Freezing And Survival Of Insects At Low Temperature

The study of insects at low temperature is a comparatively new field. Only recently has insect cryobiology begun to mature, as research moves from a descriptive approach to a search for underlying mechanisms at diverse levels of organization ranging from the gene and cell to ecological and evolutionary relationships. Knowledge of insect responses to low temperature is crucial for understanding the biology of insects living in seasonally varying habitats as well as in polar regions. It is not possible to precisely define low temperature. In the tropics exposure to 10-15°C may induce chill coma or death, whereas some insects in temperate and polar regions remain active and indeed even able to fly at O°C or below. In contrast, for persons interested in cryopreservation, low temperature may mean storage in liquid nitrogen at - 196°C. In the last decade, interest in adaptations of invertebrates to low temperature has risen steadily. In part, this book had its origins in a symposium on this subject that was held at the annual meeting of the Entomological Society of America in Louisville, Kentucky, USA in December, 1988. However, the emergence and growth of this area has also been strongly influenced by an informal group of investigators who met in a series of symposia held in Oslo, Norway in 1982, in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada in 1985 and in Cambridge, England in 1988. Another is scheduled for Binghamton, New York, USA (1990).

Low temperature is a major environmental constraint impacting the geographic distribution and seasonal activity patterns of insects. Written for academic researchers in environmental physiology and entomology, this book explores the physiological and molecular mechanisms that enable insects to cope with a cold environment and places these findings into an evolutionary and ecological context. An introductory chapter provides a primer on insect cold tolerance and subsequent chapters in the first section discuss the organismal, cellular and molecular responses that allow insects to survive in the cold despite their, at best, limited ability to regulate their own body temperature. The second section, highlighting the evolutionary and macrophysiological responses to low temperature, is especially relevant for understanding the impact of global climate change on insect systems. A final section translates the knowledge gained from the rest of the book into practical applications including cryopreservation and the augmentation of pest management strategies.

A metabolomic analysis of the freeze tolerant midge, Belgica antarctica, revealed that freezing increased a number of different polyols in whole-body extracts, incuding glycerol, mannitol, and erythritol. Freezing also increased alanine, asparagine, and glycine. In addition, the frozen midge larvae accumulated Krebs cycle intermediates, indicating that aerobic respiration is considerably slowed. Membrane involvement in freezing was not conclusively supported, although there was a reduction in oleic acid levels. A comparison of the metabolic responses of this midge to heat, freezing and desiccation revealed that freezing and desiccation produced similar results, supporting the hypothesis that the cellular response to these two stressors is related.

Representing the latest knowledge of the ecology and the physiology of cold-adapted microorganisms, plants and animals, this book explains the mechanisms of cold-adaptation on the enzymatic and molecular level, including results from the first crystal structures of enzymes of cold-adapted organisms.

Comprehensive account of the various forms of insect overwintering, highlighting areas of economic interest.

During the past 20 years there have been amazing developments in low temperature physics, engineering, and biology. They form part of the very rapid post-war growth in pure and applied sciences of every kind. During this period several branches of biology including immunology, molecular biology and, of course, cryobiology, have split off from their parent disciplines. One result of this splintering has been the development of separate jargons used by the specialists and sometimes incomprehensible to those working in closely allied fields. The pure physicists, chemists, and the applied scientists, including physicians, surgeons, and pathologists, find the new jargons particularly baffling. We have attempted in this monograph to present to cryogenic engineers a picture of cryobiologists and their problems using as few strange technical words as possible. We hope that this book will help to bridge the gap which has already formed between them in spite of the opportunities for collaboration in many projects. We hope that it may also be useful to scientific research workers and postgraduate students of many kinds united only by curiosity about cryobiology. We are very much indebted to Dr. K. Mendelssohn, who insti gated us to produce a monograph and who reassured us that cryogenic engineers are as keen to understand the current trends in biology, and particularly in cryobiology, as we are to enlist their help. We have had much help in preparing this book.

This book focuses on an array of integrated pest management tools (IPM) that exploit extreme temperatures, examining the biological basis for using temperature extremes in controlling insects and presenting practical IPM techniques that rely on temperature.