Entomology news in mass media

Let the first be the discovery of our colleague- "the first case of detection of non-nuclear neurons in animals"

The smallest animal with a unique nervous system

The tiny wasp Megaphragma mymaripenne is no more than 200 micrometers long and is comparable in size to the amoeba and infusoria. At the same time, 95% of the wasp's neurons are devoid of a nucleus (!), which does not prevent it from leading a normal insect lifestyle.

There are less than 400 normal, full-fledged nerve cells in which the nucleus is present in its central nervous system (and less than 300 directly in the brain). For comparison, the brain of a fly contains about 340 000 neurons, the brain of a worker bee – 850 000. Even in the brain of the wasp T. evanescens, which belongs to the same genus as M. Mymaripenne, there are 37,000 neurons in the brain. Against this background, the total number of nerve cells in the brain of the M. Mymaripenne wasp, including non-nuclear ones, is extremely small - about 4,600 pieces.

It is noteworthy that the mass loss of nuclei occurs during metamorphosis: in the larval nervous system, neurons, as expected, with nuclei. But during the transition to the adult stage, intensive lysis is observed, neurons are significantly reduced in size and the brain volume decreases.

The behavior of M. mymaripenne has not yet been studied in detail. But common sense dictates that an animal can at least fly, has vision, and is able to find "hosts" for laying its eggs, and it is very difficult to believe that four hundred neurons are enough to provide all this activity. It is natural to assume that a nervous system consisting of non-nuclear neurons works. In other words, the behavior of an insect is controlled by cells devoid of chromosomes.

I contacted the author of the publication, Alexey Polilov from Moscow State University, who said that this is the first case of detecting non-nuclear neurons in animals, and there have not yet been other similar studies that could be relied on. If anyone has a version on the topic "how is this possible", please share in the comments.


Alexey A. Polilov (2011) The smallest insects evolve anucleate neurons. -- Arthropod Structure & Development [abstract and full text]

http://nature-wonder.livejournal.com/207043.html

Antimicrobial nanosheets were found on the wings of cicadas


Interaction of bacteria with the surface, a frame from the authors ' video. Pogodin S. et al., Biophysical Journal, 2013

A Spanish-Australian team of microbiologists led by Elena Ivanova from Swinburne University of Technology has discovered nanostructures with an antibacterial effect on the wings of cicadas. The work is published in the Biophysical Journal link, and its summary is provided by NatureNews link.

Vertical nanostructures covering the wings of Psaltoda claripennis cicadas are clearly visible in scanning microscope images. Scientists have found that they have an antimicrobial effect against gram-negative bacteria covered with an external membrane, such as Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus. Nanostructures did not work on gram-positive bacteria without an external membrane.

To explain the unusual antibacterial effect, scientists conducted computer simulations of the interaction of the surface with microbial cells. It turned out that nanoclusters do not pierce the bacterial membrane, but break it due to surface tension. Modeling showed that the gap occurs in the area between the pins - this is where the greatest tension of the membrane is formed.

According to the authors, for the first time, they were able to detect a surface that is unsuitable for bacterial growth solely due to its structure, and not its chemical composition. The authors hope to use the data obtained for the manufacture of artificial coatings with the same property.

Again riders are called wasps

Again riders are called wasps

Well, it happens all the time. Rider = parasitic wasp, and abbreviated to just wasp. In this particular example, this is, of course, all deeply secondary.
For letter-eaters : "Even in the brain of a wasp of the species T. evanescens, which belongs to the same genus as M. Mymaripenne..."
Just the very fact of such a discovery, and by the way, Alexey's report was announced at the last REO congress in the pereponov section, undermines the foundations a little. There is, in general, something to think about at your leisure...

CosMosk, regarding that rider with non-nuclear neurons - a very important question is how long he lives. In theory, if the nucleus disappears by magic in any cell, it will still perform its functions until the supply of proteins and mRNA that remained from the time the nucleus was, runs out.

I do not undertake to edit articles - I still do not have enough responsibility for the result,and there is enough other free work)) Wasps so wasps - on the conscience of scientific popularizers, the main thing is that who understood-he understood....

