sucking insect model. Sci Rep 2017; 7:15551. [PMID: 29138480 PMCID: PMC5686212 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-15861-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
In all organisms, salts produce either appetitive or aversive responses depending on the concentration. While low-salt concentration in food elicits positive responses to ingest, high-salt triggers aversion. Still the mechanisms involved in this dual behavior have just started to be uncovered in some organisms. In Rhodnius prolixus, using pharmacological and behavioral assays, we demonstrated that upon high-salt detection in food a nitric oxide (NO) dependent cascade is activated. This activation involves a soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) and the production of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP). Thus, appetitive responses to low-salt diets turn to aversion whenever this cascade is activated. Conversely, insects feed over aversive high-salt solutions when it is blocked by reducing NO levels or by affecting the sGC activity. The activation of NO/sGC/cGMP cascade commands the avoidance feeding behavior in R. prolixus. Investigations in other insect species should examine the possibility that high-salt aversion is mediated by NO/sSG/cGMP signaling.
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