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Nathalia X, Vinicius M, Danilo Brito R, Felipe G, Rodrigo W. The Influence of Substance Properties on Arthropod Chemical Defenses: A Meta-Analysis. J Chem Ecol 2024; 50:42-51. [PMID: 38133704 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-023-01457-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 10/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
Among defenses against predation, chemical defenses are possibly the most studied. However, when addressing the effectiveness of those chemical defenses, previous studies did not include properties of the chemical substances themselves. Lipophilicity, for instance, may facilitate crossing membranes, and boiling point may define the duration of the substances in the air. Moreover, other variables may also be relevant: the predator taxon; the prey model chosen to conduct experiments; whether the prey is presented grouped or not in experiments; and whether the chemical defense is a mixture of many substances or only one. To understand how those factors influence chemical defenses' effectiveness, we conducted a multilevel meta-analysis with 43 studies (127 effect sizes), accounting for different types of dependence. We used Akaike Information Criterion (AICc) to select the best model. The model with the lowest AICc value included only the boiling point, which defines how quickly a chemical substance volatilizes. This model indicated that the most effective chemical defenses had lower boiling point values, i.e., higher volatility. Moreover, we did not find chemicals with very low boiling points, suggesting there might be an optimum range of volatility. Other models, including the intercept-only model, were also recovered among the best models, therefore further studies are needed to confirm the relationship between volatility and chemical defenses' effectiveness. Our results highlight the value of incorporating physicochemical properties in the ecological and evolutionary study of chemical defense.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ximenes Nathalia
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
- Escola de Artes, Ciências e Humanidades, Laboratory of Sensory Ecology and Behavior of Arthropods, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
| | - Moraes Vinicius
- Laboratório de Taxonomia Ecologia e Interações de Aracnídeos, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, Brazil
| | | | - Gawryszewski Felipe
- Departamento de Zoologia, Evolutionary Ecology Laboratory, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil
| | - Willemart Rodrigo
- Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
- Escola de Artes, Ciências e Humanidades, Laboratory of Sensory Ecology and Behavior of Arthropods, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
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Zvereva EL, Doktorovová L, Hotová Svádová K, Zverev V, Štys P, Adamová-Ježová D, Kozlov MV, Exnerová A. Defence strategies of Chrysomela lapponica (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) larvae: relative efficacy of secreted and stored defences against insect and avian predators. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/bly045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Vitali Zverev
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Pavel Štys
- Department of Zoology, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | | | - Alice Exnerová
- Department of Zoology, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
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Blair NT, Philipson BI, Richards PM, Doerner JF, Segura A, Silver WL, Clapham DE. Naturally Produced Defensive Alkenal Compounds Activate TRPA1. Chem Senses 2016; 41:281-92. [PMID: 26843529 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjv071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
(E)-2-alkenals are aldehydes containing an unsaturated bond between the alpha and beta carbons. 2-alkenals are produced by many organisms for defense against predators and secretions containing (E)-2-alkenals cause predators to stop attacking and allow the prey to escape. Chemical ecologists have described many alkenal compounds with 3-20 carbons common, having varied positions of double bonds and substitutions. How do these defensive alkenals act to deter predators? We have tested the effects of (E)-2-alkenals with 6-12 carbons on transient receptor potential channels (TRP) commonly found in sensory neurons. We find that (E)-2-alkenals activate transient receptor potential ankyrin subtype 1 (TRPA1) at low concentrations-EC50s 10-100 µM (in 0 added Ca(2+) external solutions). Other TRP channels were either weakly activated (TRPV1, TRPV3) or insensitive (TRPV2, TRPV4, TRPM8). (E)-2-alkenals may activate TRPA1 by modifying cysteine side chains. However, target cysteines include others beyond the 3 in the amino-terminus implicated in activation, as a channel with cysteines at 621, 641, 665 mutated to serine responded robustly. Related chemicals, including the aldehydes hexanal and decanal, and (E)-2-hexen-1-ol also activated TRPA1, but with weaker potency. Rat trigeminal nerve recordings and behavioral experiments showed (E)-2-hexenal was aversive. Our results suggest that TRPA1 is likely a major target of these commonly used defensive chemicals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathaniel T Blair
