Pub Date : 2026-01-17DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2026.101488
Owen W Allard, Allie K Hutchings, Cameron Dacosta, Emma Salvati, Thomas Js Merritt
Anthropogenic metal contamination poses a serious threat to all forms of life. As a result, insect populations are declining globally. Many insect species serve as excellent indicators of metal stress in their environment through population dynamics and physiological changes mediated by conserved metal-response pathways. We highlight the general metal response mechanism associated with metal homeostasis by metal-responsive transcription factor 1 and metallothioneins, as well as examples of metal-specific transport pathways (copper, zinc, and cadmium). While essential metals have well-characterized metal-specific transporters, nonessential metals either require general xenobiotic transporters or interact with established essential metal-specific pathways. This review highlights recent advancements in identifying anthropogenic sources of contamination, insect responses to metal contamination, and the underlying response and transport pathways. We emphasize the importance of considering diversity within and between species, beyond classical models, to better understand biological responses.
{"title":"Insect response to environmental metal contamination.","authors":"Owen W Allard, Allie K Hutchings, Cameron Dacosta, Emma Salvati, Thomas Js Merritt","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2026.101488","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2026.101488","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Anthropogenic metal contamination poses a serious threat to all forms of life. As a result, insect populations are declining globally. Many insect species serve as excellent indicators of metal stress in their environment through population dynamics and physiological changes mediated by conserved metal-response pathways. We highlight the general metal response mechanism associated with metal homeostasis by metal-responsive transcription factor 1 and metallothioneins, as well as examples of metal-specific transport pathways (copper, zinc, and cadmium). While essential metals have well-characterized metal-specific transporters, nonessential metals either require general xenobiotic transporters or interact with established essential metal-specific pathways. This review highlights recent advancements in identifying anthropogenic sources of contamination, insect responses to metal contamination, and the underlying response and transport pathways. We emphasize the importance of considering diversity within and between species, beyond classical models, to better understand biological responses.</p>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":" ","pages":"101488"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146003076","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-17DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2026.101489
Luna Dael, Maria L Simões
As malaria remains a critical public health challenge, causing hundreds of thousands of deaths annually, novel methods to combat it are urgently needed. Genetically modified mosquitoes (GMMs) offer a promising, innovative approach to reducing malaria transmission. However, the foundational research to identify the target gene candidates for genetic modification is typically conducted under static laboratory conditions. These standardized insectary settings of constant temperature and humidity do not reflect the dynamic environmental and climatic variability that mosquitoes and the pathogens they carry encounter in nature. Here we argue that this 'lab-to-field' discrepancy represents a significant knowledge gap. We highlight that natural variations in environmental factors influence Anopheles and Plasmodium biology, and mosquito innate immunity responses, with consequences for vector competence and malaria transmission. Insufficient consideration of environmental variability during the initial gene discovery phase risks developing GMMs where the intended function of the genetic modification may be compromised by environmental stress. We emphasize the need to incorporate realistic environmental variability into the upstream GMM development, particularly in the face of escalating climate change.
{"title":"Beyond the static lab: environmental variability in genetically modified mosquito target gene identification for malaria control.","authors":"Luna Dael, Maria L Simões","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2026.101489","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2026.101489","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>As malaria remains a critical public health challenge, causing hundreds of thousands of deaths annually, novel methods to combat it are urgently needed. Genetically modified mosquitoes (GMMs) offer a promising, innovative approach to reducing malaria transmission. However, the foundational research to identify the target gene candidates for genetic modification is typically conducted under static laboratory conditions. These standardized insectary settings of constant temperature and humidity do not reflect the dynamic environmental and climatic variability that mosquitoes and the pathogens they carry encounter in nature. Here we argue that this 'lab-to-field' discrepancy represents a significant knowledge gap. We highlight that natural variations in environmental factors influence Anopheles and Plasmodium biology, and mosquito innate immunity responses, with consequences for vector competence and malaria transmission. Insufficient consideration of environmental variability during the initial gene discovery phase risks developing GMMs where the intended function of the genetic modification may be compromised by environmental stress. We emphasize the need to incorporate realistic environmental variability into the upstream GMM development, particularly in the face of escalating climate change.</p>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":" ","pages":"101489"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146003097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-16DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2026.101487
Jessica T Kansman, Anjel M Helms
{"title":"Chemical Ecology of Multitrophic Interactions: Current Research and Potential Applications.","authors":"Jessica T Kansman, Anjel M Helms","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2026.101487","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cois.2026.101487","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":" ","pages":"101487"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145997385","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-30DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2025.101484
Adam E Vorsino , Tim Harvey-Samuel , Limb K Hapairai , Hervé Bossin , M. Renee Bellinger
Mosquito-borne diseases pose an existential threat to the health, economies, and unique ecosystems of Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs). The remoteness of these islands, combined with the presence of highly competent mosquito vectors, complicates disease surveillance and vector control efforts. In response, the PICTs have become a focal point for the development and application of Genetic BioControl (GBC) technologies designed to break vector-borne disease transmission cycles. However, the application of GBC tools in this region warrants careful consideration of its unique history, including a legacy of colonialism, and challenges associated with logistic hurdles. Through meaningful community engagement and authentic collaborations, drawing from local knowledge, and building local capacity, the sustainable, efficient, and effective deployment of GBC tools may be achieved.
