Dose- and time-dependent effects of oral octopamine treatments on the sucrose responsiveness in stingless bees (Melipona scutellaris)

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• 作者：Sofía I. Mc Cabe ; Marco W. Benetoli Ferro ; Walter M. Farina ; Michael Hrncir
• 关键词：Meliponini ; biogenic amines ; sucrose response threshold ; neuropharmacology
• 刊名：Apidologie
• 出版年：2017
• 出版时间：February 2017
• 年：2017
• 卷：48
• 期：1
• 页码：1-7
• 全文大小：
• 刊物主题：Entomology; Life Sciences, general;
• 出版者：Springer Paris
• ISSN：1297-9678
• 卷排序：48

文摘

Biogenic amines modulate physiological responses and, consequently, the behaviour of animals. Here, we present the first pharmacological approach to evaluate the influence of octopamine (OA) in stingless bees (Apidae, Meliponini), a group of highly eusocial bees distributed in the tropical and southern subtropical areas of the globe. In sucrose response threshold assays, foragers of Melipona scutellaris showed an increased responsiveness to sucrose after oral OA treatments. The effect of OA on the bees’ responsiveness to sucrose was OA dose-dependent and lasted for up to 1 h. Our results indicate that experimental approaches similar to the ones used for honey bees, Apis mellifera, are feasible for stingless bees. This opens opportunities to study the variability of aminergic regulation of collective behaviour in social bees.