Behavioral Effects of Chronic Exposure to Low Levels of Lead in Drosophila melanogaster

Hirsch, Helmut V. B.; Mercer, John A.; Sambaziotis, Hera; Huber, Michael; Stark, Diane T; Torno-Morley, Tara; Hollocher, Kurt; Ghiradella, Helen; Ruden, Douglas M.

doi:10.1016/s0161-813x(03)00021-4

Cited by 86 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…However, recent studies from our laboratory with four mono functional alkylating agents showed that fly and higher mammals have a similar dose-response relationship . In this context, a previous study by Hirsch et al (2003) also demonstrated that fly and human have similar dose-response relationship after lead exposure. Thus, laboratory studies on a model organism like the present one are useful to gather significant first hand information for understanding and predicting the adverse biological effects of OP compounds to the exposed populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Adverse effect of organophosphate compounds, dichlorvos and chlorpyrifos in the reproductive tissues of transgenic Drosophila melanogaster: 70kDa heat shock protein as a marker of cellular damage

et al. 2007

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Adverse effect of organophosphate compounds, dichlorvos and chlorpyrifos in the reproductive tissues of transgenic Drosophila melanogaster: 70kDa heat shock protein as a marker of cellular damage

et al. 2007

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“…On the other hand, for females, they may be more selective in mate choice and may invest more heavily in individual offspring, such as producing larger eggs, in a word maximizing their quality when environment conditions are good. By contrast, in adverse environments (just as exposed to UV in this study) it is also possible that the female can mate sooner and more indiscriminately and lay larger quantities of sub-standard eggs [24] .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…Although it is true that UV rays have very low penetrating power, and the bulk of evidence has indicated that gene mutations were more rarely produced by UV than by X-rays, according to the result of EPR measurements it seemed possible that UVR in this study was powerful enough to penetrate the cuticle of flies to arouse oxidative stress to damage body tissues and germ cells, further reducing fertility [4,24,25] . Just as seen in McQuate's study [4] , UVR can cause chromosome loss of Drosophila spermatozoa when males were exposed to the ray at the distance of 15 cm.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phototoxic effect of UVR on wild type, ebony and yellow mutants of Drosophila melanogaster: Life Span, fertility, courtship and biochemical aspects

et al. 2008

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Melanin plays an important role in protecting organisms from ultraviolet radiation (UVR). Therefore, it is possible that differently colored strains can show different sensitivities to UVR. In the present work, life span, fertility and courtship behavior of wild type (w), ebony (e) and yellow (y) strains of Drosophila melanogaster were studied to evaluate their sensitivity to ultraviolet (UV). Because a range of phototoxic effects of UVR are mediated through generation of free radicals, levels of free radicals, lipid peroxide (malondialdehyde, MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity of three strains were examined to indicate their antioxidant defending ability and oxidative status. It was shown that w always had the highest lifespan and fertility not only in the control but also in UV-exposed groups. Moreover, lifespan and fertility of e were significantly higher (P<0.0001) than those of y in the UV-exposed groups, but not for the control. On the other hand, UV exposure had an adverse effect on courtship of flies. Stronger electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signals could be detected in w, e and y exposed to 5 min UV. And there were more significant changes of EPR signals in y than in w and e. UVR had no significant (P=0.1782) effect on the SOD activities. After pooling data from the control and UV-exposed groups, we found that w had a significantly (P<0.05) higher level of SOD activity, but e and y were nearly at the same levels (P>0.05). MDA levels were increased in the UV dose-dependent manner (P=0.0495). In conclusion, our results suggested that UVR can decrease life span and fertility of flies and do harm to courtship, which may be due to oxidative damage to flies tissues (e.g. central nervous system) induced by free radicals. w had the highest tolerance to UVR, which may be ascribed to its advantage of survival under the natural condition and at high level of SOD activity. Then differences of pigment between e and y in absorbing UV, shielding against UV and scavenging free radicals produced by UVR should be responsible for their different sensitivity to UVR.

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“…We could note many reasons, but one is that behavior often reflects the full and integrated functioning of the nervous system. At some point, high-throughput screening will entail behaving organisms, but the behavior may be simple and the organism may be a nonmammalian species such as drosophila (Hirsch et al, 2003;Liu, Vinson, Abt, Hurt, & Rand, 2009), zebrafish, or zebrafish larvae (e.g., MacPhail et al, 2009;Peterson et al, 2008;Weber et al, 2008). Traditional laboratory animals such as mice might be incorporated, but only with highly automated and rapid testing procedures.…”

Section: High Throughputmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental health and behavior analysis: Contributions and interactions.

Newland¹

2013

APA Handbook of Behavior Analysis, Vol. 2: Translating Principles Into Practice.

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The heightened public awareness that environmental contaminants can act on the nervous system and have effects that appear in behavior presents a major challenge to behavioral scientists in all areas. They are being asked to conduct both hazard assessment (are there neurobehavioral effects of some chemical at any dose?) and risk assessment (what is the risk to a population at a specific level of exposure?) for behavioral effects that are not always well understood. The heavy metal lead provides an excellent example. Concern over lead poisoning lies in claims that it lowers scores on IQ tests, retards academic performance, and results in disruptive and even criminal behavior. The problems posed are daunting: How easy is it to detect a 5-point drop in scores on IQ tests? Can scientists predict these effects from experimental models using laboratory animals? Can they identify behavioral and neural mechanisms that account for these effects? What economic costs are incurred if the average IQ drops a few points, and how does this cost compare with that of reducing lead in the environment?These concerns are reflected in policymaking. Federal legislation and regulation of toxic substances specifically include behavior, including schedule-controlled operant behavior, as a regulatory endpoint (Tilson, 1990). The inclusion of nervous system damage in general, and its behavioral manifestations in particular, represents a sea change in public concern over unintended exposure to chemicals. Where cancer has been (and still is) a significant concern, the recognition that adverse behavioral effects follow certain types of chemical exposure is increasing. These effects carry over into a large number of domains. Environmental contaminants, even at very low exposure levels, contribute to disorders across the life span, including developmental disabilities and the hastening of age-related impairments. Behavioral scientists' understanding of how this happens not only has public policy implications but can also inform them about the behavior and neurobiology surrounding these disorders.

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Behavioral Effects of Chronic Exposure to Low Levels of Lead in Drosophila melanogaster

Cited by 86 publications

References 29 publications

Adverse effect of organophosphate compounds, dichlorvos and chlorpyrifos in the reproductive tissues of transgenic Drosophila melanogaster: 70kDa heat shock protein as a marker of cellular damage

Adverse effect of organophosphate compounds, dichlorvos and chlorpyrifos in the reproductive tissues of transgenic Drosophila melanogaster: 70kDa heat shock protein as a marker of cellular damage

Phototoxic effect of UVR on wild type, ebony and yellow mutants of Drosophila melanogaster: Life Span, fertility, courtship and biochemical aspects

Environmental health and behavior analysis: Contributions and interactions.

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