Eur. J. Entomol. 97 (2): 141-148, 2000 | DOI: 10.14411/eje.2000.026

Correlation between metabolic depression and ecdysteroid peak during embryogenesis of the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Orthoptera: Acrididae)

Karel SLÁMA
Institute of Entomology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Drnovská 507, 161 00 Praha 6, Czech Republic; e-mail: slama@entu.cas.cz

Respiratory metabolism of developing eggs of Schistocerca gregaria has been individually monitored by means of scanning microrespirography. The freshly oviposited eggs consumed 7 nl of O2 /min./egg (50 µl O2/g/h) while the pharate 1st instar larvae shortly before hatching consumed 141 nl of O2/min./egg (550 µl O2/g/h), which shows 20-fold metabolic increase during the egg stage. The output of CO2 was also regular, without discontinuous bursts throughout the whole embryonic development. The amounts of CO2 produced were constantly close to R.Q. ratio of 0.7, suggesting that lipid was the main energetic source. The vermiform, pharate 1st instar larvae emerging from the eggs exhibited very high respiratory rates (up to 3,000 µl O2/g/h). During initial phases of the egg stage, O2 consumption steadily increased until day 6, which was associated with katatrepsis or blastokinesis stage of the embryo (61 nl of O2/egg/min. = 240 µl O2/g/h). Since blastokinesis, respiratory metabolism of the egg remained constant or decreased steadily until day 10, when it rose sharply again towards hatching. The temporary metabolic depression was closely correlated with endogenous peak in ecdysteroid concentration within the embryo. These results corroborate validity of the reciprocal, high ecdysteroid - low metabolism rule previously known from insect metamorphosis. They extend its application into the period of embryogenesis. Practical implications of certain physiological, morphological and evolutionary consequences of these findings are discussed with special emphasis on the connecting links between embryogenesis and metamorphosis.

Keywords: Acrididae, Schistocerca gregaria, ecdysteroids, oxygen consumption, morphogenesis, metamorphosis, embryogenesis, respiratory metabolism, pharate stages

Received: February 1, 2000; Accepted: March 14, 2000; Published: October 7, 2000  Show citation

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SLÁMA, K. (2000). Correlation between metabolic depression and ecdysteroid peak during embryogenesis of the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Orthoptera: Acrididae). EJE, 97(2), 141-148. doi: 10.14411/eje.2000.026
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