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Current Biology : CB Jan 2017Joe Parker introduces the staphylinids or 'rove beetles', the most species-rich groups of insect on Earth.
Joe Parker introduces the staphylinids or 'rove beetles', the most species-rich groups of insect on Earth.
Topics: Animals; Biological Evolution; Coleoptera; Ecosystem; Models, Biological
PubMed: 28118583
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.07.050 -
Toxins Jun 2020is the most successful microbial insecticide agent and its proteins have been studied for many years due to its toxicity against insects mainly belonging to the orders... (Review)
Review
is the most successful microbial insecticide agent and its proteins have been studied for many years due to its toxicity against insects mainly belonging to the orders Lepidoptera, Diptera and Coleoptera, which are pests of agro-forestry and medical-veterinary interest. However, studies on the interactions between this bacterium and the insect species classified in the order Coleoptera are more limited when compared to other insect orders. To date, 45 Cry proteins, 2 Cyt proteins, 11 Vip proteins, and 2 Sip proteins have been reported with activity against coleopteran species. A number of these proteins have been successfully used in some insecticidal formulations and in the construction of transgenic crops to provide protection against main beetle pests. In this review, we provide an update on the activity of Bt toxins against coleopteran insects, as well as specific information about the structure and mode of action of coleopteran Bt proteins.
Topics: Animals; Bacillus thuringiensis; Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; Biological Control Agents; Coleoptera; Crops, Agricultural; Endotoxins; Hemolysin Proteins; Pest Control, Biological; Plants, Genetically Modified
PubMed: 32610662
DOI: 10.3390/toxins12070430 -
Planta Aug 2016Coleoptera, the largest and the most diverse Insecta order, is characterized by multiple adaptations to plant feeding. Insect-associated microorganisms can be important... (Review)
Review
Coleoptera, the largest and the most diverse Insecta order, is characterized by multiple adaptations to plant feeding. Insect-associated microorganisms can be important mediators and modulators of interactions between insects and plants. Interactions between plants and insects are highly complex and involve multiple factors. There are various defense mechanisms initiated by plants upon attack by herbivorous insects, including the development of morphological structures and the synthesis of toxic secondary metabolites and volatiles. In turn, herbivores have adapted to feeding on plants and further sophisticated adaptations to overcome plant responses may continue to evolve. Herbivorous insects may detoxify toxic phytocompounds, sequester poisonous plant factors, and alter their own overall gene expression pattern. Moreover, insects are associated with microbes, which not only considerably affect insects, but can also modify plant defense responses to the benefit of their host. Plants are also frequently associated with endophytes, which may act as bioinsecticides. Therefore, it is very important to consider the factors influencing the interaction between plants and insects. Herbivorous insects cause considerable damage to global crop production. Coleoptera is the largest and the most diverse order in the class Insecta. In this review, various aspects of the interactions among insects, microbes, and plants are described with a focus on coleopteran species, their bacterial symbionts, and their plant hosts to demonstrate that many factors contribute to the success of coleopteran herbivory.
Topics: Adaptation, Physiological; Animals; Biological Evolution; Coleoptera; Ecosystem; Herbivory; Plant Physiological Phenomena; Plants; Symbiosis
PubMed: 27170360
DOI: 10.1007/s00425-016-2543-1 -
Journal of the Royal Society, Interface Apr 2009Members of the order Coleoptera are sometimes referred to as 'living jewels', in allusion to the strikingly diverse array of iridescence mechanisms and optical effects... (Review)
Review
Members of the order Coleoptera are sometimes referred to as 'living jewels', in allusion to the strikingly diverse array of iridescence mechanisms and optical effects that have arisen in beetles. A number of novel and sophisticated reflectance mechanisms have been discovered in recent years, including three-dimensional photonic crystals and quasi-ordered coherent scattering arrays. However, the literature on beetle structural coloration is often redundant and lacks synthesis, with little interchange between the entomological and optical research communities. Here, an overview is provided for all iridescence mechanisms observed in Coleoptera. Types of iridescence are illustrated and classified into three mechanistic groups: multilayer reflectors, three-dimensional photonic crystals and diffraction gratings. Taxonomic and phylogenetic distributions are provided, along with discussion of the putative functions and evolutionary pathways by which iridescence has repeatedly arisen in beetles.
