Current opinion in insect science最新文献

Plant-derived foods, such as nectar and pollen, have garnered substantial research attention due to their potential to support natural enemies of pests. This review is a pioneering exploration of the potential for artificial intelligence approaches to provide insights into the factors that drive the success of conservation biological control (CBC). Nectar and pollen were confirmed as key plant food resources for natural enemies. These have been widely used across differing crop systems and provided by a wide range of CBC interventions, such as field margin flower strips. The combined use of parasitoids and predators is revealed as more successful than either of these guilds alone. CBC success was greater in field crops than in vine and berry crops, whilst interventions using dicotyledonous species that produce nectar in addition to pollen were more successful than using grassy interventions.

Are traits with high levels of plasticity more complex in their genetic architecture, as they can be modulated by numerous different environmental inputs? Many authors have assumed that behavioral traits, in part because they are highly plastic, have an exceptionally complex genetic basis. We quantitatively summarized data from 31 genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and 87 traits in Drosophila melanogaster and found no evidence that behavioral traits have fundamental differences in the number of single-nucleotide polymorphisms or the significance or effect size of those associations, compared with nonbehavioral (morphological or physiological) traits. We suggest the assertion that behavioral traits are inherently more complex on a genetic basis compared with other types of traits should not be assumed true, and merits further investigation.

Many indoor urban pest insects now show a near-global distribution. The reasons for this may be linked to their cryptic behaviors, which make unintentional transport likely, tied to their reliance on human-mediated dispersal that can result in spread over potentially long-distances. Additionally, numerous species exhibit an array of mechanisms that confer insecticide resistance. Using population genetics, it is possible to elucidate the genetic characteristics that define globally successful indoor urban pest insect species. Furthermore, this approach may be used to determine the frequency and distribution of insecticide resistance. Here, I review the recent literature that utilizes population genetic analyses in an effort to identify the characteristics that help explain the success of indoor urban pests.

Global climate changes undermine the effectiveness of ‘set and forget’ phytosanitary regulations. Uncertainties in future greenhouse gas emission profiles render it impossible to accurately forecast future climate, thus limiting the ability to make long-term biosecurity policy decisions. Agile adaptive biosecurity frameworks are necessary to address these climatic uncertainties and to effectively manage current and emerging threats. This paper provides opinions on these issues and presents a case study focusing on the threats posed by Aleurocanthus woglumi (citrus blackfly) to Europe. It delves into the biology of the species, its preferred hosts, and how climate change could affect its spread. Utilizing a bioclimatic niche model, the paper estimates the potential distribution of A. woglumi in Europe under recent historical and medium-term future conditions, revealing a potential expansion of its range into higher elevations and more northern regions by the year 2050. The main aim is to leverage the results to showcase the system's sensitivity to likely emission scenarios, essentially stress-testing for potential emerging threats to biosecurity policies and phytosanitary regulations. The results underscore the significance of considering global change factors in pest risk assessment and phytosanitary regulations for effective risk mitigation. Consequently, adaptive biosecurity measures are essential, encompassing horizon scanning, enhanced targeted surveillance, periodic updates of risk assessments, and adjustments to regulations. For instance, biosecurity risk management could involve establishing a set of trigger conditions to prompt updates of risk assessments, such as identifying a zone where the confirmed establishment of a pest signifies a significant change in the pest risk profile. For jurisdictions containing areas modeled as being climatically suitable under historical climates or future climate scenarios, we caution against importing untreated host materials from regions that are likely to become suitable habitats for A. woglumi in the future. Moreover, it is important to consider both present and future climate change scenarios when making decisions to effectively address the threats posed by invasive species. In the case of highly impactful invasives, investing in preemptive biological control measures may prove to be a prudent choice.

As obligate blood-feeders, ticks serve as vectors for a variety of pathogens that pose threats on both human and livestock health. The microbiota that ticks harbor play important roles in influencing tick nutrition, development, reproduction, and vector. These microbes also affect the capacity of ticks to transmit pathogens (vector competence). Therefore, comprehending the functions of tick microbiota will help in developing novel and effective tick control strategies. Here, we summarize the effects of main tick symbiotic bacteria on tick physiology and vector competency.

Ticks are obligatory hematophagous arachnids, serving as vectors for a wide array of pathogens that can be transmitted to humans or animals. The ability of tick-borne pathogens to maintain within natural reservoirs is intricately influenced by the attractiveness of ticks to their animal hosts, including humans. However, the complex dynamics of tick behavior and host-seeking strategies remain understudied. This review aims to summarize the impact of volatiles or odors on tick behavior and vector competence. Our literature review has identified a selection of compounds, such as 1-octen-3-ol, hexanal, heptanal, nonanal, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one, acetone, and octanal, as having the potential to impact both ticks' and mosquitos’ behaviors. In addition, carbon dioxide (CO₂) is a universal attractant for hematophagous arthropods. Moreover, we have gathered some clues indicating that volatiles emitted by infected animal hosts might play a role in the transmission of tick-borne pathogens. Nonetheless, our understanding of this phenomenon remains largely inadequate, particularly with regarding to whether the tick microbiome or the skin microbiota of the feeding mammals, including humans, can actively modulate tick-host-seeking behavior. Further investigations in this emerging field hold immense promise for the development of innovative strategies aimed at controlling vectors and curtailing the spread of tick-borne diseases.

Insecticide resistance is an evolved ability to survive insecticide exposure. Compared with nonsocial insects, eusocial insects have lower numbers of documented cases of resistance. Eusocial insects include beneficial and pest species that can be incidentally or purposely targeted with insecticides. The central goal of this review is to explore factors that either limit resistance or the ability to detect it in eusocial insects. We surveyed the literature and found that resistance has been documented in bees, but in other pest groups such as ants and termites, the evidence is more sparse. We suggest the path forward for better understanding eusocial resistance should include more tractable experimental models, comprehensive geographic sampling, and targeted testing of the impacts of social, symbiont, genetic, and ecological factors.

Insects exposed to constant low temperatures (CLT) exhibit high rates of mortality as well as a variety of sublethal effects. In many species, interruptions of CLT with brief pulses of warm temperatures (fluctuating thermal regimes, FTR) lead to increases in survival and fewer sublethal effects. However, we still lack a complete understanding of the physiological mechanisms activated during FTR. In this review, we discuss recent advances in understanding FTR’s underlying molecular mechanisms. We discuss knowledge gaps related to potential trade-offs between FTR’s beneficial effects and the costs of these repairs to overwintering reserves and reproduction. We present the hypothesis that the warm pulse of FTR helps to maintain daily rhythmicity.