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Zeni V, Romano D, Kavallieratos NG, Stefanini C, Lucchi A, Canale A, Benelli G. Tapping for love: courtship, mating, and behavioral asymmetry in two aphid parasitoids, Aphidius ervi and Aphidius matricariae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidinae). JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 2024:toae142. [PMID: 38956824 DOI: 10.1093/jee/toae142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2024] [Revised: 05/03/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024]
Abstract
Understanding the biology and ecology of parasitoids can have direct implications for their evaluation as biological control agents, as well as for the development and implementation of mass-rearing techniques. Nonetheless, our current knowledge of the possible influence of lateralized displays (i.e., the asymmetric expression of cognitive functions) on their reproductive behavior is scarce. Herein, we characterized the behavioral elements involved in courtship, and quantified the durations of 2 important aphid parasitoids, Aphidius ervi Haliday and Aphidius matricariae Haliday (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae). We quantified the main indicators of copulation and examined the occurrence of lateralized traits at population level. Results indicated that A. matricariae exhibited longer durations of wing fanning, antennal tapping, pre-copula and copula phases compared to A. ervi. Postcopulatory behavior was observed only in A. matricariae. Unlike other parasitoid species, the duration of wing fanning, chasing, and antennal tapping did not affect the success of the mating of male A. ervi and A. matricariae. Both species exhibited a right-biased female kicking behavior at the population level during the pre-copula. Our study provides insights into the fundamental biology of aphidiine parasitoids and reports the presence of population-level lateralized mating displays, which can serve as useful benchmarks to evaluate the quality of mass-rearing systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Zeni
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Donato Romano
- The BioRobotics Institute, Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pontedera, Italy
- Department of Excellence in Robotics & A.I., Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy
| | - Nickolas G Kavallieratos
- Laboratory of Agricultural Zoology and Entomology, Department of Crop Science, Agricultural University of Athens, Athens, Attica, Greece
| | - Cesare Stefanini
- The BioRobotics Institute, Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pontedera, Italy
- Department of Excellence in Robotics & A.I., Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy
| | - Andrea Lucchi
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Angelo Canale
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Giovanni Benelli
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
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2
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Liga D, Stancher G, Frasnelli E. Visuo-motor lateralization in Apis mellifera: flight speed differences in foraging choices. Sci Rep 2024; 14:660. [PMID: 38182866 PMCID: PMC10770071 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-51141-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/31/2023] [Indexed: 01/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Evidence of lateralization has been provided in Apis mellifera in olfactory learning and social interactions, but not much is known about how it influences visuo-motor tasks. This study investigates visuo-motor biases in free-flying honeybees by analysing left/right choices related to foraging in a Y-maze. Individual bees were trained to associate a visual stimulus (a blue or yellow target) with a reward/punishment: the Blue + group was reinforced for the blue and punished for the yellow, and vice versa for the Yellow + group. In unrewarded tests, we assessed for each bee the directional choice for one of the two identical targets (12 trials with blue targets and 12 with yellow targets) placed in the left and right arms of the maze as well as the flight times to reach the target chosen. The results did not reveal a significant directional preference at the population level, but only at the individual level, with some individuals presenting a strong bias for choosing the right or left stimulus. However, the data revealed an interesting new factor: the influence of both direction and colour on flight times. Overall, bees took less time to choose the stimulus in the left arm. Furthermore, the yellow target, when previously associated with a punishment, was reached on average faster than the punished blue target, with a higher number of no-choices for punished blue targets than for punished yellow targets. This opens new perspectives not only on the study of lateralization in Apis mellifera, but also on the bees' chromatic preferences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Liga
- University of Trento, CIMeC, ING, 38068, Rovereto, TN, Italy
| | | | - Elisa Frasnelli
- University of Trento, CIMeC, ING, 38068, Rovereto, TN, Italy.
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3
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Lösel PD, Monchanin C, Lebrun R, Jayme A, Relle JJ, Devaud JM, Heuveline V, Lihoreau M. Natural variability in bee brain size and symmetry revealed by micro-CT imaging and deep learning. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19:e1011529. [PMID: 37782674 PMCID: PMC10569549 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2023] [Revised: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Analysing large numbers of brain samples can reveal minor, but statistically and biologically relevant variations in brain morphology that provide critical insights into animal behaviour, ecology and evolution. So far, however, such analyses have required extensive manual effort, which considerably limits the scope for comparative research. Here we used micro-CT imaging and deep learning to perform automated analyses of 3D image data from 187 honey bee and bumblebee brains. We revealed strong inter-individual variations in total brain size that are consistent across colonies and species, and may underpin behavioural variability central to complex social organisations. In addition, the bumblebee dataset showed a significant level of lateralization in optic and antennal lobes, providing a potential explanation for reported variations in visual and olfactory learning. Our fast, robust and user-friendly approach holds considerable promises for carrying out large-scale quantitative neuroanatomical comparisons across a wider range of animals. Ultimately, this will help address fundamental unresolved questions related to the evolution of animal brains and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp D. Lösel
- Engineering Mathematics and Computing Lab (EMCL), Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
- Data Mining and Uncertainty Quantification (DMQ), Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Materials Physics, Research School of Physics, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Coline Monchanin
- Research Center on Animal Cognition (CRCA), Center for Integrative Biology (CBI); CNRS, University Paul Sabatier – Toulouse III, Toulouse, France
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
| | - Renaud Lebrun
- Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier, CC64, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
- BioCampus, Montpellier Ressources Imagerie, CNRS, INSERM, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Alejandra Jayme
- Engineering Mathematics and Computing Lab (EMCL), Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
- Data Mining and Uncertainty Quantification (DMQ), Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jacob J. Relle
- Engineering Mathematics and Computing Lab (EMCL), Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
- Data Mining and Uncertainty Quantification (DMQ), Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jean-Marc Devaud
- Research Center on Animal Cognition (CRCA), Center for Integrative Biology (CBI); CNRS, University Paul Sabatier – Toulouse III, Toulouse, France
| | - Vincent Heuveline
- Engineering Mathematics and Computing Lab (EMCL), Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
- Data Mining and Uncertainty Quantification (DMQ), Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
- Heidelberg University Computing Centre (URZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Mathieu Lihoreau
- Research Center on Animal Cognition (CRCA), Center for Integrative Biology (CBI); CNRS, University Paul Sabatier – Toulouse III, Toulouse, France
