Characterization of feeding-delaying factors from the silkworm Bombyx mori

Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2009 Apr;1163:481-3. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.04454.x.

Abstract

In several phytophagous insects, feeding behavior occurs regularly. Recently, we demonstrated that feeding behavior in larvae of the silkworm Bombyx mori had a regular frequency. To address the control of the feeding cycle in B. mori, we aimed to characterize factors influencing feeding initiation and termination. Injection of extracts of the midgut, foregut, and fat body into starved Bombyx larvae delayed the initiation of feeding. This result indicates the presence in these tissues of factors capable of decreasing the likelihood of feeding initiation.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Biological Factors / pharmacology*
  • Bombyx / anatomy & histology
  • Bombyx / chemistry*
  • Bombyx / physiology*
  • Feeding Behavior / drug effects*
  • Feeding Behavior / physiology
  • Larva / drug effects
  • Larva / physiology
  • Organ Specificity

Substances

  • Biological Factors