Search results for "InSe"
showing 10 items of 3069 documents
The evolution of parental care in insects: the roles of ecology, life history and the social environment
2013
Parental care increases the fitness of offspring at a cost to the parents in terms of residual reproductive success. This trade-off may be affected by ecology, life history and the social environment, which raises the question as to how these factors contribute to the evolution of parental care. Here, previous hypotheses concerning the evolution of parental care in insects are summarized and discussed and the underlying empirical evidence is reviewed. Ecological factors such as harsh environments, ephemeral food sources or predation pressure are broadly accepted as evolutionary drivers of parental care. The most consistent evidence supports a role for natural enemies such as predators, micr…
Lyophilization of lepidopteran midguts: a preserving method for Bacillus thuringiensis toxin binding studies
2004
Binding assays with brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV) from insect midguts are commonly used in the study of the interactions between Bacillus thuringiensis Cry toxins and their receptors. Collaboration between laboratories often require that frozen insect samples are sent in dry ice. Because of customs restrictions and delays, sample thawing is always a risk and often the biological material becomes ruined during shipping. We have tested lyophilization as an alternative method for preserving insect midguts for binding studies with B. thuringiensis Cry toxins. For this purpose, BBMV were prepared from both frozen and lyophilized midguts from three lepidopteran species: Spodoptera exigua,…
Immunohistochemical Detection of Binding of Cryia Crystal Proteins of Bacillus thuringiensis in Highly Resistant Strains of Plutella xylostella (L.) …
1995
We detected binding of insecticidal crystal proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis in one susceptible strain and six resistant strains of diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, from Hawaii. Immunohistochemical tests with tissue sections from larval midguts showed specific binding of CryIA(a), CryIA(b), and CryIA(c) to brush border membranes. CryIE, which is not toxic to P. xylostella, did not bind to midgut tissues. Larvae from one of the resistant strains ingested extremely high concentrations of a commercial formulation containing the three CryIA proteins without suffering midgut cell damage or mortality. This same resistant strain had previously been found to have greatly reduced binding o…
Binding of Bacillus thuringiensis toxins in resistant and susceptible strains of pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella)
2003
Abstract Evolution of resistance by pests could cut short the success of transgenic plants producing toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis, such as Bt cotton. The most common mechanism of insect resistance to B. thuringiensis is reduced binding of toxins to target sites in the brush border membrane of the larval midgut. We compared toxin binding in resistant and susceptible strains of Pectinophora gossypiella, a major pest of cotton worldwide. Using Cry1Ab and Cry1Ac labeled with 125I and brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV), competition experiments were performed with unlabeled Cry1Aa, Cry1Ab, Cry1Ac, Cry1Ba, Cry1Ca, Cry1Ja, Cry2Aa, and Cry9Ca. In the susceptible strain, Cry1Aa, Cry1Ab, Cry1…
Development and Characterization of Diamondback Moth Resistance to Transgenic Broccoli Expressing High Levels of Cry1C
2000
ABSTRACT A field-collected colony of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella , had 31-fold resistance to Cry1C protoxin of Bacillus thuringiensis . After 24 generations of selection with Cry1C protoxin and transgenic broccoli expressing a Cry1C protein, the resistance that developed was high enough that neonates of the resistant strain could complete their entire life cycle on transgenic broccoli expressing high levels of Cry1C. After 26 generations of selection, the resistance ratios of this strain to Cry1C protoxin were 12,400- and 63,100-fold, respectively, for the neonates and second instars by a leaf dip assay. The resistance remained stable until generation 38 (G38) under continuous…
Two new species of Brusqeulia Razowski & Becker, 2000 from the Neotropics, with comments on the systematic position of the genus in relation to the A…
2018
Two new species of the neotropical genus Brusqeulia Razowski & Becker, 2000, are described and illustrated: B. yunkensis Pérez Santa-Rita & Baixeras, sp. n. from Bolivia and B. araguensis Pérez Sant-Rita & Baixeras, sp. n. from Venezuela. The systematic position and diagnostic characters of the genus are reviewed, resulting in the synonymy of Pinhaisania Razowski & Becker, 2000, with Brusqeulia, and the combination B. crispula (Razowski & Becker, 2000), comb. n. New characters of the female genitalia are discussed.
Molecular Basis for the Interaction of the Hepatitis B Virus Core Antigen with the Surface Immunoglobulin Receptor on Naive B Cells
2001
ABSTRACTThe nucleocapsid of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) is composed of 180 to 240 copies of the HBV core (HBc) protein. HBc antigen (HBcAg) capsids are extremely immunogenic and can activate naive B cells by cross-linking their surface receptors. The molecular basis for the interaction between HBcAg and naive B cells is not known. The functionality of this activation was evidenced in that low concentrations of HBcAg, but not the nonparticulate homologue HBV envelope antigen (HBeAg), could prime naive B cells to produce anti-HBc in vitro with splenocytes from HBcAg- and HBeAg-specific T-cell receptor transgenic mice. The frequency of these HBcAg-binding B cells was estimated by both hybridom…
Human Papillomavirus Type 33 E7 Peptides Presented by HLA-DR*0402 to Tumor-Infiltrating T Cells in Cervical Cancer
2000
ABSTRACTSeveral characteristics make human papillomavirus (HPV) amenable to vaccination. Anti-HPV-directed vaccines are based on the observation that HPV E6 and E7 oncoproteins are constitutively expressed in HPV-positive cervical cancer and may serve as tumor rejection antigens. Five HPV types (16, 18, 31, 33, and 45) account for 80% of cervical cancer. Until now, the type of immune response capable of mediating an effective antitumor response has not been defined. In order to define the anticancer-directed immune response in situ, we characterized CD4+and CD8+sorted T cells from peripheral blood lymphocytes, freshly harvested tumor tissue, and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) from a p…
Production of dibutyl carbonate by insertion of CO2 in titanium(IV) tetrabutoxide
2015
The species resulting from insertion of 12CO2 and 13CO2 into titanium(IV) butoxide is for the first time fully characterized by means of infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Results show formation of Ti-monobutylcarbonate, that easily undergoes nucleophilic attack by an aliphatic amine. The hydrolysis of the resulting species produces butylcarbamate and dibutylcarbonate as the only main products. Characterization results of the carbonate-like adduct, along with its reactivity with amine molecules open the route to new ways of CO2 utilization as building block for valuable organic compounds.
The role of native flower visitors in pollinating Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill., naturalized in Sicily
2011
Abstract The role of insects in pollination and consequently in fruit set and quality was assessed in two commercial orchards of the cactus pear, Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill., in Agrigento Province, Sicily. In 1997, insects visiting flowers were sampled during May–June (the first bloom) and July (the second bloom, induced by the “scozzolatura” practise). More than 50 insect species belonging to 10 orders were collected in May–June, while only five species of Hymenoptera Apoidea were collected in July. The quality of fruits arising from the second bloom showed that Hymenoptera alone were able to guarantee effective pollination. To verify the role of insects in pollination in 1996 (during …