Environmental odors can affect individuals’ physiology and ethology (a study on ants as models)

Aiming to check if environmental artificially added odors can positively or negatively affect the individuals’ health, we examined, using ants as model organisms, the effects of onion and of lavender odors on eleven ant’s physiological and ethological traits. Onion odor increased the ants’ linear and angular speed, as well as their aggressiveness against nestmates impacting thus their social relationship. It decreased their orientation ability, audacity, tactile perception, brood caring behavior, escaping ability, cognition as well as slightly their short term memory. On the contrary, lavender odor slightly increased the ants’ linear speed, orientation ability, audacity, escaping ability, cognition and short-term memory. It did not affect their tactile perception, brood caring behavior and aggressiveness against nestmates (so, their social relationship). It slightly decreased their aggressiveness against aliens. Odors seem to have some effects on the ants individuals’ physiological and behavior. Using ants as model organisms, and under the hypothesis that numerous physiological traits likely to be affected by aromatic molecules are similar in insect and humans, we can therefore emit the hypothesis that odors could be used to some extend to influence human physiology and behavior. This field of investigation, and the use of ants as model organisms, could be a way to investigate potential effects of active substances in aromatherapy, in which people are exposed to aromatic compounds through aerial diffusion or direct inhalation of these compounds.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Is Metal Leakage from Aluminum Foil without Adverse Effects? A Study on Ants as Models

Aluminum is a metal largely present in many products used by humans (in vaccines, cosmetics, baby milk and packages for food among others). Such a presence is nowadays debated. Using ants as models, we showed that the presence of aluminum foil in their sugar water has effectively several adverse effects. It increased the ants’ general activity, sugar water consumption, sinuosity of locomotion, and decreased their meat consumption, audacity, tactile perception, cognition, ability in escaping from an enclosure, and their ability in acquiring conditioning, affecting thus their short and middle term memory. It did not impact the individuals’ social relationship. No habituation to these adverse effects occurred; no addiction developed. After consumption was stopped, the effects decreased slowly, linearly over time and vanished in 15 to 16 hours. Most of these effects discovered on ants agree with information on the effects of aluminum in mammals; a few ones have never been examined in mammals but might exist. However, people use aluminum foil without reserve. Since it effectively adversely impacts among others, the activity, locomotion and functioning of the nervous system, alternatives to the use of aluminum foil in food trade should be searched.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Effect of monosodium glutamate on behavior and cognition: a study using ants as biological models

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Light thresholds for colour vision in workers of the ant Myrmica sabuleti (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

Previous studies suggested that workers of the ant species Myrmica sabuleti have different light thresholds for distinguishing different colours. Here we assess these thresholds and find that the light thresholds required to distinguish colours from grey are lower than those necessary to discriminate between two colours. The two thresholds are somewhat lower for ants trained under low versus high light intensity. In every case, the ants' threshold decreases from red to violet. All these thresholds are lower than those required for perceiving shapes. The visual system of workers of M. sabuleti under very low light intensity may thus consist of discriminating only coloured spots from grey and under slightly higher light intensity, differently coloured elements where the eyes are used in superposition mode. Under high light intensity, these ants see (although not sharply) shapes and lines, using their eyes in apposition mode. Moreover, workers of this species demonstrated their best colour discrimination in seeing the colours yellow and blue under high light intensity, and green and violet under low light intensity. Therefore, these ants' visual system may be adapted to the quantitative and qualitative variations in natural light during the day.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Visual discrimination of cues differing as for their number of elements, their shape or their orientation, by the ant Myrmica sabuleti

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Invertebrates should be given ethical consideration

Invertebrates are far more numerous than vertebrates. Most of them are essential to the survival of humanity. Their physiology, behavior, know-how, and cognitive abilities are often as complex as those of vertebrates. Invertebrates should be considered and studied as are vertebrates, i.e. ethically, and cautiously.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Physiological Impact of Statins Experimentally Revealed on Ants

Statins are nowadays largely used for caring of persons suffering from hypercholesterolemia. Their use was recently debated. We studied the effects of simvastatin on ants as models. We observed that this product enlarged the insects’ sugar food consumption, reduced their general activity, linear speed, orientation ability, trail following, audacity, tactile and pain perception, cognition, ability in escaping from an enclosure, visual and olfactory conditioning ability (thus their shortterm memory), and their middle term visual and olfactory memory. Simvastatin did not affect the ants’ relationship with their nestmates. The ants developed adaptation to some adverse effects of simvastatine, and presented no habituation to beneficial effects. Also, simvastatine did not lead to dependence. Consequently, even if simvastatin is efficient in reducing the amount of cholesterol, and leads to some adaptation, no habituation and no addiction, it has several harmful effects. This drug should thus be used only in case of high necessity, never for children, and natural alternative with very few adverse effects should be advantageously researched.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Nest topology, nestmate recognition, territorial marking and homing in the ant Manica rubida (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Are ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) capable of self recognition ?

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Adoption ou élimination de reines étrangères par les ouvrières de Myrmica rubra (Formicidae): Devenir de sociétés orphelines

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe