Triggering the proboscis extension reflex (PER) in Rhodnius prolixus

Olfactory learning and floral scents are co-adaptive traits in the plant–pollinator relationship. However, how scent relates to cognition and learning in the diverse group of Neotropical stingless bees is largely unknown. Here we evaluated the ability of Melipona eburnea to be conditioned to scent using the proboscis extension reflex (PER) protocol. Stingless bees did not show PER while harnessed but were able to be PER conditioned to scent when free-to-move in a mini-cage (fmPER). We evaluated the effect of: 1) unconditioned stimulus (US) reward, and 2) previous scent–reward associations on olfactory learning performance. When using unscented-US, PER-responses were low on day 1, but using scented-US reward the olfactory PER-response increased on day 1. On day 2 PER performance greatly increased in bees that previously had experienced the same odor and reward combination, while bees that experienced a different odor on day 2 showed poor olfactory learning. Bees showed higher olfactory PER conditioning to guava than to mango odor. The effect of the unconditioned stimulus reward was not a significant factor in the model on day 2. This indicates that olfactory learning performance can increase via either taste receptors or accumulated experience with the same odor. Our results have application in agriculture and pollination ecology.

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Spatial odor discrimination in hawkmoth, Manduca sexta (L.)

10.1101/2020.07.08.194126 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

P. Kalyanasundaram ◽

M. A. Willis

Keyword(s):

Spatial Distribution ◽

Manduca Sexta ◽

Flight Control ◽

Spatial Information ◽

Egg Laying ◽

Proboscis Extension Reflex ◽

Flying Insects ◽

Odor Learning ◽

Odor Plumes ◽

Proboscis Extension

AbstractFlying insects track turbulent odor plumes to find mates, food and egg-laying sites. To maintain contact with the plume, insects are thought to adapt their flight control according to the distribution of odor in the plume using the timing of odor onsets and intervals between odor encounters. Although timing cues are important, few studies have addressed whether insects are capable of deriving spatial information about odor distribution from bilateral comparisons between their antennae in flight. The proboscis extension reflex (PER) associative learning protocol, originally developed to study odor learning in honeybees, was modified to show hawkmoths, Manduca sexta, can discriminate between odor stimuli arriving on either antenna. We show moths discriminated the odor arrival side with an accuracy of >70%. The information about spatial distribution of odor stimuli is thus available to moths searching for odor sources, opening the possibility that they use both spatial and temporal odor information.

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Seasonal Variation of Proboscis Extension Reflex Conditioning in the Honey Bee(Apis Mellifera)

Journal of Apicultural Research ◽

10.1080/00218839.1997.11100936 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 36 (2) ◽

pp. 108-110 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Stephen Ray ◽

Benjamin Ferneyhough

Keyword(s):

Seasonal Variation ◽

Apis Mellifera ◽

Honey Bee ◽

Proboscis Extension Reflex ◽

Proboscis Extension

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Pavlovian conditioning of the proboscis extension reflex in harnessed foragers using paired vs. unpaired and discrimination learning paradigms: tests for differences among honeybee subspecies in Turkey

Apidologie ◽

10.1051/apido:2008025 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

pp. 428-435 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Charles I. Abramson ◽

T. Andrew Mixson ◽

Ibrahim Çakmak ◽

Aaron J. Place ◽

Harrington Wells

Keyword(s):

Pavlovian Conditioning ◽

Discrimination Learning ◽

Proboscis Extension Reflex ◽

Proboscis Extension ◽

Honeybee Subspecies

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CCAP regulates feeding behavior via the NPF pathway in Drosophila adults

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1914037117 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 117 (13) ◽

pp. 7401-7408 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Michael J. Williams ◽

Mehwish Akram ◽

Deimante Barkauskaite ◽

Sourabh Patil ◽

Eirini Kotsidou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Feeding Behavior ◽

The Other ◽

Regulatory Role ◽

Food Cues ◽

Proboscis Extension Reflex ◽

Increased Sensitivity ◽

Proboscis Extension ◽

Necessary And Sufficient ◽

The Brain ◽

Starvation Conditions

The intake of macronutrients is crucial for the fitness of any animal and is mainly regulated by peripheral signals to the brain. How the brain receives and translates these peripheral signals or how these interactions lead to changes in feeding behavior is not well-understood. We discovered that 2 crustacean cardioactive peptide (CCAP)-expressing neurons in Drosophila adults regulate feeding behavior and metabolism. Notably, loss of CCAP, or knocking down the CCAP receptor (CCAP-R) in 2 dorsal median neurons, inhibits the release of neuropeptide F (NPF), which regulates feeding behavior. Furthermore, under starvation conditions, flies normally have an increased sensitivity to sugar; however, loss of CCAP, or CCAP-R in 2 dorsal median NPF neurons, inhibited sugar sensitivity in satiated and starved flies. Separate from its regulation of NPF signaling, the CCAP peptide also regulates triglyceride levels. Additionally, genetic and optogenetic studies demonstrate that CCAP signaling is necessary and sufficient to stimulate a reflexive feeding behavior, the proboscis extension reflex (PER), elicited when external food cues are interpreted as palatable. Dopaminergic signaling was also sufficient to induce a PER. On the other hand, although necessary, NPF neurons were not able to induce a PER. These data illustrate that the CCAP peptide is a central regulator of feeding behavior and metabolism in adult flies, and that NPF neurons have an important regulatory role within this system.

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