The ability of biocontrol agents to overcome the immune defense of pests is a crucial issue. This is the first study of lysozyme activity as an inducible humoral component of the defense of Schistocerca gregaria, which depends on the recognition of the elicitor molecules of pathogens and not on epidermal wounding or a spiking effect. The level of lysozyme activity in fat body, haemocytes and haemolymph plasma of naïve and immunologically challenged 5th instar S. gregaria was evaluated using the zone of inhibition test against Micrococcus lysodeikticus. Various Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria as well as peptidoglycans (PGN) and lipopolysacchrides (LPS) of bacterial cell walls induce and increase in the level of lysozyme activity. Escherichia coli induced an increase in the level of activity of lysozyme in the fat body, haemocytes and plasma, but not in mid gut epithelium, 6–12 h after an immunological challenge and then it decreased to the constitutive level after 72 h. This study revealed that in S. gregaria there is a constitutive and a bacteria-inducible level of lysozyme activity, which protects it against infection by both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria., Amr A. Mohamed ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Respiratory metabolism of developing eggs of Schistocerca gregaria has been individually monitored by means of scanning microrespirography. The freshly oviposited eggs consumed 7 nl of O2 /min./egg (50 µl O2/g/h) while the pharate 1st instar larvae shortly before hatching consumed 141 nl of O2/min./egg (550 µl O2/g/h), which shows 20-fold metabolic increase during the egg stage. The output of CO2 was also regular, without discontinuous bursts throughout the whole embryonic development. The amounts of CO2 produced were constantly close to R.Q. ratio of 0.7, suggesting that lipid was the main energetic source. The vermiform, pharate 1st instar larvae emerging from the eggs exhibited very high respiratory rates (up to 3,000 µl O2/g/h). During initial phases of the egg stage, O2 consumption steadily increased until day 6, which was associated with katatrepsis or blastokinesis stage of the embryo (61 nl of O2/egg/min. = 240 µl O2/g/h). Since blastokinesis, respiratory metabolism of the egg remained constant or decreased steadily until day 10, when it rose sharply again towards hatching. The temporary metabolic depression was closely correlated with endogenous peak in ecdysteroid concentration within the embryo. These results corroborate validity of the reciprocal, high ecdysteroid - low metabolism rule previously known from insect metamorphosis. They extend its application into the period of embryogenesis. Practical implications of certain physiological, morphological and evolutionary consequences of these findings are discussed with special emphasis on the connecting links between embryogenesis and metamorphosis.
The insect growth regulator NC-184, a juvenile hormone mimic, prevents moulting to the adult stage in the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Forskål) (Orthoptera: Acrididae). Male nymphs treated in the penultimate or final nymphal instar with NC-184 exhibit precocious mating behaviour in the final instar. We examined whether this chemical affects the development of the internal reproductive organs of crowded nymphs. In treated males, both accessory glands and seminal vesicles were underdeveloped, and no sperm was found in the seminal vesicle, whereas these organs in control individuals had greatly increased in size 10 days after treatment, when all the insects had moulted to adults. Testis size in treated males was similar to that in controls, regardless of their smaller body size due to the inhibition of moulting. Oogenesis and development of spermatheca in females treated with NC-184 continued to some degree, but no eggs matured, unlike what occurred in the control. In conclusion, treatment of S. gregaria nymphs with NC-184 resulted in changes in the reproductive organs in both sexes.
An inbred strain of a newly isolated spontaneous albino mutant of Schistocerca gregaria (Forsk.) was examined for the presence of the neuropeptide [His7]-corazonin by immunocytochemical and mass spectrometric methods. It was concluded that this peptide is definitely present in a limited number of neurosecretory cells in the pars lateralis as well as in the corpora cardiaca (CC). Injection of either synthetic [His7]-corazonin or of extracts of CC of the normal coloured phenotype of S. gregaria failed to induce darkening of the cuticle, while albino Locusta migratoria, used as a positive control, turned dark. The conclusion is that the cause of albinism in the new S. gregaria albino is probably due to a defect in the receptor system for [His7]-corazonin or in the biosynthetic pathway of melanin.
Changes in the content of protein, glycogen, neutral lipids and sterols were investigated in locust eggs from oviposition until larval hatching. The content of all of these nutritional reserves was higher in the eggs of S. gregaria because of their larger size, although relative changes in utilization or synthesis of these materials during embryogenesis showed a more or less parallel course. The amount of protein increased progressively during embryogenesis, while glycogen and neutral lipids were successively metabolized or utilized for development of the embryo. There appeared significant relative differences in the way of utilizing energetic reserves during embryogenesis between the two species. This was especially manifested by a larger relative decrease in the content of neutral lipids (mainly triglyceride) in the eggs of S. gregaria. Conversely, the eggs of L. migratoria showed a larger relative utilization of glycogen reserves. The content of steroids was higher in the eggs of S. gregaria during the initial 6 days of embryonic development. Later on, during advanced stages of pharate larval development, the steroids were rapidly utilized and decreased in both species. The described changes in utilization of the main energetic resources were correlated with periods of tissue growth and differentiation and with the cuticulogenesis of the growing embryo.