Fat enough for the winter? Does nutritional status affect diapause?

Short, Clancy A.; Hahn, Daniel A.

doi:10.1016/j.jinsphys.2023.104488

Cited by 14 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 146 publications

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“…This indicates that accelerated development of non-winter cohort was (at least partially) caused by stronger seasonal time constraint comparing to overwintering cohort, the later possibly going through additional moult and eventually gaining larger size and heavier mass 16 . It has been suggested that winter diapause might bear costs, as diapause may be associated with other stressful factors such as low temperature, limited resources available and reduced food intake 49 . Indeed, food availability and nutrients reserves are critical component of the diapause process which may affect survival 6 , 20 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, during diapause, there are two periods associated with an increase in food intake and metabolic rate: the preparation of diapause to accumulate reserves, i.e. when photoperiod and temperature decreases, and during the resumption period which generally occur after diapause when metabolic rate increases in order to finish larval development and subsequently metamorphose 1 , 49 , 54 . In our study, for the post-winter cohort, larvae were collected between one and three weeks after diapause.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of overwintering on the transcriptome and fitness traits in a damselfly with variable voltinism across two latitudes

Wos,

Palomar,

Golab

et al. 2024

Sci Rep

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Winter diapause consists of cessation of development that allows individuals to survive unfavourable conditions. Winter diapause may bear various costs and questions have been raised about the evolutionary mechanisms maintaining facultative diapause. Here, we explored to what extent a facultative winter diapause affects life-history traits and the transcriptome in the damselfly Ischnura elegans, and whether these effects were latitude-specific. We collected adult females at central and high latitudes and raised their larvae in growth chambers. Larvae were split into a non-diapausing and post-winter (diapausing) cohort, were phenotyped and collected for a gene expression analysis. At the phenotypic level, we found no difference in survival between the two cohorts, and the post-winter cohort was larger and heavier than the non-winter cohort. These effects were mostly independent of the latitude of origin. At the transcriptomic level, wintering affected gene expression with a small fraction of genes significantly overlapping across latitudes, especially those related to morphogenesis. In conclusion, we found clear effects of diapause on the phenotype but little evidence for latitudinal-specific effects of diapause. Our results showed a shared transcriptomic basis underpinning diapause demonstrated, here, at the intraspecific level and supported the idea of evolutionary convergence of the response to diapause across organisms.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of overwintering on the transcriptome and fitness traits in a damselfly with variable voltinism across two latitudes

Wos,

Palomar,

Golab

et al. 2024

Sci Rep

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“…There are also insect and nematode species that can enter diapause states to reversibly suspend development and reproduction under unfavourable conditions. Entry into or recovery from diapause in these invertebrate organisms is orchestrated in part by evolutionarily conserved signaling systems that communicate nutritional status [ 6 , 7 ]. Mammals exhibit patterns of sexual dimorphism that are consistent with the concept that females are better suited for withstanding periods of food scarcity, which would increase chances of reproductive success in nutritionally-fluctuating environments [ 1 ].…”

Section: Close Ties Between Nutritional Status and Female Reproductiv...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Metabolic hormones are integral regulators of female reproductive health and function

Athar,

Karmani,

Templeman

2024

Bioscience Reports

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The female reproductive system is strongly influenced by nutrition and energy balance. It is well known that food restriction or energy depletion can induce suppression of reproductive processes, while overnutrition is associated with reproductive dysfunction. However, the intricate mechanisms through which nutritional inputs and metabolic health are integrated into the coordination of reproduction are still being defined. In this review, we describe evidence for essential contributions by hormones that are responsive to food intake or fuel stores. Key metabolic hormones—including insulin, the incretins (glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide and glucagon-like peptide-1), growth hormone, ghrelin, leptin, and adiponectin—signal throughout the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis to support or suppress reproduction. We synthesize current knowledge on how these multifaceted hormones interact with the brain, pituitary, and ovaries to regulate functioning of the female reproductive system, incorporating in vitro and in vivo data from animal models and humans. Metabolic hormones are involved in orchestrating reproductive processes in healthy states, but some also play a significant role in the pathophysiology or treatment strategies of female reproductive disorders. Further understanding of the complex interrelationships between metabolic health and female reproductive function has important implications for improving women's health overall.

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“…In mammals, dietary fatty acid limitation, particularly unsaturated fatty acids, can decrease the likelihood of entering hibernation and surviving hibernation (e.g., Falkenstein et al., 2001 ; Frank, 1992 ). However, the relationships between an insect's diet and diapause phenotypes are much less clear (Short & Hahn, 2023 ). Understanding the relationship between feeding, growth, and diapause phenotypes is critical to understanding winter survival and thus predicting winter mortality of pests or beneficial insects, especially in the context of climate change (Denlinger, 1991 , 2022 ; Lehmann et al., 2020 ; Renault et al., 2003 ; Roberts et al., 2023 ; Roberts & Williams, 2022 ; Williams et al., 2015 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bigger isn't always better: Challenging assumptions about the associations between diapause, body weight, and overwintering survival

Short,

Walters,

Hahn

2024

Ecology and Evolution

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During the winter, animals face limited food availability. Many animals enter dormancy to reduce their winter energy expenditure. Most insects spend the winter in diapause, a state of programmed dormancy. It is often assumed that diapausing insects need nutrient stores to fuel their many months of basal metabolism and must grow heavier than their non‐diapause‐programmed counterparts. However, the extent to which food limitation affects body weight during overwintering preparation as well as the likelihood and duration of diapause remains unclear. We limited the duration of the feeding period and thus the total quantity of food available to diapause‐destined larvae of the pupal‐diapausing flesh fly, Sarcophaga crassipalpis, to test how food limitation affects body weight in the context of diapause programming. We also tested the extent to which food deprivation and body weight affect the likelihood and duration of diapause. We hypothesized that diapause‐destined larvae grow more quickly and pupariate at a heavier body weight than non‐diapause larvae. We also hypothesized that body weight is more dramatically reduced by food limitations when a larva is programmed for diapause. Finally, we hypothesized that larvae with lighter body weight (i.e., food limited) are less likely to enter pupal diapause and also stay in diapause for a shorter duration than heavier, well‐fed, individuals. Contrary to our hypotheses that diapausing insects are heavier than their non‐diapausing counterparts, we found diapausing pupae weighed less than non‐diapausing pupae, especially when larvae received limited food. We found light pupae did not abort their diapause program. In both diapausing and non‐diapausing pupae, body weight was positively correlated with simulated winter survival. However, above a weight threshold, body weight no longer affected simulated winter survival in diapausing pupae. Contrary to our predictions and the general consensus in much of the diapause literature, we also found that lighter pupae stayed in diapause longer than heavier pupae. Overall, our results challenge the precept that body weight and diapause are positively associated. The relationship between body weight and diapause is complex and may be affected by the availability of food before and after winter, the availability of high‐quality overwintering sites, and the life history of a particular insect.

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Fat enough for the winter? Does nutritional status affect diapause?

Cited by 14 publications

References 146 publications

Effects of overwintering on the transcriptome and fitness traits in a damselfly with variable voltinism across two latitudes

Effects of overwintering on the transcriptome and fitness traits in a damselfly with variable voltinism across two latitudes

Metabolic hormones are integral regulators of female reproductive health and function

Bigger isn't always better: Challenging assumptions about the associations between diapause, body weight, and overwintering survival

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