The putative brain photoperiodic photoreceptors in the vetch aphid, Megoura viciae

Nong Gao, Malcolm von Schantz, Russell G. Foster, Jim Hardie*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

48 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

In an attempt to identify the brain photoreceptors that mediate the photoperiodic response of the vetch aphid, Megoura viciae, we utilised immunocytochemical techniques and employed 20 antibodies directed against invertebrate and vertebrate opsins and phototransduction proteins. A sub-set of these antibodies (to Drosophila rhodopsin 1: RH1-1; vertebrate cone opsins: COS-1; CERN-874; CERN-933; vertebrate rod opsin: CERN-901; vertebrate arrestin: AB-Arr; vertebrate transducin+arrestin+rhodopsin kinase+cGMP phosphodiesterase: CERN-911; and vertebrate cellular retinoid binding protein: CRALBP) consistently labelled an anterior ventral neuropile region of the protocerebrum. These anatomical findings, coupled with previous localised illumination and micro-lesion studies, provide strong evidence that this region of the aphid brain houses the photoperiodic photoreceptors. The present study also confirms that the medial (Group I) neurosecretory cells are not the photoperiodic photoreceptors.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1011-1019
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Insect Physiology
Volume45
Issue number11
Early online date10 Aug 1999
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Nov 1999
Externally publishedYes

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