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Qin D, Zhang P, Zhou Y, Zheng Q, Hou R, Liu B, Chen J, Zhang Z. Different lethal treatments induce changes in piperidine (1,1'-(1,2-ethanediyl)bis-) in the epidermal compounds of red imported fire ants and affect corpse-removal behavior. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 2020; 194:110391. [PMID: 32155480 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.110391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2019] [Revised: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Corpse-removal behavior of the red imported fire ant (RIFA) and the effects of lethal substances on RIFA signal communication were investigated in this study. The RIFA corpses, obtained through freezing, ether, 0.25 mg/L thiamethoxam, and starvation to death treatments, and naturally dead red fire ants were subjected to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to identify the cuticular hydrocarbon profiles that had an effect on the corpse-removal behavior. The results showed that lethal toxic substances altered the epidermal compounds of RIFA and affected their corpse-removal behavior. Lethal toxic substances increased the number of worker touches with corpses and identification time of corpses. In addition, the content of piperidine (1,1'-(1,2-ethanediyl)bis-) on the surface of the corpse was different following the various treatments. Contamination with toxic substances resulted in the increased secretion of piperidine and led to increased identification time of corpses, number of touch with corpses, and total time for removal of corpses. Piperidine content was higher under conditions of natural death (4.67 ± 0.55%) and with thiamethoxam (10.43 ± 0.78%), freezing (0.83 ± 0.25%), and ether treatment (12.50 ± 0.70%) than under starvation treatment (0). The higher content of piperidine led to a longer number of touches with corpses and identification time. Piperidine compounds may be an element in warning information, which could affect the occurrence of different corpse-removal behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deqiang Qin
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Peiwen Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - You Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Qun Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Ruiquan Hou
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Benju Liu
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Jianjun Chen
- Department of Environmental Horticulture, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Apopka, FL 32703, USA.
| | - Zhixiang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Natural Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China.
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