{"title":"Genetic biocontrol strategy considerations for mosquito control in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories","authors":"Adam E Vorsino , Tim Harvey-Samuel , Limb K Hapairai , Hervé Bossin , M. Renee Bellinger","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101484","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101484","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mosquito-borne diseases pose an existential threat to the health, economies, and unique ecosystems of Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs). The remoteness of these islands, combined with the presence of highly competent mosquito vectors, complicates disease surveillance and vector control efforts. In response, the PICTs have become a focal point for the development and application of Genetic BioControl (GBC) technologies designed to break vector-borne disease transmission cycles. However, the application of GBC tools in this region warrants careful consideration of its unique history, including a legacy of colonialism, and challenges associated with logistic hurdles. Through meaningful community engagement and authentic collaborations, drawing from local knowledge, and building local capacity, the sustainable, efficient, and effective deployment of GBC tools may be achieved.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":"74 ","pages":"Article 101484"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145888511","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-24DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2025.101480
Kelley Leung , Elzemiek Geuverink , Bart A Pannebakker
All Hymenoptera (bees, ants, wasps, sawflies) have haplodiploid sex determination. Unfertilized eggs develop into haploid males, and fertilized eggs develop into diploid females. Many species further have complementary sex determination (CSD), a mechanism by which hemizygosity results in normal male development, and heterozygosity results in normal female development. However, homozygosity (at one or multiple CSD loci) results in aberrant diploid males that are frequently reproductively challenged and threaten population health. CSD is broadly distributed taxonomically, but only the honey bee csd and a few candidate genomic regions in a few other species are known. Honey bee csd has been a flagship model for 20 years. Recent studies expand on mechanisms at multiple levels that maximize CSD diversity and functional heterozygosity, from molecular aspects to population dynamics. This demonstrates that a similar depth of knowledge for other CSD species is achievable, but there are technical limitations to discovering CSD loci and interpreting downstream population impacts. These include a lack of diploid males needed for loci identification (particularly for ml-CSD systems) and challenges to functional validation. Here, we suggest practical solutions. This review summarizes recent discoveries of CSD properties in the honey bee and new candidates in several species of bees, parasitoid wasps, and ants. Notably, there is both evidence of independent de-novo evolution (e.g. honey bees) and deep-level conservation (i.e. ants, mason bee, bumble bee) of CSD mechanisms. We then highlight ways to develop an integrative framework for understanding the implications of CSD knowledge for control of invasive populations and conservation of endangered populations.
