Gal Ram, Libersat Frederic
Department of Life Sciences; Ben-Gurion University of the Negev; Be'er-Sheva, Israel.
Commun Integr Biol. 2010 Sep;3(5):458-61. doi: 10.4161/cib.3.5.12472.
Accumulating evidence suggest that nonhuman organisms, including invertebrates, possess the ability to make non-random choices based purely on ongoing and endogenously-created neuronal processes. We study this precursor of spontaneity in cockroaches stung by A. compressa, a parasitoid wasp that employs cockroaches as a live food supply for its offspring. This wasp uses a neurotoxic venom cocktail to 'hijack' the nervous system of its cockroach prey and manipulate specific features of its decision making process, thereby turning the cockroach into a submissive 'zombie' unable to self-initiate locomotion. We discuss different behavioral and physiological aspects of this venom-induced 'zombified state' and highlight at least one neuronal substrate involved in the regulation of spontaneous behavior in insects.
越来越多的证据表明，包括无脊椎动物在内的非人类生物具有纯粹基于正在进行的和内源性产生的神经过程做出非随机选择的能力。我们研究了被压缩姬小蜂叮咬的蟑螂的这种自发性前兆，压缩姬小蜂是一种寄生蜂，将蟑螂作为其后代的活体食物来源。这种黄蜂使用一种神经毒性毒液混合物来“劫持”其蟑螂猎物的神经系统，并操纵其决策过程的特定特征，从而将蟑螂变成一个顺从的“僵尸”，无法自主发起运动。我们讨论了这种毒液诱导的“僵尸状态”的不同行为和生理方面，并强调了至少一种参与昆虫自发行为调节的神经基质。
