Deora Tanvi, Gundiah Namrata, Sane Sanjay P
National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, GKVK campus, Bellary Road, Bangalore, Karnataka 560065, India.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka 560012, India.
J Exp Biol. 2017 Apr 15;220(Pt 8):1382-1395. doi: 10.1242/jeb.128363.
Insects represent more than 60% of all multicellular life forms, and are easily among the most diverse and abundant organisms on earth. They evolved functional wings and the ability to fly, which enabled them to occupy diverse niches. Insects of the hyper-diverse orders show extreme miniaturization of their body size. The reduced body size, however, imposes steep constraints on flight ability, as their wings must flap faster to generate sufficient forces to stay aloft. Here, we discuss the various physiological and biomechanical adaptations of the thorax in flies which enabled them to overcome the myriad constraints of small body size, while ensuring very precise control of their wing motion. One such adaptation is the evolution of specialized myogenic or asynchronous muscles that power the high-frequency wing motion, in combination with neurogenic or synchronous steering muscles that control higher-order wing kinematic patterns. Additionally, passive cuticular linkages within the thorax coordinate fast and yet precise bilateral wing movement, in combination with an actively controlled clutch and gear system that enables flexible flight patterns. Thus, the study of thoracic biomechanics, along with the underlying sensory-motor processing, is central in understanding how the insect body form is adapted for flight.
昆虫占所有多细胞生命形式的60%以上，无疑是地球上最多样化且数量最为丰富的生物之一。它们进化出了功能性翅膀和飞行能力，从而能够占据各种生态位。超多样化目昆虫的体型极度微小化。然而，体型的减小对飞行能力施加了严峻的限制，因为它们的翅膀必须更快地扇动才能产生足够的力量保持在空中。在此，我们讨论苍蝇胸部的各种生理和生物力学适应性，这些适应性使它们能够克服小体型带来的众多限制，同时确保对翅膀运动的非常精确的控制。一种这样的适应性是进化出专门的肌源性或异步肌肉来驱动高频翅膀运动，同时还有神经源性或同步控制肌肉来控制更高阶的翅膀运动模式。此外，胸部内的被动表皮连接协调快速且精确的双侧翅膀运动，再加上一个主动控制的离合器和齿轮系统，实现灵活的飞行模式。因此，对胸部生物力学以及潜在的感觉运动处理的研究，对于理解昆虫身体形态如何适应飞行至关重要。