CosMosk, regarding that rider with non-nuclear neurons - a very important question is how long he lives. In theory, if the nucleus disappears by magic in any cell, it will still perform its functions until the supply of proteins and mRNA that remained from the time the nucleus was, runs out.

here, news is stated, not theories. Interpretations and additions - of course also good - for better understanding.

This post was edited by CosMosk-05.04.2014 12: 28

Ants destroy their companions for the good of the colony

[Ant C. biroi (photo by Jeffrey N. Gouldsmith).]

We know that only the female queen can lay eggs in an anthill. But there are exceptions to this rule: the Cerapachys biroi ants that live in Southeast Asia can also lay eggs in common females. And from these eggs, despite the fact that they are unfertilized, offspring can hatch, and again it will be only females. However, the term "common female" is hardly applicable to C. biroi: they have no queens.

However, these ants often exhibit strange behavior: when someone starts laying eggs, members of the colony can suddenly pounce on him, pull him out of the anthill and kill him, and the execution can last for several hours, or even days. If we consider that all ants are genetically identical to each other, then this becomes even more difficult to explain. Why would they destroy copies of their own genes?

As they write in Current Biology [link According to researchers from Rockefeller University (USA), these police measures are taken by ants to better function the colony.

The reproductive cycle in C. biroi follows a strict schedule: all individuals that can lay eggs do so at the same time. Then, when the larvae hatch, the adult members of the colony will work together to take care of the offspring. Obviously, there are some social signals that "conduct" the community. But some ants do not understand these signals and continue to lay eggs when the rest of the colony is already busy searching for food for the maturing larvae. Such individuals, as anatomical analysis has shown, have too many egg tubes, and they usually get out of control in young ants that have not yet laid eggs.

One way or another, the ants get rid of those who disrupt the system and reduce the efficiency of the colony as a whole. There is no question of competition between individuals: everything is aimed at the benefit of the colony as a single organism (or the state, if you like). And in this case, the benefit of the colony lies in the coordinated work of all its members, and not at all in the maximum fecundity of each individual, as one might think.

Researchers compare the behavior of ants with the behavior of the immune system in relation to cancer cells: after all, in this case we are talking about the extermination of renegades that threaten the integrity of the body. That is, evolution again used the same essentially the same solution at different levels of organization of life. However, for us, ordinary people, the analogy between a colony of ants and an organism is still quite unusual.

http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=68413 Posted 05/02/2013

Entomologists of the Kuril Nature Reserve study insects that lead an active lifestyle in winter
"Who are these strange creatures and why are they not subject to the laws of nature? This is told by the entomologist of the reserve - Yuri Sundukov."
http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=68577 Posted on 10/02/2013

Dung beetles are guided by the stars

[A dung beetle with a" cap " on its head covering the sky from it (photo by Marcus Byrne / University of the Witwatersrand).]

Not only people and birds can check their direction in their wanderings by the stars. Scientists from Lund University (Sweden) discovered this ability in creatures that in this sense could be thought of in the last place - in dung beetles. According to the researchers, this is the only proven case that insects are able to navigate by the stars.

Having found, so to speak, a pile of waste products, the beetle rolls a dung ball and rolls it away as soon as possible, so as not to encounter potential competitors or predators. Even if you move the beetle to a completely unfamiliar environment, it will not be confused at all, it will still move so that it is as far away from the dung heap as possible. Previously, scientists have already found out that dung beetles do not use landscape landmarks like trees or rocks, and that they are guided by the sun and moon, "absorbing", in all likelihood, the polarized light of both celestial bodies. There was no mention of stars; moreover, in early experiments by the same researchers at Lund University, beetles lost their orientation if they did not see the moon, although they could see the stars.

Then, however, data began to appear that scarabs still pay attention to the stars. To finally clarify this question, the researchers, together with colleagues from the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa), set up the following experiment. Beetles were placed in a pen with high walls so that they could observe only a certain piece of the sky, or insects were put on their heads with special "caps" so that they could not see the sky at all. For the experiment, we chose lunar, moonless and cloudy nights, when both the moon and the stars were covered with clouds. The beetles felt most confident when they saw the sky, but the researchers continued to doubt that dung beetles need stars: after all, the beetles ' vision is not so good as to distinguish between luminous points in the sky.