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Huang X, Xu XL, Li RX, Wang S, Tian LX. Ultrastructure and distribution of antennal sensilla of Bombus terrestris (Hymenoptera: Apidae). ZOOL ANZ 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcz.2022.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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5
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Pfeifer LS, Heyers K, Berretz G, Metzen D, Packheiser J, Ocklenburg S. Broadening the scope: Increasing phenotype diversity in laterality research. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:1048388. [PMID: 36386787 PMCID: PMC9650052 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.1048388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 09/17/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Lena Sophie Pfeifer
- Department of Cognitive Psychology, Faculty for Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Katrin Heyers
- Department of Biopsychology, Faculty for Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Experimental Psychology II and Biological Psychology, Institute of Psychology, School of Human Sciences, Osnabrück University, Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Gesa Berretz
- Department of Biopsychology, Faculty for Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Dorothea Metzen
- Department of Biopsychology, Faculty for Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Julian Packheiser
- Social Brain Lab, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Department of Biopsychology, Faculty for Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Psychology, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
- Institute for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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Functional Asymmetries Routing the Mating Behavior of the Rusty Grain Beetle, Cryptolestes ferrugineus (Stephens) (Coleoptera: Laemophloeidae). INSECTS 2022; 13:insects13080699. [PMID: 36005324 PMCID: PMC9409065 DOI: 10.3390/insects13080699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2022] [Revised: 07/22/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary We evaluated the behavioral asymmetries of Cryptolestes ferrugineus (Stephens) (Coleoptera: Laemophloeidae) males during courtship and mating with potential mates. The highest proportion of males showed left-biased approaches towards females, and turned 180° to their left. Right-biased males (i.e., approaching mates from the right and then turning 180°) were fewer than left-biased males. A low percentage of males approaching from the front and back side achieved successful mating. Left-biased-approaching males had a significantly shorter copula duration in comparison with other males. Left-biased males performed shorter copulation attempts and copula in comparison to right-biased males. This research contributes to understand the role of lateralization in the beetle family Laemophloeidae. Abstract The rusty grain beetle, Cryptolestes ferrugineus (Stephens) (Coleoptera: Laemophloeidae), is a serious secondary pest of stored and processed food commodities. In the present study, we investigated the lateralization of males during courtship and mating, attempting to understand if it can be linked with a high likelihood of successful copulation. Most males exhibited left-biased (41%) approaches towards females, and turned 180° to their left, with 37% mating success. Right-biased males (i.e., approaching from the right and then turning 180°) were fewer than left-biased ones; 26% out of 34% managed to copulate with females. Only 9% out of 13% and 7% out of 11% of the back side- and front side-approaching males succeeded in mating, respectively. Directional asymmetries in approaching a potential mate, as well as the laterality of side-biased turning 180°, significantly affected male copulation success, with left-biased males achieving higher mating success if compared to right-biased males. Copula duration was significantly lower for left-biased-approaching males (1668.0 s) over the others (i.e., 1808.1, 1767.9 and 1746.9 for right-biased, front and back side-males, respectively). Left-biased males performed shorter copulation attempts and copula compared to right-biased males. Overall, our study adds basic knowledge to the lateralized behavioral displays during courtship and copula of C. ferrugineus.
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7
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Ocklenburg S, Peterburs J, Mundorf A. Hemispheric asymmetries in the amygdala: a comparative primer. Prog Neurobiol 2022; 214:102283. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2022.102283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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8
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Ribeiro Júnior C, Serrão JE. Antennal Sensilla in Vespidae: A Comparison Between a Diurnal and a Nocturnal Polistinae Wasp. MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF MICROSCOPY SOCIETY OF AMERICA, MICROBEAM ANALYSIS SOCIETY, MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 2022; 28:1-14. [PMID: 35450550 DOI: 10.1017/s1431927622000599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Social wasps have a widespread Neotropical distribution and are important pollinators and biological control agents for pest insects. The foraging activity of wasps is influenced by biotic and abiotic factors that are detected by the antennal sensilla that vary according to species, sex, caste, and environmental conditions. This study compares the types and quantities of antennal sensilla with a scanning electron microscope between the nocturnal Apoica flavissima and the diurnal Polistes simillimus wasps. Six types of sensilla were found in the antennae of both species: placoid, coeloconic, basiconic-type 1, basiconic-type 2, trichoid-type 1, and trichoid-type 2. Sensilla chaetica were found only in the scape and pedicel of A. flavissima. In the nocturnal wasp, there are 19,132.27 ± 1,247.72 sensilla in the left and 17,746.46 ± 1,477.46 in the right antennae, whereas in the diurnal wasp 14,936.72 ± 1,271.69 in the left and 16,090.82 ± 1,345.3 in the right antennae. A. flavissima has a longer antennal length and number of sensilla than P. simillimus. The higher number of antennal sensilla in the nocturnal wasp is not linked with the antennal size. The association of antennal sensilla functions with ecological and behavioral factors of A. flavissima and P. simillimus are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José Eduardo Serrão
- Department of General Biology, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, MG, Brazil
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9
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Planidin NP, Reimchen TE. Behavioural responses of threespine stickleback with lateral line asymmetries to experimental mechanosensory stimuli. J Exp Biol 2021; 225:273859. [PMID: 34939652 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.243661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Behavioural asymmetry, typically referred to as laterality, is widespread among bilaterians and is often associated with asymmetry in brain structure. However, the influence of sensory receptor asymmetry on laterality has undergone limited investigation. Here we use threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) to investigate the influence of lateral line asymmetry on laterality during lab simulations of three mechanosensation-dependent behaviours: predator evasion, prey localization and rheotaxis. We recorded the response of stickleback to impacts at the water surface and water flow in photic conditions and low-frequency oscillations in the dark, across four repeat trials. We then compared individuals' laterality to asymmetry in the number of neuromasts on either side of their body. Stickleback hovered with their right side against the arena wall 57% of the time (P<0.001) in illuminated surface impact trials and 56% of the time in (P=0.085) dark low-frequency stimulation trials. Light regime modulated the effect of neuromast count on laterality, as fish with more neuromasts were more likely to hover with the wall on their right during illumination (P=0.007) but were less likely to do so in darkness (P=0.025). Population level laterality diminished in later trials across multiple behaviours and individuals did not show a consistent side bias in any behaviours. Our results demonstrate a complex relationship between sensory structure asymmetry and laterality, suggesting that laterality is modulated multiple sensory modalities and temporally dynamic.