Topics: Animals; Coleoptera; Optical Phenomena; Phylogeny
PubMed: 18957361
DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2008.0354.focus -
Scientific Reports Nov 2022Most species are embedded in multi-interaction networks. Consequently, theories focusing on simple pair-wise interactions cannot predict ecological and/or evolutionary...
Most species are embedded in multi-interaction networks. Consequently, theories focusing on simple pair-wise interactions cannot predict ecological and/or evolutionary outcomes. This study explores how cascading higher-order interactions (HOIs) would affect the population dynamics of a focal species. Employing a system that involves a myrmecophylic beetle, a parasitic wasp that attacks the beetle, an ant, and a parasitic fly that attacks the ant, the study explores how none, one, and two HOIs affect the parasitism and the sex ratio of the beetle. We conducted mesocosm experiments to examine these HOIs on beetle survival and sex ratio and found that the 1st degree HOI does not change the beetle's survival rate or sex ratio. However, the 2nd degree HOI significantly reduces the beetle's survival rate and changes its sex ratio from even to strongly female-biased. We applied Bayes' theorem to analyze the per capita survival probability of female vs. male beetles and suggested that the unexpected results might arise from complex eco-evolutionary dynamics involved with the 1st and 2nd degree HOIs. Field data suggested the HOIs significantly regulate the sex ratio of the beetle. As the same structure of HOIs appears in other systems, we believe the complexity associated with the 2nd degree HOI would be more common than known and deserve more scientific attention.
Topics: Animals; Female; Male; Bayes Theorem; Coleoptera; Population Dynamics; Wasps
PubMed: 36371593
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-23763-z -
Proceedings of the National Academy of... Oct 2020Size is a key to locomotion. In insects, miniaturization leads to fundamental changes in wing structure and kinematics, making the study of flight in the smallest...
Size is a key to locomotion. In insects, miniaturization leads to fundamental changes in wing structure and kinematics, making the study of flight in the smallest species important for basic biology and physics, and, potentially, for applied disciplines. However, the flight efficiency of miniature insects has never been studied, and their speed and maneuverability have remained unknown. We report a comparative study of speeds and accelerations in the smallest free-living insects, featherwing beetles (Coleoptera: Ptiliidae), and in larger representatives of related groups of Staphylinoidea. Our results show that the average and maximum flight speeds of larger ptiliids are extraordinarily high and comparable to those of staphylinids that have bodies 3 times as long. This is one of the few known exceptions to the "Great Flight Diagram," according to which the flight speed of smaller organisms is generally lower than that of larger ones. The horizontal acceleration values recorded in Ptiliidae are almost twice as high as even in Silphidae, which are more than an order of magnitude larger. High absolute and record-breaking relative flight characteristics suggest that the unique morphology and kinematics of the ptiliid wings are effective adaptations to flight at low Reynolds numbers. These results are important for understanding the evolution of body size and flight in insects and pose a challenge to designers of miniature biomorphic aircraft.
Topics: Adaptation, Physiological; Animals; Coleoptera; Flight, Animal; Wings, Animal
PubMed: 32958659
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2012404117 -
Zoology (Jena, Germany) Aug 2016Immune priming has now been demonstrated in a wide range of invertebrate species. Studies testing this phenomenon largely differ in terms of experimental design,... (Review)
Review
Immune priming has now been demonstrated in a wide range of invertebrate species. Studies testing this phenomenon largely differ in terms of experimental design, host-parasite combinations, agents used for priming, and in particular the degree of demonstrated specificity of the primed response. This review provides an overview of known and putative mechanisms underlying broad-spectrum and specific immune priming in arthropods. We focus on insects and particularly the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, where priming has been demonstrated within and across generations. We will also draw attention to the relevance of routes of priming and infection, which can occur septically and orally, with largely differing physiology. For oral priming, an involvement of gut microbiota was demonstrated in mosquitoes and flour beetles. Generally, a primed state could result from long-lasting immune activation or a form of memory that does not entail lingering immune components. Moreover, the primed state could also be of a qualitatively different kind than the challenge response. Finally, we will consider that there should be natural variation in priming capability, and therefore a possibility to study this trait with experimental evolution approaches.
