Sex and rhythms in sandflies and mosquitoes: An appreciation of the work of Alexandre Afranio Peixoto (1963–2013)

Kyriacou, Charalambos P.

doi:10.1016/j.meegid.2014.06.016

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…The great advantage of D. melanogaster as a model in chronobiology is its well-described molecular mechanisms of the circadian clock and these mechanisms start to emerge also in other Diptera (Codd et al, 2007;Gentile et al, 2009;Rund et al, 2011;Meireles-Filho and Kyriacou, 2013;Kyriacou, 2014a;Gesto et al, 2015;Meuti et al, 2015;Kaiser et al, 2016;Bazalova and Dolezel, 2017;Bertolini et al, 2018;Noreen et al, 2018;Rivas et al, 2018). On the other hand, it is not possible to transfer all clock functions to other insect models as we illustrated above.…”

Section: The Molecular Clock-further Feedback Loopsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Model and Non-model Insects in Chronobiology

Beer

Helfrich‐Förster

2020

Front. Behav. Neurosci.

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The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is an established model organism in chronobiology, because genetic manipulation and breeding in the laboratory are easy. The circadian clock neuroanatomy in D. melanogaster is one of the best-known clock networks in insects and basic circadian behavior has been characterized in detail in this insect. Another model in chronobiology is the honey bee Apis mellifera, of which diurnal foraging behavior has been described already in the early twentieth century. A. mellifera hallmarks the research on the interplay between the clock and sociality and complex behaviors like sun compass navigation and time-place-learning. Nevertheless, there are aspects of clock structure and function, like for example the role of the clock in photoperiodism and diapause, which can be only insufficiently investigated in these two models. Unlike high-latitude flies such as Chymomyza costata or D. ezoana, cosmopolitan D. melanogaster flies do not display a photoperiodic diapause. Similarly, A. mellifera bees do not go into “real” diapause, but most solitary bee species exhibit an obligatory diapause. Furthermore, sociality evolved in different Hymenoptera independently, wherefore it might be misleading to study the social clock only in one social insect. Consequently, additional research on non-model insects is required to understand the circadian clock in Diptera and Hymenoptera. In this review, we introduce the two chronobiology model insects D. melanogaster and A. mellifera, compare them with other insects and show their advantages and limitations as general models for insect circadian clocks.

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Section: The Molecular Clock-further Feedback Loopsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Model and Non-model Insects in Chronobiology

Beer

Helfrich‐Förster

2020

Front. Behav. Neurosci.

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“…Furthermore, they have undergone rapid speciation colonizing very different habitats all over the world. Their success may be partly due to rapidly evolving clock genes that allowed them to colonize different temporal niches (Kyriacou, ). Particularly interesting is also the pitcher plant mosquito, Wyeomyia smithii , which has undergone an evolutionary transition from blood feeding to obligate nonbiting and at the same time an expansion from the south to the north of North America (Bradshaw et al., ; Merz et al., ).…”

Section: Phylogeny Of Flies (Diptera) With a Special Focus On The Dromentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, the adaptation of the daily activity patterns to different environmental conditions can be easily observed in flies, although individual animals are relatively short‐lived and do usually not experience several seasons (only the individuals that overwinter experience autumn, winter, and spring). The great advantage of studying flies is that the molecular and neuronal mechanisms of the circadian clock are well‐understood in D. melanogaster (see King & Sehgal, this issue) and start to emerge also in other Diptera (Bazalova & Dolezel, ; Bertolini et al., ; Codd et al., ; Gentile, Rivas, Meireles‐Filho, Lima, & Peixoto, ; Gesto et al., ; Kaiser et al., ; Kyriacou, ; Meireles‐Filho & Kyriacou, ; Meuti, Stone, Ikeno, & Denlinger, ; Noreen, Pegoraro, Nouroz, Tauber, & Kyriacou, ; Rivas et al., ; Rund, Hou, Ward, Collins, & Duffield, ). In D. melanogaster , recent studies have shown that M and E activity bouts are reflected by Ca 2+ rhythms in the relevant clock neurons controlling M and E activity, respectively (Liang, Holy, & Taghert, , ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flies as models for circadian clock adaptation to environmental challenges