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10
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Cavelius M, Brunel T, Didier A. Lessons from behavioral lateralization in olfaction. Brain Struct Funct 2021; 227:685-696. [PMID: 34596756 PMCID: PMC8843900 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-021-02390-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Sensory information, sampled by sensory organs positioned on each side of the body may play a crucial role in organizing brain lateralization. This question is of particular interest with regard to the growing evidence of alteration in lateralization in several psychiatric conditions. In this context, the olfactory system, an ancient, mostly ipsilateral and well-conserved system across phylogeny may prove an interesting model system to understand the behavioral significance of brain lateralization. Here, we focused on behavioral data in vertebrates and non-vertebrates, suggesting that the two hemispheres of the brain differentially processed olfactory cues to achieve diverse sensory operations, such as detection, discrimination, identification of behavioral valuable cues or learning. These include reports across different species on best performances with one nostril or the other or odorant active sampling by one nostril or the other, depending on odorants or contexts. In some species, hints from peripheral anatomical or functional asymmetry were proposed to explain these asymmetries in behavior. Instigations of brain activation or more rarely of brain connectivity evoked by odorants revealed a complex picture with regards to asymmetric patterns which is discussed with respect to behavioral data. Along the steps of the discussed literature, we propose avenues for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Cavelius
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Neuropop Team, Lyon, France.,CNRS 5292, Inserm 1028, Lyon 1 University, Lyon, France
| | - Théo Brunel
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Neuropop Team, Lyon, France.,CNRS 5292, Inserm 1028, Lyon 1 University, Lyon, France
| | - Anne Didier
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Neuropop Team, Lyon, France. .,CNRS 5292, Inserm 1028, Lyon 1 University, Lyon, France.
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11
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Olfactory coding in the antennal lobe of the bumble bee Bombus terrestris. Sci Rep 2021; 11:10947. [PMID: 34040068 PMCID: PMC8154950 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-90400-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Sociality is classified as one of the major transitions in evolution, with the largest number of eusocial species found in the insect order Hymenoptera, including the Apini (honey bees) and the Bombini (bumble bees). Bumble bees and honey bees not only differ in their social organization and foraging strategies, but comparative analyses of their genomes demonstrated that bumble bees have a slightly less diverse family of olfactory receptors than honey bees, suggesting that their olfactory abilities have adapted to different social and/or ecological conditions. However, unfortunately, no precise comparison of olfactory coding has been performed so far between honey bees and bumble bees, and little is known about the rules underlying olfactory coding in the bumble bee brain. In this study, we used in vivo calcium imaging to study olfactory coding of a panel of floral odorants in the antennal lobe of the bumble bee Bombus terrestris. Our results show that odorants induce reproducible neuronal activity in the bumble bee antennal lobe. Each odorant evokes a different glomerular activity pattern revealing this molecule's chemical structure, i.e. its carbon chain length and functional group. In addition, pairwise similarity among odor representations are conserved in bumble bees and honey bees. This study thus suggests that bumble bees, like honey bees, are equipped to respond to odorants according to their chemical features.
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12
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Ecological predictors of lateral line asymmetry in stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). Evol Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-021-10117-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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13
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Ozone Pollution Alters Olfaction and Behavior of Pollinators. Antioxidants (Basel) 2021; 10:antiox10050636. [PMID: 33919364 PMCID: PMC8143334 DOI: 10.3390/antiox10050636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Concentration of air pollutants, particularly ozone (O3), has dramatically increased since pre-industrial times in the troposphere. Due to the strong oxidative potential of O3, negative effects on both emission and lifetime in the atmosphere of plant volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have already been highlighted. VOCs alteration by O3 may potentially affect the attraction of pollinators that rely on these chemical signals. Surprisingly, direct effects of O3 on the olfaction and the behavioral response of pollinators have not been investigated so far. We developed a comprehensive experiment under controlled conditions to assess O3 physiological and behavioral effects on two pollinator species, differing in their ecological traits. Using several realistic concentrations of O3 and various exposure times, we investigated the odor antennal detection and the attraction to VOCs present in the floral scents of their associated plants. Our results showed, in both species, a clear effect of exposure to high O3 concentrations on the ability to detect and react to the floral VOCs. These effects depend on the VOC tested and its concentration, and the O3 exposure (concentration and duration) on the pollinator species. Pollination systems may, therefore, be impaired in different ways by increased levels of O3, the effects of which will likely depend on whether the exposure is chronic or, as in this study, punctual, likely causing some pollination systems to be more vulnerable than others. While several studies have already shown the negative impact of O3 on VOCs emission and lifetime in the atmosphere, this study reveals, for the first time, that this impact alters the pollinator detection and behavior. These findings highlight the urgent need to consider air pollution when evaluating threats to pollinators.
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Baldachini M, Regaiolli B, Llorente M, Riba D, Spiezio C. The Influence of Target Animacy and Social Rank on Hand Preference in Barbary Macaques (Macaca sylvanus). INT J PRIMATOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10764-020-00193-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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15
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Abstract
Bees provide a good model to investigate the evolution of lateralization. So far, most studies focused on olfactory learning and memories in tethered bees. This study investigated possible behavioural biases in free-flying buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) by analysing their turning decisions in a T-maze. Bees of various size were trained to associate a syrup reward with a blue target placed at the centre of the T-maze. The bees were then tested over 16 trials by presenting them with blue targets at the end of the maze's arms. The maze was rotated 180° after the first 8 trials to control for environmental factors. The number of turnings to the left and right arms were analysed. The bees sampled exhibited a population-level rightward turning bias. As bumblebees vary significantly in size with large bees being better learners than smaller ones, we measured the thorax width to identify a possible relationship between size and bias. No significant correlation was identified. This study shows that bees present lateralization in a visuo-motor task that mimics their foraging behaviour, indicating a possible specialization of the right side of the nervous system in routine tasks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lydia Waite
- School of Life Sciences, University of Lincoln, Lincoln, UK
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16
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Grocock NL, Batallas RE, McNamara EA, Sturm AB, Manson JS, Evenden ML. Bumble Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) Respond to Moth (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Pheromone Components, Leading to Bee Bycatch in Monitoring Traps Targeting Moth Pests. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2020.576692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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17
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Abstract
Comparative studies on brain asymmetry date back to the 19th century but then largely disappeared due to the assumption that lateralization is uniquely human. Since the reemergence of this field in the 1970s, we learned that left-right differences of brain and behavior exist throughout the animal kingdom and pay off in terms of sensory, cognitive, and motor efficiency. Ontogenetically, lateralization starts in many species with asymmetrical expression patterns of genes within the Nodal cascade that set up the scene for later complex interactions of genetic, environmental, and epigenetic factors. These take effect during different time points of ontogeny and create asymmetries of neural networks in diverse species. As a result, depending on task demands, left- or right-hemispheric loops of feedforward or feedback projections are then activated and can temporarily dominate a neural process. In addition, asymmetries of commissural transfer can shape lateralized processes in each hemisphere. It is still unclear if interhemispheric interactions depend on an inhibition/excitation dichotomy or instead adjust the contralateral temporal neural structure to delay the other hemisphere or synchronize with it during joint action. As outlined in our review, novel animal models and approaches could be established in the last decades, and they already produced a substantial increase of knowledge. Since there is practically no realm of human perception, cognition, emotion, or action that is not affected by our lateralized neural organization, insights from these comparative studies are crucial to understand the functions and pathologies of our asymmetric brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Onur Güntürkün