Topics: Animals; Biological Evolution; Coleoptera; Gene Expression Regulation; Host-Parasite Interactions
PubMed: 27350318
DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2016.03.006 -
Trends in Parasitology Jun 2014Pine wilt disease (PWD) is perhaps the most serious threat to pine forests worldwide. The causative agent of PWD, the pinewood nematode (PWN), engages in a symbiotic... (Review)
Review
Pine wilt disease (PWD) is perhaps the most serious threat to pine forests worldwide. The causative agent of PWD, the pinewood nematode (PWN), engages in a symbiotic partnership with its insect vector, the Monochamus beetle, as well as associated bacteria and ophiostomatoid fungi, in order to successfully infect and kill its host pine tree. This review focuses on the interspecific communication between PWN and its associated partners, and the potential role of this communication in promoting pathogenicity and invasiveness of PWN. We describe the chemical and molecular signals positively influencing the survival, reproduction, and spread of PWN. Knowledge of these signals could potentially be used to interfere with the proliferation and dispersal of PWN.
Topics: Animals; Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; Coleoptera; Fungi; Host-Parasite Interactions; Nematoda; Pinus
PubMed: 24810363
DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2014.04.007 -
Journal of Proteome Research Oct 2022Neuropeptides are signaling molecules that regulate almost all physiological processes in animals. Around 50 different genes for neuropeptides have been described in...
Neuropeptides are signaling molecules that regulate almost all physiological processes in animals. Around 50 different genes for neuropeptides have been described in insects. In , which is the largest insect order based on numbers of described species, knowledge about neuropeptides and protein hormones is still limited to a few species. Here, we analyze the neuropeptidomes of two closely related tenebrionid beetles: and ─both of which are model species in physiological and pharmacological research. We combined transcriptomic and mass spectrometry analyses of the central nervous system to identify neuropeptides and neuropeptide-like and protein hormones. Several precursors were identified in and , of which 50 and 40, respectively, were confirmed by mass spectrometry. This study provides the basis for further functional studies of neuropeptides as well as for the design of environmentally friendly and species-specific peptidomimetics to be used as biopesticides. Furthermore, since has become accepted by the European Food Safety Authority as a novel food, a deeper knowledge of the neuropeptidome of this species will prove useful for optimizing production programs at an industrial scale.
Topics: Animals; Biological Control Agents; Coleoptera; Hormones; Larva; Neuropeptides; Peptidomimetics; Tenebrio
PubMed: 36107737
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.1c00694 -
Proceedings of the National Academy of... Dec 2019The order Coleoptera (beetles) is arguably the most speciose group of animals, but the evolutionary history of beetles, including the impacts of plant feeding...
The order Coleoptera (beetles) is arguably the most speciose group of animals, but the evolutionary history of beetles, including the impacts of plant feeding (herbivory) on beetle diversification, remain poorly understood. We inferred the phylogeny of beetles using 4,818 genes for 146 species, estimated timing and rates of beetle diversification using 89 genes for 521 species representing all major lineages and traced the evolution of beetle genes enabling symbiont-independent digestion of lignocellulose using 154 genomes or transcriptomes. Phylogenomic analyses of these uniquely comprehensive datasets resolved previously controversial beetle relationships, dated the origin of Coleoptera to the Carboniferous, and supported the codiversification of beetles and angiosperms. Moreover, plant cell wall-degrading enzymes (PCWDEs) obtained from bacteria and fungi via horizontal gene transfers may have been key to the Mesozoic diversification of herbivorous beetles-remarkably, both major independent origins of specialized herbivory in beetles coincide with the first appearances of an arsenal of PCWDEs encoded in their genomes. Furthermore, corresponding (Jurassic) diversification rate increases suggest that these novel genes triggered adaptive radiations that resulted in nearly half of all living beetle species. We propose that PCWDEs enabled efficient digestion of plant tissues, including lignocellulose in cell walls, facilitating the evolution of uniquely specialized plant-feeding habits, such as leaf mining and stem and wood boring. Beetle diversity thus appears to have resulted from multiple factors, including low extinction rates over a long evolutionary history, codiversification with angiosperms, and adaptive radiations of specialized herbivorous beetles following convergent horizontal transfers of microbial genes encoding PCWDEs.
Topics: Animals; Bacteria; Bacterial Proteins; Biodiversity; Biological Evolution; Cell Wall; Cellulases; Coleoptera; Fungal Proteins; Fungi; Gene Transfer, Horizontal; Genome, Insect; Herbivory; Insect Proteins; Lignin; Phylogeny; Plants; Polysaccharide-Lyases; Polysaccharides
PubMed: 31740605
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1909655116