Helfrich‐Förster

Bertolini

Menegazzi

2018

Eur J of Neuroscience

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Life on earth is assumed to have developed in tropical regions that are characterized by regular 24 hr cycles in irradiance and temperature that remain the same throughout the seasons. All organisms developed circadian clocks that predict these environmental cycles and prepare the organisms in advance for them. A central question in chronobiology is how endogenous clocks changed in order to anticipate very different cyclical environmental conditions such as extremely short and long photoperiods existing close to the poles. Flies of the family Drosophilidae can be found all over the world—from the tropics to subarctic regions—making them unprecedented models for studying the evolutionary processes that underlie the adaptation of circadian clocks to different latitudes. This review summarizes our current understanding of these processes. We discuss evolutionary changes in the clock genes and in the clock network in the brain of different Drosophilids that may have caused behavioural adaptations to high latitudes.

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“…By studying circadian clock gene expression of Lu . longipalpis , researchers observed an evening peak that anticipated the lights-off cue [ 60 ]. With Ph .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diel periodicity and visual cues guide oviposition behavior in Phlebotomus papatasi, vector of old-world cutaneous leishmaniasis

et al. 2019

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BackgroundPhlebotomine sand flies are vectors of human leishmaniases, important neglected tropical diseases. In this study, we investigated diel patterns of oviposition behavior, effects of visual cues on oviposition-site selection, and whether these affect the attraction of gravid Phlebotomus papatasi (Scopoli), the vector of old-world cutaneous leishmaniasis, to olfactory cues from oviposition sites.Methodology/principal findingsTo evaluate these questions, we conducted a series of experiments using attraction and oviposition assays within free-flight test chambers containing gravid females entrained under a 14:10 hrs light:dark photoperiod. By replacing sticky-screens or moist filter papers every three hours, we showed that oviposition site search occurs mainly in the latest part of the night whereas peak oviposition occurs during the early part of the night. Behavioral responses to olfactory oviposition cues are regulated by time-of-day and can be disrupted by transient exposure to a constant darkness photoperiod. Gravid females, but not any other stage, age, or sex, were attracted to dark, round oviposition jars, possibly resembling rodent burrow openings. This visual attraction disappeared in the absence of an illumination source. Egg deposition rate was not affected by jar color. Olfactory cues had the strongest effect when the visual cues were minimal.Conclusion and significanceOur study showed, for the first time, that visual cues in the form of oviposition-site color, lighting level, and photoperiod are important in guiding the oviposition behavior of phlebotomine sand flies. Furthermore, such visual cues could modify the flies’ sensitivity to olfactory oviposition cues. Our results suggest that chemosensory and visual cues are complementary, with visual cues used to orient gravid females towards oviposition sites, possibly at long- to medium-ranges during crepuscular periods, while olfactory cues are used to approach the burrow in darkness and assess its suitability at close-range. Implications to sand fly control are discussed.

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Sex and rhythms in sandflies and mosquitoes: An appreciation of the work of Alexandre Afranio Peixoto (1963–2013)

Abstract: HighlightsLutzomyia longipalpis in Brazil has recently undergone complex speciation events.Anopheles cruzii in southern Brazil has also undergone recent speciation.The circadian clock mechanisms of both sandflies and mosquitoes have been described.

Cited by 4 publications

References 30 publications

Model and Non-model Insects in Chronobiology

Model and Non-model Insects in Chronobiology

Flies as models for circadian clock adaptation to environmental challenges

Diel periodicity and visual cues guide oviposition behavior in Phlebotomus papatasi, vector of old-world cutaneous leishmaniasis

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