1. Uptake studies using radioactive octopamine have revealed that the larval lantern of the Photuris firefly possesses a concentrative, high-affinity uptake system for octopamine. This compound has been shown previously to be the neurotransmitter of the photomotor neurones. 2. Imipramine is a potent inhibitor of the uptake of octopamine in the lantern. At 10~moll~', it reduces specific uptake o...

Honey bees are perhaps the most versatile models to study the cellular and pharmacological basis underlying behaviours ranging from learning and memory to sociobiology. For both aspects octopamine (OA) is known to play a vital role. The neuronal octopamine receptor of the honey bee shares pharmacological similarities with the neuronal octopamine receptor of the locust. Both, agonists and antago...

Octopamine release has been demonstrated from the dorsal unpaired median neurone to the locust extensor-tibiae muscle (DUMETi) in response to high-[K+] saline. Here, we provide evidence for the existence of presynaptic inhibitory autoreceptors for octopamine on the DUMETi terminals and report on their pharmacological profile. Octopamine release was initiated by exposure to high-[K+] saline (0. ...

Octopamine is a chemical relative of noradrenaline providing analogous neurohumoral control of diverse invertebrate physiological processes. There is also evidence for direct octopaminergic innervation of some insect peripheral tissues. Here, we show that spider peripheral mechanoreceptors are innervated by octopamine-containing efferents. The mechanosensory neurons have octopamine receptors co...

Caenorhabditis elegans feeds by rhythmically contracting its pharynx to ingest bacteria. The rate of pharyngeal contraction is increased by serotonin and suppressed by octopamine. Using an electrophysiological assay, we show that serotonin and octopamine regulate two additional aspects of pharyngeal behavior. Serotonin decreases the duration of the pharyngeal action potential and enhances activ...

Social deprivation is an unusual situation for ants that normally maintain continuous contact with their nestmates. When a worker was experimentally isolated for 5 days and then reunited with a nestmate, she engaged in prolonged trophallaxis. It is suggested that trophallaxis allows her to restore a social bond with her nestmates and to re-integrate into the colony, particularly via the exchang...

The biogenic amine octopamine is an important neuromodulator, neurohormone and neurotransmitter in insects. We here investigate the role of octopamine signaling in honey bee phototaxis. Our results show that groups of bees differ naturally in their phototaxis. Pollen forgers display a lower light responsiveness than nectar foragers. The lower phototaxis of pollen foragers coincides with higher ...

Our experiments show that octopamine receptors are present on the developing follicles of an insect, Rhodniusprolixus. Application of D,L-octopamine decreased the duration and overshoot of calcium-dependent action potentials (APs), and increased the intrafollicular concentration of cyclic AMP. The threshold concentration of D,L-octopamine for the reduction in electrical excitability was between...

The monoamine octopamine has been shown to be widely distributed in the nervous tissues of invertebrates (see Robertson & Juorio, 1976), and some of its effects resemble those of catecholamines in vertebrates. Previous experiments (Candy, 1978) have shown that the oxidation of substrates by perfused locust flight muscle is stimulated by DL-octopamine. However, it was not established whether the...