And then the experiments were transferred to the planetarium. In the planetarium, it was possible to leave certain stars for viewing, and "turn off"the rest. As the researchers write in the journal Current Biology [linkHowever, to determine where to go, the beetles needed the Milky Way. If this white blurry band in the night sky was not visible, then even the brightest stars did not help the beetles (provided that there was no moon in the sky either). That is, speaking with a certain poetic stretch, dung beetles walk along the Milky Way. So the Egyptians knew who to worship.

At the same time, it became clear why in previous experiments the beetles ignored the starry sky. Scientists experimented with beetles in South Africa, and the experiments were conducted in October, when the Milky Way is so close to the horizon that it is very difficult to use it as a reference point. In the future, biologists want to find out which of the celestial landmarks for scarabs is still preferable-the moon or the stars.

http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=68141 Posted on 25/01/2013

"Himalayan viagra" may disappear

"Ophiocordyceps sinensis, the world's most expensive medicinal mushroom, is becoming less common due to over-harvesting. "
"Due to its specific life cycle, the fungus has earned such names as" worm in winter — grass in summer "and"caterpillar mushroom"."
http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=68270 Posted on 30/01/2013

Almost 500 new species were discovered by Senckenberg scientists during 2011 and 2012
"In 2011 and 2012, researchers at the Senckenberg Natural History Society discovered 404 living and 87 fossil species, of which 416 live on earth and 75 in the oceans. Most of the new species (324) are from Asia, while at least 96 are from Europe. Arthropods (insects, spiders, crabs, and millipedes) are leading the way, with more than 300 species discovered, 64 new mollusks described, and 30 new plant species found. Genetic and traditional methods (for example, morphological methods) were used. "2012 was the most successful year - 331 newly discovered species were described," Mosbrugger adds, and continues, " So we described about two percent of all newly discovered species on Earth.""
http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=68283 Posted on 31/01/2013

Belarus has chosen its bird of the year symbol for 2013. They became hoopoes.

Bugs will feed humanity http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=67660

it's a peculiar fashion to name new species after celebrities. http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=67606

More than 25,000 species of arthropods live in the forests of Panama. 14 different methods for collecting insects, as well as conduct research at different times of the year and in different weather conditions. In total, almost 130,000 arthropods were collected. This compares favorably with just a few thousand collected earlier. To represent the number of species, it is enough to say that more than 6,000 were collected on half a hectare. 70% of the described species were previously unknown. http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=67531

Well, it happens all the time. Rider = parasitic wasp, and abbreviated to just wasp. In this particular example, this is, of course, all deeply secondary.
For letter-eaters : "Even in the brain of a wasp of the species T. evanescens, which belongs to the same genus as M. Mymaripenne..."
Just the very fact of such a discovery, and by the way, Alexey's report was announced at the last REO congress in the pereponov section, undermines the foundations a little. There is, in general, something to reflect on at your leisure...

This is an extreme case of "chromatin diminution"(see Google), which has been known for quite some time.
For example, in midges, most of the chromosomes are destroyed during development.
In the process of evolution, when the body size decreases, cells should also decrease, but the nucleus limits the minimum size of cells. Let me suggest that this restriction probably contributed to the formation of a cell cycle in which, during the development of the embryo, after the synthesis of a sufficient number of necessary molecules in the cell, chromatin and the nucleus are destroyed, and the cells are compacted.

This post was edited by Seneka - 13.03.2013 11: 30

About tripersts jumping out of the water (VIDEO)
Tiny tripersts showed zoologists their amazing ability to jump on water. Externally, they are similar to bears, only much smaller - only 5 mm in length and weigh 10 mg. They live, like bears, in burrows that dig in moist soil near rivers, lakes and swamps. Tripersts are known for their colossal jumps: these babies can jump 1 meter in length and 70 cm in height. However, their jump accuracy is low, and they often land directly in the water near which they live.

