Which temporal features that can characterize different brain states (i.e., consciousness or unconsciousness) is a fundamental question in the neuroscience of consciousness. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI), we investigated the spatial patterns of two temporal features: the long-range temporal correlations (LRTCs), measured by power-law exponent (PLE), and temporal variability, measured by standard deviation (SD) during wakefulness and anesthetic-induced unconsciousness. We found that both PLE and SD showed global reductions across the whole brain during anesthetic state comparing to wakefulness. Importantly, the relationship between PLE and SD was altered in anesthetic state, in terms of a spatial "decoupling." This decoupling was mainly driven by a spatial pattern alteration of the PLE, rather than the SD, in the anesthetic state. Our results suggest differential physiological grounds of PLE and SD and highlight the functional importance of the topographical organization of LRTCs in maintaining an optimal spatiotemporal configuration of the neural dynamics during normal level of consciousness. The central role of the spatial distribution of LRTCs, reflecting temporo-spatial nestedness, may support the recently introduced temporo-spatial theory of consciousness (TTC).

BACKGROUNDThe oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel), is a widespread agricultural pest that has evolved resistance to many commonly used insecticides including malathion. Glutathione S‐transferases (GSTs) are multifunctional enzymes that metabolize insecticides directly or indirectly. The specific mechanism used by GSTs to confer malathion resistance in B. dorsalis is unclear.RESULTSBdGSTd9 was identified from B. dorsalis and was expressed at twice the level in a malathion‐resistant strain (MR) than in a susceptible strain (MS). By using RNAi of BdGSTd9, the toxicity of malathion against MR was increased. Protein modelling and docking of BdGSTd9 with malathion and malaoxon indicated key amino acid residues for direct binding in the active site. In vitro assays with engineered Sf9 cells overexpressing BdGSTd9 demonstrated lower cytotoxicity of malathion. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis indicated that malathion could be broken down significantly by BdGSTd9, and it also could deplete the malathion metabolite malaoxon, which possesses a higher toxicity to B. dorsalis. Taken together, the BdGSTd9 of B. dorsalis could not only deplete malathion, but also react with malaoxon and therefore enhance malathion resistance.CONCLUSIONBdGSTd9 is a component of malathion resistance in B. dorsalis. It acts by depleting both malathion and malaoxon. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry

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BACKGROUND Long non‐coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in the regulation of biological processes and have been identified in many species including insects. However, the association between lncRNAs and pesticide resistance in insect species such as Bactrocera dorsalis is unknown. RESULTS RNA‐seq was performed on malathion resistant (MR1) and susceptible (MS) strains of B. dorsalis and a total of 6171 lncRNAs transcripts were identified. These included 3728 lincRNAs, 653 antisense lncRNAs, 1402 intronic lncRNAs, and 388 sense lncRNAs. A total of 40 and 52 upregulated lncRNAs were found in females and males of the MR1 strain compared to 54 and 49 in the same sexes of the MS strain, respectively. Twenty‐seven of these lncRNAs showed the same trend of expression in both females and males in the MR1 strain, in which 15 lncRNAs were upregulated and 12 were downregulated. RT‐qPCR results indicated that the differentially expressed lncRNAs were associated with malathion resistance. The lnc15010.10 and lnc3774.2 were highly expressed in the cuticle of the MR1 strain, indicating that these two lncRNAs may be related to malathion resistance. RNAi of lnc3774.2 and a bioassay showed that malathion resistance was possibly influenced by changes in the B. dorsalis cuticle. CONCLUSION LncRNAs of B. dorsalis potentially related to the malathion resistance were identified. Two lncRNAs appear to influence malathion resistance via modulating the structure, or components, of the cuticle. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry