Experimental Studies of Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa: Apidae) Thorax Mechanics During Defensive Buzzing

Bees and other Hymenoptera utilize thorax vibration to realize an extensive range of behaviors ranging from flight to pollination. Strong indirect flight muscles contract to deform the thoracic walls and the resulting oscillation is sustained through a mechanism called stretch activation. While the mechanics of the insect thorax and muscles have been studied extensively during flight, relatively little is known about the thorax mechanics during non-flight behaviors. In this work, we investigate the thorax mechanics of the carpenter bee Xylocopa californica during defensive buzzing. During defensive buzzing, the insect folds its wings over its abdomen and rapidly fires it flight muscles, resulting in a loud audible buzz and large forces intended to deter predators. We devised a novel experiment to measure thorax oscillation and directional force production from a defensively buzzing carpenter bee. The largest peak forces were on average 175 mN and were oriented with the insect's dorsal-ventral muscle group. Peak forces oriented with the insect's dorsal-longitudinal muscle group averaged 117 mN. Thorax velocities were about 90 mm s^-1 p-p and velocity amplitude was positively correlated to peak force. Thorax oscillation frequency averaged 132 Hz but was highly variable both within individuals and across the tested population. From our measurements, we estimated the peak mechanical power required by defensive buzzing at 8.7 mW, which we hypothesize is greater than the power required during flight. Overall, this study provides insight into the function and capabilities of the Hymenopteran indirect flight muscle during non-flight behaviors.

Occurrence and Development of Off-Odor Compounds in Farmed Hybrid Catfish (Clarias macrocephalus × Clarias gariepinus) Muscle during Refrigerated Storage: Chemical and Volatilomic Analysis

The goal of this study was to examine the changes in chemical parameters, major volatile compounds, and sensory aspects in farm-raised hybrid catfish (i.e., dorsal, lateral line and ventral muscles) during a 15-day period of refrigerated storage. Trichloroacetic acid-soluble peptides, free fatty acid, total volatile base-nitrogen (TVB-N), and non-heme iron levels in all muscles increased as storage time proceeded. The levels of trans-1,10-dimethyl-trans-9-decalol (geosmin) and 2-methylisoborneol (2-MIB) were higher than their thresholds, which was connected to a stronger earthy odor. The concentrations of geosmin and 2-MIB in all muscles increased, although there was a consistent trend of earthy odor throughout storage; this phenomenon could be attributed to the masking effect of other off-odors. During storage, the largest lipid oxidation was found in ventral muscle, as measured by peroxide value and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances. During storage, the formation of the most volatile products increased in the lateral line and ventral muscle, whereas the dorsal muscle had the lowest concentration. As storage time proceeded, the strength of spoiled, fishy, rancid, and overall off-odor intensity of all tested muscles tended to rise. Those alterations were linked to higher levels of TVB-N and trimethylamine, as well as all other volatile lipid oxidation products (e.g., hexanal, propanal, 2,4 heptadienal, 1-octen-3-ol, octanal, nonanal, trans-2-heptenal, and 1-hexanol).

Hidden limbs in the “limbless skink” Brachymeles lukbani: developmental observations

Reduced limbs and limblessness have evolved independently in many lizard clades. Skinks exhibit a wide range of limb-reduced morphologies, but only some species have been used to study the embryology of limb reduction (i.g., digit reduction in Chalcides and limb reduction in Scelotes). The genus Brachymeles, a Southeast Asian clade of skinks, includes species with a range of limb morphologies, from pentadactyl to functionally as well as structurally limbless species. Adults of the small, snake-like species Brachymeles lukbani show no sign of external limbs in the adult except for small depressions where they might be expected to occur. Embryos of B. lukbani in early stages of development, on the other hand, show a truncated but well-developed limb with a stylopod and a zeugopod, but no signs of an autopod. As development proceeds, the limb’s small size persists even while the embryo elongates. These observations are made based on external morphology. We used florescent whole-mount immunofluorescence to visualize the morphology of skeletal elements and muscles within the embryonic limb of B. lukabni. Early stages have a humerus and separated ulna and radius cartilages; associated with these structures are dorsal and ventral muscle masses as those found in the embryos of other limbed species. While the limb remains small, the pectoral girdle grows in proportion to the rest of the body, with well-developed skeletal elements and their associated muscles. In later stages of development, the small limb is still present under the skin but there are few indications of its presence, save for the morphology of the scale covering it. The adult morphology consists of a well-developed pectoral girdle, small humerus, extremely reduced ulna and radius, and well-developed limb musculature connected to the pectoral girdle. These muscles form in association with a developing limb during embryonic stages, a hint that “limbless” lizards that possesses these muscles may have or have had at least transient developing limbs, as we find in B. lukbani. Overall, the observed pattern of ontogenetic reduction, leading to an externally limbless adult in which a limb rudiment is hidden and covered under the trunk skin, is a situation called cryptomelia. The results of this work add to our growing understanding of clade-specific patterns of limb reduction and the convergent evolution of limbless phenotypes through different developmental processes.