For land insects, falling into the water means inevitable death: either the insect drowns, or it is immediately eaten by fish or other aquatic inhabitants. Some insects (for example, water skaters) can glide on the water surface due to the non-wetting surface of the legs and surface tension forces. But if the foot gets wet, if the air layer between it and the surface of the water disappears, then the insect will again go to the bottom.

Tripersts also manage to get out of the water, despite the wet feet. Researchers from the University of Cambridge (UK) managed to record the jumps of these insects on a high-speed camera and published the results of their observations in the journal Current Biology. link. The jump technique itself remains the same as on the ground. However, thanks to special devices on the hind legs, the triperst gets the opportunity to fly out of the water.

Under water, special blade-like outgrowths and thinner outgrowths-spikes-open on the insect's legs, which increase the repulsion surface by 2.4 times. With the help of these outgrowths, the triperst leans on the water, and therefore easily jumps out of it.

However, jumping out of the water in tripersts is not as remarkable as on land, only 33 mm in length and 100 mm in height. But here, as they say, there is no time for records: I would like to get out of the water as quickly as possible. Most likely, it was the love of coastal areas that made tripersts find such a peculiar way to get out of the water. If evolution had not provided them with lobe-like appendages on their legs, tripersts simply would not have passed through natural selection.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUS5Jb17RCE

http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=66935 Posted on 05/12/2012

  Dung beetles are guided by the stars

[A dung beetle with a" cap " on its head covering the sky from it (photo by Marcus Byrne / University of the Witwatersrand).]

Not only people and birds can check their direction in their wanderings by the stars. Scientists from Lund University (Sweden) discovered this ability in creatures that in this sense could be thought of in the last place - in dung beetles. According to the researchers, this is the only proven case that insects are able to navigate by the stars.

But here it's a shame something else. The works of our compatriots - the late F. G. Gribakin (Sechenov Institute of Physics and Technology, St. Petersburg) and L. I. Frantsevich (Institute of Zoology, Kiev)-are completely forgotten. ..

FRANTSEVICH L., GOVARDOVSKI V., GRIBAKIN F., NIKOLAJEV G., PICHKA V., POLANOVSKY A., SHEVCHENKO V., ZOLOTOV V. ASTROORIENTATION IN LETHRUS (COLEOPTERA, SCARABAEIDAE) // JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE PHYSIOLOGY A: SENSORY, NEURAL, AND BEHAVIORAL PHYSIOLOGY. Volume: 121number: 2 Year: 1977 Pages: 253-271.

Summary. 1. Providing the nest with vegetable food, Lethrus performs re-
peated excursions of about 1 m from the hole and returns home.
2. Homing by the straight line, Lethrus walks in compass direction toward
the nest; the distance traveled is equal to the estimated distance to the
hole, and in a case of fault Lethrus begins the circling search. Lethrus is
able to integrate over the complex path.
3. Lethrus sets direction relative to celestial cues: the sun and the polarized
skylight.
4. Lethrus has two photoreceptor systems: the green-sensitive and UV-
sensitive one; only an ultraviolet polarization pattern is used for polarotaxis.
5. The eye of Lethrus evolved from the superpositional prototype; it
is adapted to diurnal vision by shortening of the clear zone and by thickening
of the light-guiding tracts from the cone to the rhabdom.
6. Lethrus is different from other Lamellicorns possessing a typical multi-
lobed rhabdom in that Lethrus has a crustacean-type rhabdom. It is assumed
that this specialization of rhabdom provides the perfect analysis of polarized
light and polarotaxis.
7. The complex orientational and nest behavior of Lethrus is not ac-
companied by enlargement of the brain and its presumed associative centres,
the mushroom bodies. Among several scarabaeid beetles of comparable size
(Arnphirnallon solstitialis, Geotrupes stercorosus) Lethrus apterus gains the
first place in behavioral complexity but the last in number of sensilla on
the antennal clumb, number of ommatidia, and the volume of mushroom
globuli.