- Department of Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Felix Ströckens
- Department of Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Department of Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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18
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David Fernandes AS, Niven JE. Lateralization of short- and long-term visual memories in an insect. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20200677. [PMID: 32370678 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.0677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The formation of memories within the vertebrate brain is lateralized between hemispheres across multiple modalities. However, in invertebrates evidence for lateralization is restricted to olfactory memories, primarily from social bees. Here, we use a classical conditioning paradigm with a visual conditioned stimulus to show that visual memories are lateralized in the wood ant, Formica rufa. We show that a brief contact between a sugar reward and either the right or left antenna (reinforcement) is sufficient to produce a lateralized memory, even though the visual cue is visible to both eyes throughout training and testing. Reinforcement given to the right antenna induced short-term memories, whereas reinforcement given to the left antenna induced long-term memories. Thus, short- and long-term visual memories are lateralized in wood ants. This extends the modalities across which memories are lateralized in insects and suggests that such memory lateralization may have evolved multiple times, possibly linked to the evolution of eusociality in the Hymenoptera.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Sofia David Fernandes
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK.,Centre for Computational Neuroscience & Robotics, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK.,School of Engineering & Informatics, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK
| | - Jeremy E Niven
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK.,Centre for Computational Neuroscience & Robotics, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK
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19
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Vallortigara G, Rogers LJ. A function for the bicameral mind. Cortex 2019; 124:274-285. [PMID: 32058074 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.11.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 11/28/2019] [Accepted: 11/28/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Why do the left and right sides of the brain have different functions? Having a lateralized brain, in which each hemisphere processes sensory inputs differently and carries out different functions, is common in vertebrates, and it has now been reported for invertebrates too. Experiments with several animal species have shown that having a lateralized brain can enhance the capacity to perform two tasks at the same time. Thus, the different specializations of the left and right sides of the brain seem to increase brain efficiency. Other advantages may involve control of action that, in Bilateria, may be confounded by separate and independent sensory processing and motor outputs on the left and right sides. Also, the opportunity for increased perceptual training associated with preferential use of only one sensory or motoric organ may result in a time advantage for the dominant side. Although brain efficiency of individuals can be achieved without the need for alignment of lateralization in the population, lateral biases (such as preferences in the use of a laterally-placed eye) usually occur at the population level, with most individuals showing a similar direction of bias. Why is this the case? Not only humans, but also most non-human animals, show a similar pattern of population bias (i.e., directional asymmetry). For instance, in several vertebrate species (from fish to mammals) most individuals react faster when a predator approaches from their left side, although some individuals (a minority usually ranging from 10 to 35%) escape faster from predators arriving from their right side. Invoking individual efficiency (lateralization may increase fitness), evolutionary chance or simply genetic inheritance cannot explain this widespread pattern. Using mathematical theory of games, it has been argued that the population structure of lateralization (with either antisymmetry or directional asymmetry) may result from the type of interactions asymmetric organisms face with each other.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lesley J Rogers
- School of Science and Technology, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia
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20
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Fouks B, Robb EG, Lattorff HMG. Role of conspecifics and personal experience on behavioral avoidance of contaminated flowers by bumblebees. Curr Zool 2019; 65:447-455. [PMID: 31413717 PMCID: PMC6688574 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoy099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Accepted: 12/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Pollinators use multiple cues whilst foraging including direct cues from flowers and indirect cues from other pollinators. The use of indirect social cues is common in social insects, such as honeybees and bumblebees, where a social environment facilitates the ability to use such cues. Bumblebees use cues to forage on flowers according to previous foraging experiences. Flowers are an essential food source for pollinators but also pose a high risk of parasite infection through the shared use of flowers leading to parasite spillover. Nevertheless, bumblebees have evolved behavioral defense mechanisms to limit parasite infection by avoiding contaminated flowers. Mechanisms underlying the avoidance of contaminated flowers by bumblebees are poorly understood. Bumblebees were recorded having the choice to forage on non-contaminated flowers and flowers contaminated by a trypan osome gut parasite, Crithidia bombi. The use of different treatments with presence or absence of conspecifics on both contaminated and non-contaminated flowers allowed to investigate the role of social visual cues on their pathogen avoidance behavior. Bumblebees are expected to use social visual cues to avoid contaminated flowers. Our study reveals that the presence of a conspecific on flowers either contaminated or not does not help bumblebee foragers avoiding contaminated flowers. Nevertheless, bumblebees whereas gaining experience tend to avoid their conspecific when placed on contaminated flower and copy it when on the non-contaminated flower. Our experiment suggests a detrimental impact of floral scent on disease avoidance behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bertrand Fouks
- Institut für Biologie, Molekulare Ökologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg Hoher Weg, Halle (Saale), Germany.,Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Emily G Robb
- Institut für Biologie, Molekulare Ökologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg Hoher Weg, Halle (Saale), Germany.,Microbes and Pathogens Biology, The Institute for Global Food Security, School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - H Michael G Lattorff
- Institut für Biologie, Molekulare Ökologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg Hoher Weg, Halle (Saale), Germany.,International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Nairobi, Kenya.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Deutscher Platz, Leipzig, Germany
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21
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Abstract
Lateralization, i.e., the different functional roles played by the left and right sides of the brain, is expressed in two main ways: (1) in single individuals, regardless of a common direction (bias) in the population (aka individual-level lateralization); or (2) in single individuals and in the same direction in most of them, so that the population is biased (aka population-level lateralization). Indeed, lateralization often occurs at the population-level, with 60–90% of individuals showing the same direction (right or left) of bias, depending on species and tasks. It is usually maintained that lateralization can increase the brain’s efficiency. However, this may explain individual-level lateralization, but not population-level lateralization, for individual brain efficiency is unrelated to the direction of the asymmetry in other individuals. From a theoretical point of view, a possible explanation for population-level lateralization is that it may reflect an evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS) that can develop when individually asymmetrical organisms are under specific selective pressures to coordinate their behavior with that of other asymmetrical organisms. This prediction has been sometimes misunderstood as it is equated with the idea that population-level lateralization should only be present in social species. However, population-level asymmetries have been observed in aggressive and mating displays in so-called “solitary” insects, suggesting that engagement in specific inter-individual interactions rather than “sociality” per se may promote population-level lateralization. Here, we clarify that the nature of inter-individuals interaction can generate evolutionarily stable strategies of lateralization at the individual- or population-level, depending on ecological contexts, showing that individual-level and population-level lateralization should be considered as two aspects of the same continuum.