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Boston, MA, USA, Department of Cardiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA, Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | | | - Paige M Richards
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27106, USA and
| | - Julia F Doerner
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Boston, MA, USA, Department of Cardiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA, Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Abraham Segura
- Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Wayne L Silver
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27106, USA and
| | - David E Clapham
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Boston, MA, USA, Department of Cardiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA, Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA,
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Shear WA. The chemical defenses of millipedes (diplopoda): Biochemistry, physiology and ecology. BIOCHEM SYST ECOL 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bse.2015.04.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Gregorovičová M, Černíková A. Reactions of leopard geckos (Eublepharis macularius) to defensive secretion of Graphosoma lineatum (Heteroptera Pentatomidae): an experimental approach. ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2015. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2015.1059895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M. Gregorovičová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44 Praha 2, Czech Republic
| | - A. Černíková
- Institute of Applied Mathematics and Information Technologies, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, 128 43 Praha 2, Czech Republic
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Gregorovičová M, Černíková A. Reactions of green lizards (Lacerta viridis) to major repellent compounds secreted by Graphosoma lineatum (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae). ZOOLOGY 2015; 118:176-82. [PMID: 25869384 DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2015.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2014] [Revised: 12/07/2014] [Accepted: 02/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The chemical defence of Heteroptera is primarily based on repellent secretions which signal the potential toxicity of the bug to its predators. We tested the aversive reactions of green lizards (Lacerta viridis) towards the major compounds of the defensive secretion of Graphosoma lineatum, specifically: (i) a mixture of three aldehydes: (E)-hex-2-enal, (E)-oct-2-enal, (E)-dec-2-enal; (ii) a mixture of these three aldehydes and tridecane; (iii) oxoaldehyde: (E)-4-oxohex-2-enal; (iv) secretion extracted from metathoracic scent glands of G. lineatum adults and (v) hexane as a non-polar solvent. All chemicals were presented on a palatable food (Tenebrio molitor larvae). The aversive reactions of the green lizards towards the mealworms were evaluated by observing the approach latencies, attack latencies and approach-attack intervals. The green lizards exhibited a strong aversive reaction to the mixture of three aldehydes. Tridecane reduced the aversive reaction to the aldehyde mixture. Oxoaldehyde caused the weakest, but still significant, aversive reaction. The secretion from whole metathoracic scent glands also clearly had an aversive effect on the green lizards. Moreover, when a living specimen of G. lineatum or Pyrrhocoris apterus (another aposematic red-and-black prey) was presented to the green lizards before the trials with the aldehyde mixture, the aversive effect of the mixture was enhanced. In conclusion, the mixture of three aldehydes had the strong aversive effect and could signal the potential toxicity of G. lineatum to the green lizards.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Gregorovičová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Alena Černíková
- Institute of Applied Mathematics and Information Technologies, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, 128 43 Prague, Czech Republic
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Ibarra Y, Blair NT. Benzoquinone reveals a cysteine-dependent desensitization mechanism of TRPA1. Mol Pharmacol 2013; 83:1120-32. [PMID: 23478802 DOI: 10.1124/mol.112.084194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
The transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) nonselective cation channel has a conserved function as a noxious chemical sensor throughout much of Metazoa. Electrophilic chemicals activate both insect and vertebrate TRPA1 via covalent modification of cysteine residues in the amino-terminal region. Although naturally occurring electrophilic plant compounds, such as mustard oil and cinnamaldehyde, are TRPA1 agonists, it is unknown whether arthropod-produced electrophiles activate mammalian TRPA1. We characterized the effects of the electrophilic arthropod defensive compound para-benzoquinone (pBQN) on the human TRPA1 channel. We used whole-cell recordings of human embryonic kidney cells heterologously expressing either wild-type TRPA1 or TRPA1 with three serine-substituted cysteines crucial for electrophile activation (C621S, C641S, C665S). We found that pBQN activates TRPA1 starting at 10 nM and peaking at 300 nM; higher concentrations caused rapid activation followed