I trust (hope) that your paper on insects will not result in the vicious attacks that Tyrone Hayes of Berkeley has been subjected to by the manufacturers of atrazine because of his findings on amphibians.
> If any of you are interested in sexual selection, endocrinally active > chemicals, or insect physiology, you may be interested in this > publication that will be available tomorrow via Online First with the > journal Ecotoxicology. This was a cool project that involved a pile > of undergrads + my spouse and I. > > Endocrine disruption of sexual selection by an estrogenic herbicide in > the mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) > > Malcolm L. McCallum, Makensey Matlock, Justin Treas, Barroq Safi, > Wendy Sanson, Jamie L. McCallum > > Abstract: The role that endocrine disruption could play in sexual > selection remains relatively untested, and although estrogens occur in > insects, little information exists about their biological role in > insect reproduction. Atrazine is a commonly applied herbicide that > mimics estrogen in vertebrates. Tenebrio molitor were raised from egg > to adult under a gradation of environmentally relevant atrazine > exposures and a non-treated control. Atrazine was delivered in the > drinking water ad libitum. FemaleT. molitor were provided with a > choice between unrelated males raised under three levels of atrazine > exposures. Female preference for males demonstrated a non-monotonic > inverted U-shaped response to atrazine exposure. There was no > significant difference between the control and the high exposure to > atrazine. Excluding the control, female preference increased as > exposure concentration increased. These results have important > repercussions for nonlethal effects of endocrine disruption on > populations, their capacity to interfere with sexual selection, and > the role of estrogen in pheromone communication among insects. > > http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10646-013-1132-3 > > -- > Malcolm L. McCallum > Department of Environmental Studies > University of Illinois at Springfield > > Managing Editor, > Herpetological Conservation and Biology > > > > "Peer pressure is designed to contain anyone with a sense of drive" - > Allan Nation > > 1880's: "There's lots of good fish in the sea" W.S. Gilbert > 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, > and pollution. > 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction > MAY help restore populations. > 2022: Soylent Green is People! > > The Seven Blunders of the World (Mohandas Gandhi) > Wealth w/o work > Pleasure w/o conscience > Knowledge w/o character > Commerce w/o morality > Science w/o humanity > Worship w/o sacrifice > Politics w/o principle > > Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any > attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may > contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized > review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not > the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and > destroy all copies of the original message. >