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22
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The left cradling bias: An evolutionary facilitator of social cognition? Cortex 2018; 118:116-131. [PMID: 29961539 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2018.05.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2018] [Revised: 04/30/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2018] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
A robust left side cradling bias (LCB) in humans is argued to reflect an evolutionarily old left visual field bias and right hemisphere dominance for processing social stimuli. A left visual field bias for face processing, invoked via the LCB, is known to reflect a human population-level right cerebral hemisphere specialization for processing social stimuli. We explored the relationship between cradling side biases, hand dominance and socio-communicative abilities. Four and five year old typically-developing children (N = 98) participated in a battery of manual motor tasks interspersed by cradling trials comprising a(n): infant human doll, infant primate doll, proto-face pillow and no-face pillow. Mean social and communication ability scores were obtained via a survey completed by each child's key teacher. We found a population-level LCB for holding an infant human doll that was not influenced by hand dominance, sex, age or experience of having a younger sibling. Children demonstrating a LCB, did however, obtain a significantly higher mean social ability score compared with their right side cradling counterparts. Like the infant human doll, the proto-face pillow's schematic face symbol was sufficient to elicit a population-level LCB. By contrast, the infant primate doll elicited a population-level right side cradling bias, influenced by both hand dominance and sex. The findings suggest that the LCB is present and visible early in development and is likely therefore, to represent evolutionarily old domain-specific organization and function of the right cerebral hemisphere. Additionally, results suggest that a LCB requires minimal triggering but can be reversed in some situations, possibly in response to species-type or levels of novelty or stress as perceived by the viewer. Patterns of behavioral biases within the context of social stimuli and their associations with cognitive ability are important for understanding how socio-communication abilities emerge in developing children.
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23
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Miler K, Kuszewska K, Zuber G, Woyciechowski M. Larval antlions show a cognitive ability/hunting efficiency trade-off connected with the level of behavioural asymmetry. Anim Cogn 2018; 21:613-617. [PMID: 29761246 PMCID: PMC6004280 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-018-1190-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2018] [Revised: 05/08/2018] [Accepted: 05/10/2018] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Recently, antlion larvae with greater behavioural asymmetry were shown to have improved learning abilities. However, a major evolutionary question that remained unanswered was why this asymmetry does not increase in all individuals during development. Here, we show that a trade-off exists between learning ability of larvae and their hunting efficiency. Larvae with greater asymmetry learn better than those with less, but the latter are better able to sense vibrational signals used to detect prey and can capture prey more quickly. Both traits, learning ability and hunting efficiency, present obvious fitness advantages; the trade-off between them may explain why behavioural asymmetry, which presumably stems from brain lateralization, is relatively rare in natural antlion populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krzysztof Miler
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa St. 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland.
| | - Karolina Kuszewska
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa St. 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Gabriela Zuber
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa St. 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Michal Woyciechowski
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa St. 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
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24
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Hunt ER, Dornan C, Sendova-Franks AB, Franks NR. Asymmetric ommatidia count and behavioural lateralization in the ant Temnothorax albipennis. Sci Rep 2018; 8:5825. [PMID: 29643429 PMCID: PMC5895843 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23652-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2018] [Accepted: 03/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Workers of the house-hunting ant Temnothorax albipennis rely on visual edge following and landmark recognition to navigate their rocky environment, and they also exhibit a leftward turning bias when exploring unknown nest sites. We used electron microscopy to count the number of ommatidia composing the compound eyes of workers, males and queens, to make an approximate assessment of their relative sampling resolution; and to establish whether there is an asymmetry in the number of ommatidia composing the workers' eyes, which might provide an observable, mechanistic explanation for the turning bias. We hypothesise that even small asymmetries in relative visual acuity between left and right eyes could be magnified by developmental experience into a symmetry-breaking turning preference that results in the inferior eye pointing toward the wall. Fifty-six workers were examined: 45% had more ommatidia in the right eye, 36% more in the left, and 20% an equal number. A tentative connection between relative ommatidia count for each eye and turning behaviour was identified, with a stronger assessment of behavioural lateralization before imaging and a larger sample suggested for further work. There was a clear sexual dimorphism in ommatidia counts between queens and males.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edmund R Hunt
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, BS8 1TQ, Bristol, UK.
| | - Ciara Dornan
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, BS8 1TQ, Bristol, UK
| | - Ana B Sendova-Franks
- Department of Engineering Design and Mathematics, University of the West of England, BS16 1QY, Bristol, UK
| | - Nigel R Franks
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, BS8 1TQ, Bristol, UK
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25
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Benelli G. Mating behavior of the West Nile virus vector Culex pipiens - role of behavioral asymmetries. Acta Trop 2018; 179:88-95. [PMID: 29288628 DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2017.12.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2017] [Revised: 12/11/2017] [Accepted: 12/23/2017] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Culex pipiens is a vector of West Nile, Rift Valley fever, Japanese encephalitis and Usutu viruses. In agreement with the criteria of Integrated Vector Management, several research efforts have been devoted to develop behavior-based control tools to fight mosquito vectors. However, our knowledge of mosquito mating biology and sexual communication is still patchy. Despite the high relevance of C. pipiens as a vector of medical and veterinary importance, no studies on its mating behavior and the factors routing mating success have been conducted. In this study, I quantified the mating behavior of an Italian strain of C. pipiens, evaluating the male mating success and its potential connections with population-level lateralized traits occurring during the mating sequence. Mean copula duration exceeded 100 s. Courting males can be straightly accepted by the female after the first genital contact (38.95%), as well as after some rejection kicks performed by females with hind legs (17.89%). No copula duration differences were detected between these two cases. The overall male mating success in laboratory conditions was 56.84%. The females performing rejection kicks preferentially used right hind legs at population-level. This was confirmed over four subsequent testing phases. The number of kicks per rejection event and the rejection success were higher when right legs are used over left ones, showing a functional advantage linked with the employ of right legs. Overall, the present study represents the first quantification of the courtship and mating behavior of C. pipiens. Data on male mating success and the role population-level lateralized mating traits provides basic biological knowledge that can be helpful to optimize autocidal and behavior-based control tools.