{"title":"Where are we with CSD? The candidate regions and population dynamics of hymenopteran complementary sex determination","authors":"Kelley Leung , Elzemiek Geuverink , Bart A Pannebakker","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101480","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101480","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>All Hymenoptera (bees, ants, wasps, sawflies) have haplodiploid sex determination. Unfertilized eggs develop into haploid males, and fertilized eggs develop into diploid females. Many species further have complementary sex determination (CSD), a mechanism by which hemizygosity results in normal male development, and heterozygosity results in normal female development. However, homozygosity (at one or multiple CSD loci) results in aberrant diploid males that are frequently reproductively challenged and threaten population health. CSD is broadly distributed taxonomically, but only the honey bee <em>csd</em> and a few candidate genomic regions in a few other species are known. Honey bee <em>csd</em> has been a flagship model for 20 years. Recent studies expand on mechanisms at multiple levels that maximize CSD diversity and functional heterozygosity, from molecular aspects to population dynamics. This demonstrates that a similar depth of knowledge for other CSD species is achievable, but there are technical limitations to discovering CSD loci and interpreting downstream population impacts. These include a lack of diploid males needed for loci identification (particularly for ml-CSD systems) and challenges to functional validation. Here, we suggest practical solutions. This review summarizes recent discoveries of CSD properties in the honey bee and new candidates in several species of bees, parasitoid wasps, and ants. Notably, there is both evidence of independent de-novo evolution (e.g. honey bees) and deep-level conservation (i.e. ants, mason bee, bumble bee) of CSD mechanisms. We then highlight ways to develop an integrative framework for understanding the implications of CSD knowledge for control of invasive populations and conservation of endangered populations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":"74 ","pages":"Article 101480"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145843556","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-20DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2025.101483
Raul Narciso C Guedes , Luciana Tavella , Lucia Zappalà , Leonardo M Turchen
Pesticides (and biopesticides) remain a controversial yet indispensable tool against pest species that threaten human health and food security. Their effectiveness and ubiquitous use across global landscapes are offset by persistent concerns over health and environmental risks. However, such concerns are often biased, patchy, and prone to oversimplification, failing to reflect the complexity of modern anthropogenically altered ecosystems. Today, an ever-expanding diversity of compounds is used — frequently in mixtures subject to chemical interactions — affecting multiple biological processes and interacting organisms. This reality is poorly mirrored in current regulatory frameworks and societal perceptions, which continue to shape research agendas and priorities. Here, we redirect attention beyond the usual targets, moving past conventional pesticides and single natural enemies to shed light on a broad and often-overlooked web of interactions among natural enemies themselves. By shifting focus from mortality endpoints to interactions and cascading stress responses, we highlight a more realistic and nuanced understanding of pesticide and biopesticide effects in complex ecological networks.
{"title":"Beyond the usual targets: pesticide and biopesticide interactions with natural enemies in ecological networks","authors":"Raul Narciso C Guedes , Luciana Tavella , Lucia Zappalà , Leonardo M Turchen","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101483","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101483","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Pesticides (and biopesticides) remain a controversial yet indispensable tool against pest species that threaten human health and food security. Their effectiveness and ubiquitous use across global landscapes are offset by persistent concerns over health and environmental risks. However, such concerns are often biased, patchy, and prone to oversimplification, failing to reflect the complexity of modern anthropogenically altered ecosystems. Today, an ever-expanding diversity of compounds is used — frequently in mixtures subject to chemical interactions — affecting multiple biological processes and interacting organisms. This reality is poorly mirrored in current regulatory frameworks and societal perceptions, which continue to shape research agendas and priorities. Here, we redirect attention beyond the usual targets, moving past conventional pesticides and single natural enemies to shed light on a broad and often-overlooked web of interactions among natural enemies themselves. By shifting focus from mortality endpoints to interactions and cascading stress responses, we highlight a more realistic and nuanced understanding of pesticide and biopesticide effects in complex ecological networks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":"74 ","pages":"Article 101483"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145809974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-20DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2025.101482
Takaaki Daimon
Although the endocrine regulation of insect molting and metamorphosis has been well characterized, the mechanisms that define how many larval molts occur before metamorphosis remain unclear. To examine the mechanisms that determine molt number, or moltinism, the silkworm Bombyx mori serves as a powerful model. Work with juvenile hormone-deficient mutants has shown that Bombyx larvae must complete at least two larval molts to acquire competence for metamorphosis, suggesting the presence of an unidentified factor that confers this competence. Furthermore, genetic analysis of the classic Moltinism locus revealed that the Hox gene Sex combs reduced (Scr) acts as a major regulator of molt number. Scr influences molting hormone biosynthesis and thereby governs the number of larval molts through the threshold size mechanism. Overall clarification of how insects set the number of molts will provide important insights into the evolution and the diversification of life histories in insects and other arthropods.