Enzymology, Histological and Ultrastructural Effects of Ar-Turmerone on Culex pipiens pallens Larvae

Our previous article demonstrated that ar-turmerone ((6S)-2-methyl-6-(4-methylphenyl)-2-hepten-4-one) extracted from Curcuma longa L. has a significant larvicidal activity against the fourth instar larvae of Culex pipiens pallens. To reveal the effects of ar-turmerone on C. pipiens pallens larvae, light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy were used to observe the histological and ultrastructure changes in muscle and digestive tissues of fourth instar larvae. It was also revealed by detecting the activity of the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) enzyme and three detoxifying enzymes, including carboxylesterase (CarE), glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and Cytochrome P450 monooxidases (P450). The observation under the light microscope showed that the larvae displayed a disruption of myofibril in ventral muscle cells, the disappearance of nucleolus in the malpighian tubule cells, and the exfoliation of the brush border in midgut epithelial cells, 24 h after treatment. The observation under the transmission electron microscope displayed disorganized Z-lines in the ventral muscle cells, and dissolved membrane of mitochondria, nuclear and endoplasmic reticulum in abdominal cells. The enzymatic activity results showed that ar-turmerone significantly increased the level of detoxifying enzymes, while the activity of AChE was not obviously affected. All the results suggest that the larvicidal mechanism of ar-turmerone is estimated to be stomach poison and the active sites might be the muscle and digestive tissues, and the mode of action of ar-turmerone may be unrelated to AChE.

Clues to basis of exploratory behaviour of the C. elegans snout from head somatotropy

Wave propagation during locomotory movements of Caenorhabditis elegans is constrained to a single dorso/ventral plane. By contrast, the tip of the head (snout) can make rapid exploratory movements in all directions relative to the body axis. These extra degrees of freedom are probably important for animals to seek and identify desirable passages in the interstices of the three-dimensional matrix of soil particles, their usual habitat. The differences in degrees of freedom of movement between snout and body are reflected in the innervation of the musculature. Along the length of the body, the two quadrants of dorsal muscle receive common innervation as do the two quadrants of ventral muscle. By contrast, muscles in the snout have an octagonal arrangement of innervation. It is likely that the exploratory behaviour of the snout is mediated by octant-specific motor and sensory neurons, together with their associated interneurons. The well-defined anatomical structure and neural circuitry of the snout together with behavioural observations should facilitate the implementation of models of the neural basis of exploratory movements, which could lead to an understanding of the basis of this relatively complex behaviour, a behaviour that has similarities to foraging in some vertebrates. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘Connectome to behaviour: modelling C. elegans at cellular resolution’.

Abstract 316: Cell-Matrix Contacts Regulate Age-Associated Cardiac Function

An increased deposition of ECM is observed in all advanced age heart failure patients. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the effect of extracellular remodeling on mechanical function in genetically tractable, rapidly aging, and simple model organisms such as Drosophila melanogaster . The bilayered design of the Drosophila heart-tube makes it an easier model in which to study the interplay between ECM and cardiomyocytes as they regulate contraction. Here we present data from two common wildtype strains of Drosophila exhibiting different aging profiles in terms of cytoskeletal and ECM regulation and remodeling. Using a recently developed nanoindentation method to measure cardiomyocyte stiffness of intact Drosophila hearts, we have found that while yellow-white ( yw ) flies show midline stiffening at the intercalated discs (ICD) presenting a clear diastolic dysfunction with age, the white-1118 ( w1118 ) flies exhibit no ICD stiffening, but show an increase in thickness of the ECM layer between the ventral muscle (VM) and cardiomyocytes (CM). Paired with increased expression of ECM proteins, the w1118 Drosophila line may provide a good model for exploring the effect of cell-ECM contacts on regulating cardiac function with age. Knock-down of integral ECM genes LamininA and Viking (Collagen IV) result in no effect on cardiac performance in juvenile flies but causes a decrease in underlying cardiomyocyte stiffness and an increase in the contractile irregularity of heart beats. This suggests that the cell-ECM contacts in the basement membrane are intimately tied to coupling of the cardiomyocytes of the Drosophila heart-tube, which may have larger implications for elderly patients suffering from myocardial fibrosis and experiencing cardiomyocyte decoupling and resultant arrhythmias.

