Aphids exhibit wing polyphenism (winged or wingless) for adaption to predictable or temporally heterogeneous environmental changes; however, the underlying mechanism is still unclear. This morphological change could be stimulated by high aphid density, which in turn could affect octopaminergic signaling in aphids. Octopamine is a neurotransmitter synthesized in insects that can modify their phy...

Empirical studies have shown that belowground feeding herbivores can affect the performance of aboveground herbivores in different ways. Often the critical life-history parameters underlying the observed performance effects remain unexplored. In order to better understand the cause for the observed effects on aboveground herbivores, these ecological mechanisms must be better understood. In this...

Several findings have indicated an involvement of dopamine in panic and defensive behaviors. The dorsolateral column of the periaqueductal gray (dlPAG) is crucially involved in the expression of panic attacks in humans and defensive behaviors, also referred to as panic-like behaviors, in animals. Although the dlPAG is known to receive a specific innervation of dopaminergic fibers and abundantly...

This paper uses a methodology based in fuzzy sets theory in order to describe the interaction between the prey, Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae) the soybean aphid, and its predator, Orius insidiosus (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) and to propose a chemical control for soybean aphid. Economic thresholds were already developed for this pest. The model includes biotic (predator) and abiotic (temper...

In the north central United States, populations of the exotic soybean aphid, Aphis glycinesMatsumura (Hemiptera: Aphididae), are highly variable across space, complicating effective aphid management. In this study we examined relationships of plant nutrients, landscape structure, andnatural enemieswith soybeanaphid abundance across Iowa,Michigan,Minnesota, andWisconsin, representing the range o...

Rats emit an alarm pheromone in threatening situations. Exposure of rats to this alarm pheromone induces defensive behaviors, such as head out behavior, and increases c-Fos expression in brain areas involved in the mediation of defensive behaviors. One of these brain areas is the anterior bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (aBNST). The goal of the present study was to investigate if pharmacolo...

Little is known about how water stress including drought and flooding modifies the ability of plants to resist simultaneous attack by insect feeding and transmission of insect-vectored pathogen. We analyzed insect population growth, feeding behaviors, virus transmission, and plant amino acid profiles and defense gene expression to characterize mechanisms underlying the interaction between water...