That is, at least the sun and the polarization of light are described as landmarks for the plate-whiskered beetle from the dung beetle group back in the distant 70s.

This post was edited by PVOzerski - 13.03.2013 11: 19

As for Alexey Polilov, he is a very interesting person and a great talent. And his article on" neurons " was not accepted in Neiche and Sainz only for political reasons. They offered to include their own person in the list and then give the green light, but he refused. After this article was published in another magazine, the Neiche and Sainz website immediately posted a note about this discovery in the news section.
And for all his talents, he is a very simple and humble guy

Well, for what I bought, for what I sell. I have no reason to doubt Alexey's words (the entomological world is small and all sorts of untruths come out quickly.
As for Neiche and Sainz, their editorial staff is so focused on impact that it is not surprising that they refuse to publish an interesting article from an author who is unanswered in those circles.

This post was edited by Coelioxys - 13.03.2013 14: 22

Scientists have discovered similar evolutionary changes in many insect species

Evolution is often presented as a series of random changes. Some of them give organisms certain advantages over their relatives and are fixed, appearing from generation to generation. Others are eventually eliminated as unnecessary.

But a new study published in the journal Science [linkThis study shows that evolutionary development may not be a series of useful accidents, but a simple genetic response to environmental influences, which is repeated in many species exposed to similar conditions.

[In pictures: the beetle Oncopeltus fasciatus, the caterpillars of the monarch butterfly Danaus plexippus and the moth Euchaetes egle, the leaf beetle Chrysochus auratus. All these insects independently developed the same mechanism to counteract toxins (photo by Peter Andolfatto, Ying Zhen).
Researchers from Princeton University studied the DNA of 29 unrelated insect species. At the same time, almost identical genetic features were found in 14 of them, due to one common circumstance - they all feed on plants that produce so-called cardenolides. This class of toxins, which causes cardiac arrest and nervous system paralysis, is used to protect plants such as cotton candy, digitalis and oleander.

"In unprotected insects, cardenolides inhibit the production of a protein called sodium-potassium adenosine triphosphatase (atpA), which is involved in ion transport and plays an important role in muscle contractions, the nervous system, and a number of cellular phenomena," explains Peter Andolfatto, head of the study.

At the same time, a whole host of insects, including butterflies, beetles and aphids, have found a way to bypass the plants ' deadly defenses. All of them have a modified protein called atpA, which ensures the operation of the sodium-potassium pump mechanism. The changes allow you to maintain the balance of the two elements and resist the action of the toxin, which causes untrained cells to pump excess potassium from the outside and excessive sodium excretion in the opposite direction.

Andolfatto and his colleagues found in the DNA of each species studied a region responsible for encoding sodium-potassium adenosine triphosphatase. It turned out that in many of them, these genes contained the same mutations. This is despite the fact that most of the insects studied are separated by 300 million years of evolution. Parallel evolution in so many species virtually eliminates the possibility that the same adaptations evolved by chance.

Scientists suggest that organisms have a limited set of molecular mechanisms that they can use in the process of evolutionary development to overcome environmental influences.

Thus, by studying the genetic modifications of several species, it is possible to predict the" ways " of adaptation of many other organisms living in similar conditions.
The researchers found that to develop resistance to cardenolides, genes need to undergo 33 mutations. While insects that do not feed on cotton wool and similar plants, similar genes contain no more than one mutation.

It is noteworthy that in some species, duplicate genes were found that allow the body to contain both a normal protein and a modified one. As a rule ,the "improved version" of the sodium-potassium pump in such insects was located in the intestinal tissues, where the toxin exposure is maximum.

"Gene duplication is an elegant solution to the problem of adapting to environmental changes," says Andolfatto. "In these species, the body is free to experiment with one copy while preserving the other, avoiding the risk of a new version of the protein not doing its job well."

Note that this is not the first time that scientists have managed to establish parallel evolution at the protein level. Another example is the protein prestin, which is found in the inner ear of all mammals. Independently of each other, bats and whales acquired identical modifications of this protein, which allowed them to master echolocation and ultrasonic hearing.
http://ecoportal.su/news.php?id=66033 Posted on 30/10/2012

CosMosk, regarding that rider with non-nuclear neurons - a very important question is how long he lives. In theory, if the nucleus disappears by magic in any cell, it will still perform its functions until the supply of proteins and mRNA that remained from the time the nucleus was, runs out.

