Search results for "termit"
showing 10 items of 220 documents
(3Z,6Z,8E)-3,6,8-dodecatrien-1-ol : Sex pheromone in a higher fungus-growing termite, Pseudacanthotermes spiniger (Isoptera, Macrotermitinae)
1991
International audience; The female sex pheromone of the fungus-growing termitePseudacanthotermes spiniger (Termitidae, Macrotermitinae) was isolated from sternal glands of alates. The compound inducing attraction and excitation in males was identified as the (3Z,6Z,8E)-3,6,8-dodecatrien-1-ol by GC-MS, microhydrogenation, GC-FTIR, and NMR. This unsaturated alcohol is present in both sexes but in much higher quantities in females than in males (about 10 times). The hypothesis is suggested that this alcohol, which is detected at extremely low concentrations by the workers ofP. spiniger, may be used either as a trail-following pheromone or a sex pheromone according to concentrations and to targ…
Burial behaviour by dealates of the termite Pseudacanthotermes spiniger (Termitidae, Macrotermitinae) induced by chemical signals from termite corpses
2011
In order to maintain healthy colonies, termite workers dispose of the cadavers of dead nest mates by cannibalism, burial, or necrophoresis. However, when multiple reproductives found a new colony by pleometrosis, there are no worker castes at the early stages of the foundation to eliminate or isolate the corpses. In this study, we showed that in young pleometrotic colonies, reproductives of Pseudacanthotermes spiniger had the ability to perform this task. Because of the claustral conditions, and the potential inability of the dealates to feed on their own, their behaviour was restricted to the burial of the cadaver within the initial chamber. This burial behaviour, previously not reported i…
Identification of multi-component trail pheromones in the most evolutionarily derived termites, the Nasutitermitinae (Termitidae)
2009
In the present study, trail pheromone blends are identified for the first time in termites. In the phylogenetically complex Nasutitermitinae, trail-following pheromones are composed of dodecatrienol and neocembrene, the proportions of which vary according to species, although neocembrene is always more abundant than dodecatrienol (by 25–250-fold). Depending on species, termites were more sensitive to dodecatrienol or to neocembrene but the association of both components always elicited significantly higher trail following, with a clear synergistic effect in most of the studied species. A third component, trinervitatriene, was identified in the sternal gland secretion of several species, but…
Differences in Cellular Encapsulation of Six Termite (Isoptera) Species Against Infection by the Entomopathogenic FungusMetarhizium anisopliae
2011
Termites (Isoptera) are eusocial insects, which live in an environment that can favor the spread of pathogens. To reduce the chance of an epizootic within a colony, termites have evolved many defense mechanisms. Most studies have focused on the social aspect of disease resistance, while the individual capacity of a termite to survive an infection remains poorly documented. We previously showed that when the eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar), was exposed to the entomopathogenic fungus, Metarhizium anisopliae (Metch.) Sorokin, cellular encapsulation of the penetrating fungus was one of the last lines of defense for individual termites to prevent internal mycosis. …
Sex pheromones and trail-following pheromone in the basal termites Zootermopsis nevadensis (Hagen) and Z. angusticollis (Hagen) (Isoptera: Termopsida…
2010
In the context of an evolutionary study of the chemical communication in termites, sex pheromones and trail-following pheromones were investigated in two Termopsidae, Zootermopsis nevadensis and Z. angusticollis. In these species, in which the presence of sex-specific pheromones has been demonstrated previously, the chemical structure of the female sex pheromone has now been identified as (5E)-2,6,10-trimethylundeca-5,9-dienal and the male sex pheromone as (+)- or (-)-syn-4,6-dimethyldodecanal. The amount of sex pheromone was estimated at 5-10 ng per individual in females and 2-5 ng in males. Because these two sympatric species do not differ in their pheromonal chemical composition, reprodu…
Intermittent Aeration in a Hybrid Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor for Carbon and Nutrient Biological Removal
2020
The paper presents an experimental study on a lab scale hybrid moving bed biofilm reactor with intermittent aeration. Specifically, a comparison between two different operating conditions was analyzed: continuous and intermittent aeration. Both continuous and intermittent aeration were monitored and compared in order to get the best operational conditions. The intermittent aeration campaign was sub-divided in three phases with different duration of alternation of aerobic and anoxic times and organic and nitrogen loading rates. The efficiency of N-removal improved by 70% during the intermittent aeration. The best condition was observed with 40 min of aeration and 20 min of no-aeration, an or…
Spanish population trends in Internet searches for information on different diets
2019
Abstract Objective To use Google Trends to explore the trends of interest of the Spanish population regarding information related to different types of diets, focused on those that are popular and with evidence-based studies, over the last 10 years. Material and methods The search trends referred to the terms “Mediterranean diet”, “ketogenic diet”, “low fat diet”, “intermittent fasting” and “vegan diet” were analyzed. The relative search volumes (RSV) of the terms were compared. The direction of the trend was studied using the Spearman's correlation coefficient (SC). Results “Mediterranean diet” was the most widely searched term, with a median RSV of 16 (interquartile range [IQR] 6; range 8…
Peripheral artery disease, redox signaling, oxidative stress – Basic and clinical aspects
2017
Reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS and RNS, e.g. H2O2, nitric oxide) confer redox regulation of essential cellular signaling pathways such as cell differentiation, proliferation, migration and apoptosis. At higher concentrations, ROS and RNS lead to oxidative stress and oxidative damage of biomolecules (e.g. via formation of peroxynitrite, fenton chemistry). Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is characterized by severe ischemic conditions in the periphery leading to intermittent claudication and critical limb ischemia (end stage). It is well known that redox biology and oxidative stress play an important role in this setting. We here discuss the major pathways of oxidative stress and re…
The gut microbiota of the wood-feeding termite Reticulitermes lucifugus (Isoptera; Rhinotermitidae)
2016
Termite gut is host to a complex microbial community consisting of prokaryotes, and in some cases flagellates, responsible for the degradation of lignocellulosic material. Here we report data concerning the analysis of the gut microbiota of Reticulitermes lucifugus (Rossi), a lower termite species that lives in underground environments and is widespread in Italy, where it causes damage to wood structures of historical and artistic monuments. A 16S rRNA gene clone library revealed that the R. lucifugus gut is colonized by members of five phyla in the domain Bacteria: Firmicutes (49 % of clones), Proteobacteria (24 %), Spirochaetes (14 %), the candidatus TG1 phylum (12 %), and Bacteroidetes (…