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26
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Behavioral asymmetries in ticks - Lateralized questing of Ixodes ricinus to a mechatronic apparatus delivering host-borne cues. Acta Trop 2018; 178:176-181. [PMID: 29196197 DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2017.11.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2017] [Revised: 11/27/2017] [Accepted: 11/27/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Ticks are considered among the most dangerous arthropod vectors of disease agents to both humans and animals worldwide. Lateralization contributes to biological fitness in many animals, conferring important functional advantages, therefore studying its role in tick perception would critically improve our knowledge about their host-seeking behavior. In this research, we evaluated if Ixodes ricinus (L.) (Ixodiidae) ticks have a preference in using the right or the left foreleg to climb on a host. We developed a mechatronic device moving a tuft of fox skin with fur as host-mimicking combination of cues. This engineered approach allows to display a realistic combination of both visual and olfactory host-borne stimuli, which is prolonged over the time and standardized for each replicate. In the first experiment, the mechatronic apparatus delivered host-borne cues frontally, to evaluate the leg preference during questing as response to a symmetrical stimulus. In the second experiment, host-borne cues were provided laterally, in an equal proportion to the left and to the right of the tick, to investigate if the host direction affected the questing behavior. In both experiments, the large majority of the tested ticks showed individual-level left-biased questing acts, if compared to the ticks showing right-biased ones. Furthermore, population-level left-biased questing responses were observed post-exposure to host-mimicking cues provided frontally or laterally to the tick. Overall, this is the first report on behavioral asymmetries in ticks of medical and veterinary importance. Moreover, the mechatronic apparatus developed in this research can be exploited to evaluate the impact of repellents on tick questing in highly reproducible standardized conditions.
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27
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Niven JE, Frasnelli E. Insights into the evolution of lateralization from the insects. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2018; 238:3-31. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2018.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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28
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Ong M, Bulmer M, Groening J, Srinivasan MV. Obstacle traversal and route choice in flying honeybees: Evidence for individual handedness. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0184343. [PMID: 29095830 PMCID: PMC5667806 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0184343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2017] [Accepted: 08/22/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Flying insects constantly face the challenge of choosing efficient, safe and collision-free routes while navigating through dense foliage. We examined the route-choice behavior of foraging honeybees when they encountered a barrier which could be traversed by flying through one of two apertures, positioned side by side. When the bees' choice behavior was averaged over the entire tested population, the two apertures were chosen with equal frequency when they were equally wide. When the apertures were of different width, the bees, on average, showed a preference for the wider aperture, which increased sharply with the difference between the aperture widths. Thus, bees are able to discriminate the widths of oncoming gaps and choose the passage which is presumably safer and quicker to transit. Examination of the behavior of individual bees revealed that, when the two apertures were equally wide, ca. 55% of the bees displayed no side bias in their choices. However, the remaining 45% showed varying degrees of bias, with one half of them preferring the left-hand aperture, and the other half the right-hand aperture. The existence of distinct individual biases was confirmed by measuring the times required by biased bees to transit various aperture configurations: The transit time was longer if a bee's intrinsic bias forced it to engage with the narrower aperture. Our results show that, at the population level, bees do not exhibit 'handedness' in choosing routes; however, individual bees display an idiosyncratic bias that can range from a strong left bias, through zero bias, to a strong right bias. In honeybees, previous studies of olfactory and visual learning have demonstrated clear biases at the population level. To our knowledge, our study is the first to uncover the existence of individually distinct biases in honeybees. We also show how a distribution of biases among individual honeybees can be advantageous in facilitating rapid transit of a group of bees through a cluttered environment, without any centralized decision-making or control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marielle Ong
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- School of Mathematics and Physics, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Michael Bulmer
- School of Mathematics and Physics, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Julia Groening
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Mandyam V. Srinivasan
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- * E-mail:
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29
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Distribution of Antennal Olfactory and Non-Olfactory Sensilla in Different Species of Bees. Symmetry (Basel) 2017. [DOI: 10.3390/sym9080135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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30
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Lateralization of gene expression in the honeybee brain during olfactory learning. Sci Rep 2016; 6:34727. [PMID: 27703214 PMCID: PMC5050455 DOI: 10.1038/srep34727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2015] [Accepted: 09/20/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last decade, it has been demonstrated that brain functional asymmetry occurs not only in vertebrates but also in invertebrates. However, the mechanisms underlying functional asymmetry remain unclear. In the present study, we trained honeybees of the same parentage and age, on the proboscis extension reflex (PER) paradigm with only one antenna in use. The comparisons of gene expression between the left and right hemispheres were carried out using high throughput sequencing. Our research revealed that gene expression in the honeybee brain is also asymmetric, with more genes having higher expression in the right hemisphere than the left hemisphere. Our studies show that during olfactory learning, the left hemisphere is more responsible for long term memory and the right hemisphere is more responsible for the learning and short term memory.
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31
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Ruhland F, Caudal J, Blois‐Heulin C, Trabalon M. Male tarantula spiders’ reactions to light and odours reveal their motor asymmetry. J Zool (1987) 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- F. Ruhland
- Université Rennes 1, UMR – 6552 CNRS Ethologie Animale et Humaine Rennes France
| | - J.‐P. Caudal
- Université Rennes 1, UMR – 6553 CNRS ECOBIO Rennes France
| | - C. Blois‐Heulin
- Université Rennes 1, UMR – 6552 CNRS Ethologie Animale et Humaine Rennes France
| | - M. Trabalon
- Université Rennes 1, UMR – 6552 CNRS Ethologie Animale et Humaine Rennes France
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32
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Lateralized antennal control of aggression and sex differences in red mason bees, Osmia bicornis. Sci Rep 2016; 6:29411. [PMID: 27388686 PMCID: PMC4937407 DOI: 10.1038/srep29411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Accepted: 06/16/2016] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Comparison of lateralization in social and non-social bees tests the hypothesis that population-level, directional asymmetry has evolved as an adjunct to social behaviour. Previous research has supported this hypothesis: directional bias of antennal use in responding to odours and learning to associate odours with a food reward is absent in species that feed individually, such as mason bees, whereas it is clearly present in eusocial honeybees and stingless bees. Here we report that, when mason bees engage in agonistic interactions, a species-typical interactive behaviour, they do exhibit a directional bias according to which antenna is available to be used. Aggression was significantly higher in dyads using only their left antennae (LL) than it was in those using only their right antennae (RR). This asymmetry was found in both males and females but it was stronger in females. LL dyads of a male and a female spent significantly more time together than did other dyadic combinations. No asymmetry was present in non-aggressive contacts, latency to first contact or body wiping. Hence, population-level lateralization is present only for social interactions common and frequent in the species’ natural behaviour. This leads to a refinement of the hypothesis linking directional lateralization to social behaviour.
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33
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Mangalam M, Desai N, Singh M. Do right-handed monkeys use the right cheek pouch before the left? PLoS One 2014; 9:e97971. [PMID: 24844660 PMCID: PMC4028309 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0097971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2014] [Accepted: 04/26/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
There can be several factors that are likely to have played a role in the evolution of hand preference in humans and non-human primates, which the existing theories do not consider. There exists a possibility that hand preference in non-human primates evolved from the pre-existing lateralities in more elementary brain functions and behavior, or alternatively, the two coevolved. A basic example can be a hand-mouth command system that could have evolved in the context of ingestion. In the present study, we examined the relationship between lateralities in prehension and mastication processes, that is, hand and cheek pouch usage, in free-ranging bonnet macaques, Macaca radiata. The macaques preferentially used one hand–the ‘preferred’ hand, to pick up the bananas lying on the ground. Lateralities in hand and cheek pouch usage (for both filling and emptying) were positively related with each other, that is, the macaques used the cheek pouch corresponding to the preferred hand predominantly and before the other. Moreover, when the macaques used the non-preferred hand to pick up the bananas, the frequency of contralateral cheek pouch usage was higher than the frequency of ipsilateral cheek pouch usage, that is, the combined structure of hand, mouth, and food did not influence the relationship between laterality in hand usage and laterality in cheek pouch usage. These findings demonstrate laterality in a relatively more involuntary function than those explored previously in any non-human primate species (e.g., facial expressions and manual gestures).