by a fast decline. Activation by pBQN required reactivity with cysteine residues, but ones that are distinct from those previously reported to be the key targets of electrophiles. The current reduction we found at higher pBQN concentrations was a cysteine-dependent desensitization of TRPA1, and did not require prior activation. The cysteines required for desensitization are not accessible to all electrophiles as iodoacetamide and internally applied 2-(trimethylammonium)ethyl methanesulfonate failed to cause desensitization (despite large activation). Interestingly, following pBQN desensitization, wild-type TRPA1 had dramatically reduced response to the nonelectrophile agonist carvacrol, whereas the triple cysteine mutant TRPA1 retained its full response. Our results suggest that modification of multiple cysteine residues by electrophilic compounds can generate both activation and desensitization of the TRPA1 channel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yessenia Ibarra
- Department of Cardiology, Children's Hospital Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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Ferrer RP, Zimmer RK. Community ecology and the evolution of molecules of keystone significance. THE BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN 2012; 223:167-177. [PMID: 23111129 DOI: 10.1086/bblv223n2p167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Molecules of keystone significance are vital in structuring ecological communities. Select bioactive compounds can cause disproportionately large effects by connecting such seemingly disparate processes as microbial loop dynamics and apex predation. Here, we develop a general theory and propose mechanisms that could lead to the evolution of keystone molecules. Introduced into a respective community by one, or only a few, autotrophic or microbial species, these compounds often originate as chemical defenses. When co-opted by resistant consumer species, however, they are used either in chemical defense against higher-order predators or as chemosensory cues that elicit courtship and mating, alarm, and predatory search. Requisite to these multifunctional properties, biosynthetic capacity evolves along with mechanisms for resistance and/or toxin storage in primary producers. Subsequently, consumers acquire resistances or tolerances, and the toxins are transferred through food webs via trophic interactions. In consumers, mechanisms eventually evolve for recognizing toxins as feeding cues and, ultimately, as signals or pheromones in chemical communication within or between species. One, or a few, active compounds can thus mediate a vast array of physiological traits, expressed differentially across many species in a given community. Through convergent evolution, molecules of keystone significance provide critical information to phylogenetically diverse species, initiate major trophic cascades, and structure communities within terrestrial, freshwater, coastal-ocean and open-ocean habitats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan P Ferrer
- Department of Biology, Seattle Pacific University, 3307 Third Avenue West, Seattle, Washington 98119, USA.
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Effects of air pollution on biogenic volatiles and ecological interactions. Oecologia 2009; 160:411-20. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-009-1318-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2008] [Accepted: 02/18/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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Derby CD. Escape by inking and secreting: marine molluscs avoid predators through a rich array of chemicals and mechanisms. THE BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN 2007; 213:274-289. [PMID: 18083967 DOI: 10.2307/25066645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Inking by marine molluscs such as sea hares, cuttlefish, squid, and octopuses is a striking behavior that is ideal for neuroecological explorations. While inking is generally thought to be used in active defense against predators, experimental evidence for this view is either scant or lacks mechanistic explanations. Does ink act through the visual or chemical modality? If inking is a chemical defense, how does it function and how does it affect the chemosensory systems of predators? Does it facilitate escape not only by acting directly on predators but also by being an alarm signal for conspecifics? This review examines these issues, within a broader context of passive and active chemical defensive secretions. It focuses on recent work on mechanisms of defense by inking in sea hares (Aplysia) and extends what we have learned about sea hares to other molluscs including the cephalopods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles D Derby
- Department of Biology, Brains & Behavior Program, and Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302-4010, USA.
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Zimmer RK, Derby CD. Biological bulletin virtual symposium: the neuroecology of chemical defense. THE BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN 2007; 213:205-207. [PMID: 18083962 DOI: 10.2307/25066640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Richard K Zimmer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095-1606, USA.
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