{"title":"How many times to molt? Endocrine control of moltinism in lepidopteran insects","authors":"Takaaki Daimon","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101482","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101482","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Although the endocrine regulation of insect molting and metamorphosis has been well characterized, the mechanisms that define how many larval molts occur before metamorphosis remain unclear. To examine the mechanisms that determine molt number, or moltinism, the silkworm <em>Bombyx mori</em> serves as a powerful model. Work with juvenile hormone-deficient mutants has shown that <em>Bombyx</em> larvae must complete at least two larval molts to acquire competence for metamorphosis, suggesting the presence of an unidentified factor that confers this competence. Furthermore, genetic analysis of the classic <em>Moltinism</em> locus revealed that the Hox gene <em>Sex combs reduced</em> (<em>Scr</em>) acts as a major regulator of molt number. <em>Scr</em> influences molting hormone biosynthesis and thereby governs the number of larval molts through the threshold size mechanism. Overall clarification of how insects set the number of molts will provide important insights into the evolution and the diversification of life histories in insects and other arthropods.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":"74 ","pages":"Article 101482"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145809976","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-19DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2025.101481
Nikos T Papadopoulos , Polychronis Rempoulakis , John Vontas
We review the literature on the seasonal biology of the olive fly (Bactrocera oleae), a practically monophagous pest of an iconic crop (olives), focusing on its less explored off-season (winter and spring) phenology. We argue that the spring generation is crucial for the pest’s population growth later in the season. While winter severity determines the survival patterns of the overwintering generation and the density of the founding population in spring, the abundance of breeding resources in spring (remaining fruit on trees) is crucial for the development of the spring generation, with a major effect on population growth later in the season. We conceptualize a model that captures the interactions between olive flies and olive fruit during spring and elucidates the cyclic patterns observed in the population dynamics of the fly across successive years. Furthermore, we propose novel approaches to the off-season management of olive fly, which offer a sound and environmentally friendly strategy for controlling the pest.
{"title":"Studying and targeting off-season olive fruit fly biology to prevent olive damage, amid climate change","authors":"Nikos T Papadopoulos , Polychronis Rempoulakis , John Vontas","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101481","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101481","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We review the literature on the seasonal biology of the olive fly (<em>Bactrocera oleae</em>), a practically monophagous pest of an iconic crop (olives), focusing on its less explored off-season (winter and spring) phenology. We argue that the spring generation is crucial for the pest’s population growth later in the season. While winter severity determines the survival patterns of the overwintering generation and the density of the founding population in spring, the abundance of breeding resources in spring (remaining fruit on trees) is crucial for the development of the spring generation, with a major effect on population growth later in the season. We conceptualize a model that captures the interactions between olive flies and olive fruit during spring and elucidates the cyclic patterns observed in the population dynamics of the fly across successive years. Furthermore, we propose novel approaches to the off-season management of olive fly, which offer a sound and environmentally friendly strategy for controlling the pest.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":"74 ","pages":"Article 101481"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145803219","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-16DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2025.101479
Daniel González-Tokman , Johannes Overgaard , Quentin Willot
Thermal limits are key determinants of social insect performance and distribution. Given their ecological importance and considering climate change, interest has grown in identifying the molecular pathways underlying their heat tolerance. Although this field has advanced rapidly over the past decade, important gaps remain. Social insects can stratify thermal environments across castes and through division of labor, yet this feature is rarely considered in current studies. Most studies link omics datasets or candidate pathways expressed during heat stress to endpoints of survival (e.g. upper thermal limits), an approach that is informative but that also limits standardization of thermal injury. In addition, functional validation of key genes, for example, through loss-of-function assays, is still scarce. Here, we summarize current knowledge on molecular heat-stress responses in social insects, highlight major conceptual gaps, and advocate integrating molecular assays with dose-based thermal frameworks to improve predictions of social insect resilience under intensifying thermal extremes.
{"title":"Heat tolerance in social insects: molecular correlates and quantitative frameworks","authors":"Daniel González-Tokman , Johannes Overgaard , Quentin Willot","doi":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101479","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cois.2025.101479","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Thermal limits are key determinants of social insect performance and distribution. Given their ecological importance and considering climate change, interest has grown in identifying the molecular pathways underlying their heat tolerance. Although this field has advanced rapidly over the past decade, important gaps remain. Social insects can stratify thermal environments across castes and through division of labor, yet this feature is rarely considered in current studies. Most studies link omics datasets or candidate pathways expressed during heat stress to endpoints of survival (e.g. upper thermal limits), an approach that is informative but that also limits standardization of thermal injury. In addition, functional validation of key genes, for example, through loss-of-function assays, is still scarce. Here, we summarize current knowledge on molecular heat-stress responses in social insects, highlight major conceptual gaps, and advocate integrating molecular assays with dose-based thermal frameworks to improve predictions of social insect resilience under intensifying thermal extremes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11038,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in insect science","volume":"74 ","pages":"Article 101479"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145780630","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}