Mercury and Cadmium Concentrations in Farmed Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus orientalis) and the Suitability of Using the Caudal Peduncle Muscle Tissue as a Monitoring Tool

Three regions (cephalic, central, and caudal) of the dorsal and ventral muscle tissue (R1 through R6) and the caudal peduncle muscle tissue (CPMT) of 20 farmed bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis) were analyzed for mercury (Hg) and cadmium (Cd) concentrations. Region 1 (cephalic-ventral) had significantly lower concentrations of Hg but significantly higher concentrations of Cd than did the other regions. However, average metal concentrations of all regions (R1 through R6) were only 6% lower for Hg and were not significantly different for Cd from those in the CPMT. Therefore, the CPMT was used to monitor the concentrations of these two metals in more than 100 farmed tuna collected from July 2004 to January 2009 under the assumption that the Cd concentrations in the CPMT would be representative of the Cd concentration in the whole body and that the Hg concentrations would be, in the worst case, overestimated by approximately 6%. The Hg and Cd concentrations in these tuna were inversely related to the condition index, i.e., the tuna in better condition had the lowest concentrations of these metals. The mean concentrations in the CPMT of all fish analyzed were 0.31 ± 0.17 μg/g wet weight for Hg and 0.007 ± 0.006 μg/g wet weight for Cd. These concentrations were below the limits established by Mexican regulations for seafood (1.0 and 0.5 μg/g for Hg and Cd, respectively) and Japan (0.4 μg/g for Hg).

Uing DSC Technology for Water Content and Thermal Properties Analysis of Carassius Organs

Thermal properties of Brain, gill, hepatopancreas, muscle and blood of Carassius living in 8°C were investigated by differential scanning calorimeter. Between 20°C～-40°C , blood showed lower specific heat capacity than other organs. It might help temperature equilibrium in organism. Blood and brain had higher freezing temperature. Brain showed the maximum water content but less freeze water while ventral muscle had the lowest water content but high freeze-able water. Hepatopancreas had both low water and freeze-able water content.

Optimization of sustaining swimming speed of matrinxã Brycon amazonicus: performance and adaptive aspects

Deleterious changes in metabolism, growth performance and body composition may be observed if fish are constrained to swimming continuously or intermittently at over-speeds. This study evaluates effects of four water speeds on growth, body composition and hematologic profile of juvenile matrinxã, Brycon amazonicus. Fish (33.3 ± 0.9 g and 13.44 ± 0.1 cm) were held for 90 days in five water speeds (0.0 - control, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 body lengths per second - BLAt swimming speeds ranging on 1.0 and 1.5 BL s–1, in fish growth was 20% higher. Hemoglobin and red blood cells at 1.5 BL s–1 increased 24% and 18% respectively; hematocrit was 17% higher in all exercised fish; protein content of white muscle at 1.0 BL s–1 was 2% higher; lipid deposition in red muscle at 1.0 BL s–1 was 22% higher and water retention 3% lower. Crude energy levels enhanced 10% in all exercised fish; liver water retention was 6% lower at 1.0 BL s–1; liver lipid composition was 29% higher than control and 34% higher than 1.5 BL s–1; liver crude energy increased at 1.0 BL s–1 as compared with control and 2.5 BL s–1. Lipid deposition in ventral muscle was 9% higher at 2.0 BL s–1. Although high lipid deposition of matrinxã has been achieved in moderate swimming speeds, lipids may be the main fuel source to maintain the metabolic demands of exercised matrinxã. The best water flow speed for optimized growth of matrinxã ranged on 1.0 and 1.5 BL s–1.