As far as I understand, such small riders, even if they are not "nuclear-free", never live very long at the imago stage. As for these "nuclear-free" objects specifically, the article under discussion says that adults of these species live about 5-8 days, which may well be enough for those mRNA reserves that remained in cells from the pupal stage. For example, in the early stages of embryogenesis, most of the genes in the nucleus are also not read, and nothing.

This post was edited by Dergg - 13.03.2013 23: 10

  Scientists have discovered similar evolutionary changes in many insect species

Evolution is often presented as a series of random changes. Some of them give organisms certain advantages over their relatives and are fixed, appearing from generation to generation. Others are eventually eliminated as unnecessary.

But a new study published in the journal Science [linkThis study shows that evolutionary development may not be a series of useful accidents, but a simple genetic response to environmental influences, which is repeated in many species exposed to similar conditions.

Some too pretentious presentation of the material, the discovery of some laws that are not too unique and new, but are already well known on other objects and models, is contrasted with the evolutionary representation of the 19th century (and not the modern one) and is presented directly as some kind of sensation.

this is yes, interesting rather factual, to theoretical not new hypotheses and theories.
It is not surprising that foreigners do not approve of our work. We don't know a lot of things ourselves, and we can't keep up with the flow of publications. Therefore, it seems that what is already known in science will regularly appear as new, established by "British" scientists..

As far as I understand, such small riders, even if they are not "nuclear-free", never live very long at the imago stage. As for these "nuclear-free" objects specifically, the article under discussion says that adults of these species live about 5-8 days, which may well be enough for those mRNA reserves that remained in cells from the pupal stage. In mammals, for example, in the early stages of embryogenesis, most of the genes in the nucleus are also not read, and nothing.

people also do not live very long, no matter what fundamentally different methods of preserving health and rejuvenation are used - the difference is no more than about 10 percent.
Insects - I'm not an expert on this particular issue-no longer have the need to grow and divide cells, but rather will depend on additional nutrition,energy consumption, and size class. And nuclear ones-they obviously don't live much longer. mayflies especially))

This post was edited by CosMosk-13.03.2013 17: 53

Insects - I'm not an expert on this particular issue-no longer have the need to grow and divide cells, but rather will depend on additional nutrition,energy consumption, and size class. And nuclear ones-they obviously don't live much longer. mayflies especially))

Well, in this case, it does not matter whether they can divide cells or not (neurons in adult ornganisms in the vast majority do not divide in other systematic groups of animals). It is important that most of the proteins in the cell degrade over time, and without renewing the pool of these proteins, the cell cannot survive for more than a certain time. mRNA in the neurons of these non-nuclear riders, accumulated during the period of the presence of the nucleus, also decays over time, but apparently the decay time is such that it allows you to live on old stocks for a week.

Dergg, were there any experiments that involved the extraction or inactivation of cell nuclei, for example, the "disappearance" of up to 80% of the nuclei in the cells of a fairly complex multicellular organism, such as a worm?
Perhaps this is technically impossible? It would just be interesting to see how the body's behavior will change in this case.

There are quite a lot of examples with cells devoid of a nucleus, but the same red blood cells, but such an option is interesting, probably

As for Neiche and Sainz, their editorial staff is so focused on impact that it is not surprising that they refuse to publish an interesting article from an author who is unanswered in those circles.

It would seem that one of the main questions "Who are you?!" is that he is Russian. However, the Anglo-Saxons also set it.

Dergg, were there any experiments that involved the extraction or inactivation of cell nuclei, for example, the "disappearance" of up to 80% of the nuclei in the cells of a fairly complex multicellular organism, such as a worm?
Perhaps this is technically impossible? It would just be interesting to see how the body's behavior will change in this case.

