Zinc oxide nanoparticles (Zno nps) are used in many applications; however, their interactions with cells, immune cells in particular, and potential health risk(s) are not fully known. In this manuscript, we have demonstrated the potential of ZnO NPs to cross the gut barrier in an invertebrate model, Bombyx mori, and that they can reach the hemolymph where they interact with and/or are taken up by immunecompetent cells resulting in various toxic responses like decline in hemocyte viability, ROS generation, morphological alterations, apoptotic cell death, etc. exposure to these nps also resulted in alteration of hemocyte dynamics including an immediate increase in THC, possibly due to the release of these hemocytes either from enhanced rate of cell divisions or from attached hemocyte populations, and decline in percentage of prohemocytes and increase in percentage of two professional phagocytes, i.e., granulocytes and plasmatocytes, possibly due to the differentiation of prohemocytes into phagocytes in response to a perceived immune challenge posed by these NPs. Taken together, our data suggest that ZnO NPs have the potential to cross gut barrier and cause various toxic effects that could reverse and the insects could return to normal physiological states as there is restoration and repair of various systems and their affected pathways following the clearance of these NPs from the insect body. Our study also indicates that B. mori has the potential to serve as an effective alternate animal model for biosafety, environmental monitoring and screening of NPs, particularly to evaluate their interactions with invertebrate immune system.The nanotechnology has developed rapidly in the present world and engineered nanoparticles (NPs) have found tremendous applications in diverse products like cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, food industry products, paints, electronics, clothing, etc. 1-3 Such large-scale use of nanoparticles has raised concerns with regard to their impacts on human health, biodiversity, environment and ecosystems; more so because of their small dimensions and other unique properties. Since precise cellular mechanism(s) of nanoparticle interaction with biological systems are mostly unknown, nanotoxicology demands comprehensive assessments of various interactions between NPs and biological systems based upon their various exposure routes. The gravity of the environmental concerns regarding the use and disposal of NPs has attracted a plethora of studies to assess their toxicity, both in vivo and in vitro 4 . Exposure to various NPs has been reported to cause oxidative stress, cytotoxicity, DNA damage, apoptosis, necrosis, genotoxicity, aberrant mitochondrial function and reduced photosynthesis in different cell lines [5][6][7][8][9][10][11] . Various in vivo studies in a wide spectrum of organisms have linked NP exposure to various toxic effects like developmental abnormalities in zebra fish embryos 12,13 , decline in vertebrate lung function 14 , interaction with sea urchin immune cells 15 , increased mutagenesis...
In the present study, scanning electron microscopy was used to investigate the ultrastructure of sensilla present on the antennae of male and female Zygogramma bicolorata. The antennae in this insect consist of the scape, pedicel, and nine flagellomeres. Six types of sensilla were identified: sensilla trichodea type 1 and 2 (ST1, ST2), sensilla cavitae (SCa), sensilla chaetica (SCh), and sensilla basiconica type 1 and 2 (SB1, SB2). Sensilla were characterized on the basis of their size and density to find out whether sexual dimorphism exists in this species or not. We observed that the size of the antennomeres was comparatively larger in males than females. Moreover, sensilla chaetica were found on all antennomers and have the qualification of being the longest type, suggesting that they probably have a role in mechanoreception. There was an abundance of sensilla trichodea in both males and females, indicating its function as a chemoreceptor. Sensilla basiconica are believed to sense sex pheromones and hence their abundance was more in males as compared to females.
In the present study, a preliminary survey was carried out in two apple orchards (O1 and O2) belonging to the central region of the state of Jammu and Kashmir to ascertain the prevalence of different types of pests infesting the orchards across different phases, i.e., pre-bloom, bloom and post bloom which spread across the months of end March till the harvest stage (apple picking) in October. Among various types of pests documented, the incidence of red mites was highest. Apple scab was recorded highest in the post bloom stage. The mite population was recorded by using Binomial sampling technique and calculating the Cumulative Mite Days (CMD). Mite infested leaves were 24.8% and16% in O1 and O2 respectively. Similarly, CMD increased linearly in O1 reaching to a maximum of 7.17 on the last sampling day, whereas in the 2nd orchard it showed increased to 7.42 on the last sampling day. In addition to monitoring pest population, the pesticide usage regime was also studied and extensive usage of which was recorded in both the orchards. Yellow fly trap with its corresponding synthetic pheromone was used as quantitative sampling device in monitoring the general pest population
Morphology of the scent (pheromone) glands is the first and basic step in understanding the mechanism of working of this highly evolved and integrated system of communication in insects. Leptocoris augur contains a pair of large and distinct symmetric exocrine dorsal abdominal glands (DAGs) found in the dorsal abdominal segments. The glands are simple, voluminous, sac-like and bright orange that turn brown and downsized with age. They are invested with a large and dense network of trachea and open to the exterior via minute slit shaped openings in the form of ostioles that remain permanently open to the outside. The functional specificity of these glands can be associated with the activities ranging from aggregation to sexual behaviours like courtship and mating. The mating is not restricted to a specific season, being distributed all-round the year; however, the insect prefers low and humid temperature for mating and they can be seen congregating in huge numbers when the hot summers subside and the rainy season arrives. We didn’t observe any considerable variation in size of these glands with respect to the body size in between the instars and the adults. Further, there were no significant difference between males and females in terms of the size of these DAGs.
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