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhur Mangalam
- Biopsychology Laboratory, University of Mysore, Mysore, India
| | - Nisarg Desai
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune, Pune, India
| | - Mewa Singh
- Biopsychology Laboratory, University of Mysore, Mysore, India
- Evolutionary and Organismal Biology Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, India
- * E-mail:
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34
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Sarasa M, Soriguer RC, Serrano E, Granados JE, Pérez JM. Postural laterality in Iberian ibexCapra pyrenaica: Effects of age, sex and nursing suggest stress and social information. Laterality 2014; 19:638-54. [DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2014.894052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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35
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The Bee as a Model to Investigate Brain and Behavioural Asymmetries. INSECTS 2014; 5:120-38. [PMID: 26462583 PMCID: PMC4592634 DOI: 10.3390/insects5010120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2013] [Revised: 12/04/2013] [Accepted: 12/23/2013] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The honeybee Apis mellifera, with a brain of only 960,000 neurons and the ability to perform sophisticated cognitive tasks, has become an excellent model in life sciences and in particular in cognitive neurosciences. It has been used in our laboratories to investigate brain and behavioural asymmetries, i.e., the different functional specializations of the right and the left sides of the brain. It is well known that bees can learn to associate an odour stimulus with a sugar reward, as demonstrated by extension of the proboscis when presented with the trained odour in the so-called Proboscis Extension Reflex (PER) paradigm. Bees recall this association better when trained using their right antenna than they do when using their left antenna. They also retrieve short-term memory of this task better when using the right antenna. On the other hand, when tested for long-term memory recall, bees respond better when using their left antenna. Here we review a series of behavioural studies investigating bees’ lateralization, integrated with electrophysiological measurements to study asymmetries of olfactory sensitivity, and discuss the possible evolutionary origins of these asymmetries. We also present morphological data obtained by scanning electron microscopy and two-photon microscopy. Finally, a behavioural study conducted in a social context is summarised, showing that honeybees control context-appropriate social interactions using their right antenna, rather than the left, thus suggesting that lateral biases in behaviour might be associated with requirements of social life.
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36
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Frasnelli E. Brain and behavioral lateralization in invertebrates. Front Psychol 2013; 4:939. [PMID: 24376433 PMCID: PMC3859130 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2013] [Accepted: 11/26/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Traditionally, only humans were thought to exhibit brain and behavioral asymmetries, but several studies have revealed that most vertebrates are also lateralized. Recently, evidence of left–right asymmetries in invertebrates has begun to emerge, suggesting that lateralization of the nervous system may be a feature of simpler brains as well as more complex ones. Here I present some examples in invertebrates of sensory and motor asymmetries, as well as asymmetries in the nervous system. I illustrate two cases where an asymmetric brain is crucial for the development of some cognitive abilities. The first case is the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, which has asymmetric odor sensory neurons and taste perception neurons. In this worm left/right asymmetries are responsible for the sensing of a substantial number of salt ions, and lateralized responses to salt allow the worm to discriminate between distinct salt ions. The second case is the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, where the presence of asymmetry in a particular structure of the brain is important in the formation or retrieval of long-term memory. Moreover, I distinguish two distinct patterns of lateralization that occur in both vertebrates and invertebrates: individual-level and population-level lateralization. Theoretical models on the evolution of lateralization suggest that the alignment of lateralization at the population level may have evolved as an evolutionary stable strategy in which individually asymmetrical organisms must coordinate their behavior with that of other asymmetrical organisms. This implies that lateralization at the population-level is more likely to have evolved in social rather than in solitary species. I evaluate this new hypothesis with a specific focus on insects showing different level of sociality. In particular, I present a series of studies on antennal asymmetries in honeybees and other related species of bees, showing how insects may be extremely useful to test the evolutionary hypothesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Frasnelli
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento Rovereto, Italy
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37
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Tabiowo E, Forrester GS. Structured bimanual actions and hand transfers reveal population-level right-handedness in captive gorillas. Anim Behav 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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38
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Advantages in exploring a new environment with the left eye in lizards. Behav Processes 2013; 97:80-3. [DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2013.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2012] [Revised: 03/18/2013] [Accepted: 04/01/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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39
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Goulson D, Park KJ, Tinsley MC, Bussière LF, Vallejo-Marin M. Social learning drives handedness in nectar-robbing bumblebees. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-013-1539-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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40
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Fouks B, Lattorff HMG. Social scent marks do not improve avoidance of parasites in foraging bumblebees. J Exp Biol 2013; 216:285-91. [PMID: 23038725 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.075374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Foraging is a result of innate and acquired mechanisms, and is optimized in order to increase fitness. During foraging, an animal faces many threats, such as predation and infection. The uptake of parasites and diseases while foraging is common and an individual should be adapted to detect and avoid such threats, using cues from either the abiotic environment or the parasite. Social animals possess an additional cue to detect such contaminated food sources: information provided by conspecifics. Bumblebees avoid contaminated flowers, but the cues used by the bees to distinguish contamination remain unknown. Under controlled laboratory conditions, we tested the use of scent marks derived from other foragers in choosing between a contaminated (by Crithidia bombi) and an uncontaminated flower. As a positive control we tested the bee's choice between two flowers, one scented with geraniol and containing a highly rewarding sugar solution, and the other not scented and containing a poorer reward. The bees mainly chose the uncontaminated and the rewarding scented flowers. Scent marks did not increase the efficiency of the bumblebees in choosing the better flower. The bees from both experiments behaved similarly, showing that the main and most relevant cue used to choose the uncontaminated flower is the odour from the parasite itself. The adaptation of bumblebees to avoid flowers contaminated by C. bombi arose from the long-term host-parasite interaction between these species. This strong adaptation results in an innate behaviour of bees and a detection and aversion of the odour of contaminated flower nectar.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bertrand Fouks
- Institut für Biologie, Molekulare Ökologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg Hoher Weg 4, 06099 Halle (Saale), Germany.