As for experiments with the extraction or inactivation of nuclei in multicellular ornanisms , I don't know if there were such experiments or not. It probably depends on what you mean by inactivation. Experiments in which certain processes related to the nucleus were blocked (for example, transcription) were probably in large numbers, I can't say in more detail, but it's not exactly my area of research interests.

However, an embryo in the early stages of development can also pass for a model of a multicellular organism, when its own genes are turned off, and the mRNA inherited from the egg is working in the cell. This is called "maternal cytoplasmic determination," or something like that. Although, the embryo is not yet a multicellular organism in the full sense of the word.

As far as I understand, such small riders, even if they are not "nuclear-free", never live very long at the imago stage. As for these "nuclear-free" objects specifically, the article under discussion says that adults of these species live about 5-8 days, which may well be enough for those mRNA reserves that remained in cells from the pupal stage. For example, in the early stages of embryogenesis, most of the genes in the nucleus are also not read, and nothing.

As far as I understand, it diagnosed the lack of cores visually.
The absence of a nucleus does not mean the absence of DNA and the cessation of mRNA synthesis. The chromosomes there may be in a macronuclear state, they are simply not visible.

As far as I understand, it diagnosed the lack of cores visually.
The absence of a nucleus does not mean the absence of DNA and the cessation of mRNA synthesis. The chromosomes there may be in a macronuclear state, they are simply not visible.

The absence of nuclei was diagnosed by electron microscopy. If the macronuclear state means decondensed chromatin, then I don't think it's even close here, since this completely contradicts the goal of miniaturization, for which, apparently, evolution started this fuss. Decondensed chromatin occupies orders of magnitude more space than condensed chromatin.
I suspect that if you completely decondense all the chromosomes of this rider, they would take up a larger total volume than the entire non-nuclear neuron as a whole.

The absence of nuclei was diagnosed by electron microscopy. If the macronuclear state means decondensed chromatin, then I don't think it's even close here, since this completely contradicts the goal of miniaturization, for which, apparently, evolution started this fuss. Decondensed chromatin occupies orders of magnitude more space than condensed chromatin.
I suspect that if you completely decondense all the chromosomes of this rider, they would take up a larger total volume than the entire non-nuclear neuron as a whole.

Electron microscopy, that means visually.
They may have not only decondensed, but also lost most of the sequence. To say something, you need to do a molecular analysis. Any evolutionary scenario is just a meaningless hypothesis that can be either confirmed or refuted, but in itself absolutely proves nothing and does not prohibit it.

Electron microscopy, that means visually.
They may have not only decondensed, but also lost most of the sequence. To say something, you need to do a molecular analysis. Any evolutionary scenario is just a meaningless hypothesis, which can be either confirmed or refuted, but in itself does not prove or prohibit absolutely anything.

Well, visually - it's more about light microscopy. Well, not the point is important.

To decondense, but at the same time lose most of the sequence, and would exist outside the organelles bounded by the membrane (such would most likely be visible on an electron micrograph) - too unlikely. Moreover, they would not take up any space at all - for example, in the macronucleus of ciliates, taking into account the loss of a significant proportion of sequences, what is left takes up a lot of space. In general, if something like this suddenly opens up, it will probably be a bigger sensation than just a nuclear-free nervous system.
Of course, it is necessary to conduct a biochemical analysis, but even a simple histochemical staining for nucleic acids would probably make a lot of things worse.
The tendency to miniaturize and save space seems to be a fairly obvious pattern in this case, or do you have an alternative explanation for why the cells of the smallest insects lose their nuclei?

Well, visually - it's more about light microscopy. Well, not the point is important.

To decondense, but at the same time lose most of the sequence, and would exist outside the organelles bounded by the membrane (such would most likely be visible on an electron micrograph) - too unlikely. Moreover, they would not take up any space at all - for example, in the macronucleus of ciliates, taking into account the loss of a significant proportion of sequences, what is left takes up a lot of space. In general, if something like this suddenly opens up, it will probably be a bigger sensation than just a nuclear-free nervous system.
Of course, it is necessary to conduct a biochemical analysis, but even a simple histochemical staining for nucleic acids would probably make a lot of things worse.
The tendency to miniaturize and save space seems to be a fairly obvious pattern in this case, or do you have an alternative explanation for why the cells of the smallest insects lose their nuclei?

I wrote above that this phenomenon has long been known.

I wrote above that this phenomenon has long been known.

Where is it? About macronuclei? Thank you, I know about them, but I don't think they have much in common with non-nuclear rider neurons.

Where is it? About macronuclei? Thank you, I know about them, but I don't think they have much in common with non-nuclear rider neurons.

About chromatin diminution

As far as I know, in the currently studied cases of diminution, we are still not talking about the loss of the nucleus and the existence of chromosomal DNA outside it. In addition, with the loss of heterochromotin DNA, all the rest remains in a decondensed state and takes up a lot of space, which is unlikely to be the case in this case, in highly compressed neurons.

As far as I know, in the currently studied cases of diminution, we are still not talking about the loss of the nucleus and the existence of chromosomal DNA outside it. In addition, with the loss of heterochromotin DNA, all the rest remains in a decondensed state and takes up a lot of space, which is unlikely to be the case in this case, in highly compressed neurons.

And how do you imagine, technically speaking, the loss of DNA in multiple cells over a very limited period of time?

This post was edited by Seneka - 14.03.2013 20: 55

And how do you imagine, technically speaking, the loss of DNA in multiple cells over a very limited period of time?

And what is so fundamentally difficult about it? Mechanisms similar to autophagy, apoptosis, or the same diminution (only on a larger scale).

The discovery of such a new mechanism, perhaps, will be more abruptly discussed phenomenon.
A kind of thinking stomach... or "the rider's pot cooks," or even " the rider's brain can digest even what the elephant's stomach can't digest."

This post was edited by Seneka - 14.03.2013 22: 15

How do [flying] ants fly?
[imho, reading this is a waste of time, but the video there is of poor quality and entertaining - the ant instantly plans to climb the tree trunk - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tcw37Bg7vn8...player_embedded]

source: http://science.compulenta.ru/617456/
June 21, 2011, 12: 37 pm / Text by Kirill Stasevich

To control their flight, the gliding ants of Cephalotes atratus transform their body into a mini-parachute.[foto]

The absence of wings in the animal world does not mean a complete ban on aeronautics: everyone can immediately name flying fish, and after them they will remember flying lizards from the genus Draco and flying snakes Chrysopelea. All of these creatures demonstrate the ability to soar, although, of course, this is not such a common phenomenon. Despite the fact that these flyers do not have wings, they have some features of the body structure, such as wide pectoral fins or folds of skin, which allow them to more or less control the flight.

But at the expense of what, then, does the Amazon ant Cephalotes atratus fly, which has absolutely no aerodynamic devices?

If an ordinary ant falls from a tree, it will fall like a stone. Cephalotes atratus behaves quite differently. Somehow, he manages to catch the air currents that can help him land on another tree. Zoologists from the University of California, Berkeley (USA) managed to capture an ant in flight on video by placing it in a specially designed wind tunnel. An article published in the journal Integrative and Comparative Biology describes how an ant manages its planning. In flight, Cephalotes atratus stretches its hind legs to their maximum length and raises them up, while lowering its abdomen down: it can be said that it turns its body into a mini-parachute, lowering its heavy compact part and lifting the light and long (limbs).

By the way, the ant uses soaring only during the day: researchers claim that ants are guided by vertical light objects. This makes sense when you consider that many trees in the Amazon forests are covered with light lichen.

The question of why ants need the ability to perform aerodynamic exercises is more difficult to answer. Falling from a tree is not fatal to the insect in itself (although it may be painful). But not during the rainy season, when to fall down means to be in the water and be eaten, for example, by fish. On the other hand, you should not fall in the dry season either — because of other ants that live in the forest floor and do not like aliens too much. But even if the fall ends safely, it will somehow affect the condition of the colony: the loss of workers reduces the flow of resources to the anthill.

Scientists believe that other species of tree ants may also have the ability to fly in a directional glide, although this is unlikely to be recognized by their appearance...

Prepared by Discovery News.