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41
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Hou G, Yang X, Yuan TF. Hippocampal asymmetry: differences in structures and functions. Neurochem Res 2013; 38:453-60. [PMID: 23283696 DOI: 10.1007/s11064-012-0954-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2012] [Revised: 12/11/2012] [Accepted: 12/19/2012] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The structural asymmetry of bilateral hippocampus in mammals has been well recognized. Recent findings highlighted the accompanying functional asymmetries, as well as the molecular differences of the hippocampus. The present paper summarized these recent advances in understanding the hippocampal asymmetries at molecular, circuit and functional levels. Additionally, the addition of new neurons to the hippocampal circuit during adulthood is asymmetrical. We conclude that these differences in molecules and structures of bilateral hippocampus determined the variances in functionality between the two sides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gonglin Hou
- Centre of Cognitive Research, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, 310018, China.
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42
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Riveros AJ, Gronenberg W. Decision-making and associative color learning in harnessed bumblebees (Bombus impatiens). Anim Cogn 2012; 15:1183-93. [PMID: 22837045 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-012-0542-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2012] [Revised: 05/24/2012] [Accepted: 07/16/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
In honeybees, the conditioning of the proboscis extension response (PER) has provided a powerful tool to explore the mechanisms underlying olfactory learning and memory. Unfortunately, PER conditioning does not work well for visual stimuli in intact honeybees, and performance is improved only after antennal amputation, thus limiting the analysis of visual learning and multimodal integration. Here, we study visual learning using the PER protocol in harnessed bumblebees, which exhibit high levels of odor learning under restrained conditions. We trained bumblebees in a differential task in which two colors differed in their rewarding values. We recorded learning performance as well as response latency and accuracy. Bumblebees rapidly learned the task and discriminated the colors within the first two trials. However, performance varied between combinations of colors and was higher when blue or violet was associated with a high reward. Overall, accuracy and speed were negatively associated, but both components increased during acquisition. We conclude that PER conditioning is a good tool to study visual learning, using Bombus impatiens as a model, opening new possibilities to analyze the proximate mechanisms of visual learning and memory, as well as the process of multimodal integration and decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andre J Riveros
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA.
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43
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Discordant timing between antennae disrupts sun compass orientation in migratory monarch butterflies. Nat Commun 2012; 3:958. [PMID: 22805565 PMCID: PMC3962218 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2012] [Accepted: 06/20/2012] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
To navigate during their long-distance migration, monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) use a time-compensated sun compass. The sun compass timing elements reside in light-entrained circadian clocks in the antennae. Here we show that either antenna is sufficient for proper time compensation. However, migrants with either antenna painted black (to block light entrainment) and the other painted clear (to permit light entrainment) display disoriented group flight. Remarkably, when the black-painted antenna is removed, re-flown migrants with a single, clear-painted antenna exhibit proper orientation behaviour. Molecular correlates of clock function reveal that period and timeless expression is highly rhythmic in brains and clear-painted antennae, while rhythmic clock gene expression is disrupted in black-painted antennae. Our work shows that clock outputs from each antenna are processed and integrated together in the monarch time-compensated sun compass circuit. This dual timing system is a novel example of the regulation of a brain-driven behaviour by paired organs.
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44
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Bonati B, Csermely D, Sovrano VA. Looking at a predator with the left or right eye: asymmetry of response in lizards. Laterality 2012; 18:329-39. [PMID: 22746190 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2012.673623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Studies carried out with the common wall lizard (Podarcis muralis) revealed preferential use of the left eye during responses to predatory threat in laboratory settings and in the wild. Here we tested lizards under monocular conditions of vision, using temporary eye-patching. Lizards were facing a (simulated) predatory threat laterally, from the side of the non-patched eye. Results showed that lizards with the left eye uncovered during predatory threat used the left eye to monitor the predator, whereas lizards with the right eye uncovered nonetheless tried to use the covered left eye. Moreover, lizards frequently tried to change the eye exposition, making a body C-bend behaviour. Right-eyed lizards showed more frequent and faster C-bending responses than left-eyed lizards, trying to monitor the predator with the left eye even though it was patched. Results fit with asymmetries in spontaneous eye use observed in laboratory conditions and in the wild in this species, confirming that structures located on the right side of the brain (mainly served by the left eye) predominantly attend to predatory threat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beatrice Bonati
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Cognizione e della Formazione, Università di Trento, Rovereto, TN, Italy
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45
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Jozet-Alves C, Viblanc VA, Romagny S, Dacher M, Healy SD, Dickel L. Visual lateralization is task and age dependent in cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis. Anim Behav 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.02.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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46
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Meng ZJ, Yan SC, Yang CP, Ruan CC. Asymmetrical distribution of antennal sensilla in the female Anastatus japonicus Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Eupelmidae). Microsc Res Tech 2012; 75:1066-75. [DOI: 10.1002/jemt.22032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2011] [Accepted: 02/10/2012] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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47
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Frasnelli E, Vallortigara G, Rogers LJ. Left–right asymmetries of behaviour and nervous system in invertebrates. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2012; 36:1273-91. [PMID: 22353424 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 215] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2011] [Revised: 01/25/2012] [Accepted: 02/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Frasnelli
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Adolf Lorenz Gasse 2, A-3422 Altenberg, Austria.
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48
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Fouks B, Lattorff HMG. Recognition and avoidance of contaminated flowers by foraging bumblebees (Bombus terrestris). PLoS One 2011; 6:e26328. [PMID: 22039462 PMCID: PMC3200320 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0026328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2011] [Accepted: 09/24/2011] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Bumblebee colonies are founded by a single-mated queen. Due to this life history trait, bumblebees are more susceptible to parasites and diseases than polyandrous and/or polygynous social insects. A greater resistance towards parasites is shown when the genetic variability within a colony is increased. The parasite resistance may be divided into different levels regarding the step of the parasite infection (e.g. parasite uptake, parasite intake, parasite's establishment in the nest, parasite transmission).We investigate the prophylactic behaviour of bumblebees. Bumblebees were observed during their foraging flights on two artificial flowers; one of these was contaminated by Crithidia bombi, a naturally occurring gut parasite of bumblebees (in a control experiment the non-specific pathogen Escherichia coli was used). For C. bombi, bumblebees were preferentially observed feeding on the non-contaminated flower. Whereas for E. coli, the number of visits between flowers was the same, bumblebees spent more time feeding on the non-contaminated flower.These results demonstrate the ability of bumblebees to recognise the contamination of food sources. In addition, bumblebees have a stronger preference for the non-contaminated flower when C. bombi is present in the other flower than with E. coli which might be explained as an adaptive behaviour of bumblebees towards this specific gut parasite. It seems that the more specific the parasite is, the more it reduces the reward of the flower.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bertrand Fouks
- Institute of Biology, Molecular Ecology, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany.
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