Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies
Summary: Heliconius butterflies exhibit expanded mushroom bodies, a key brain region for learning and memory in insects, and a novel foraging strategy unique among Lepidoptera – traplining for pollen. We tested visual long-term memory across six Heliconius and outgroup Heliconiini species. Heliconiu...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2024-02-01
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| Series: | iScience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224001706 |
| _version_ | 1797320993117569024 |
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| author | Fletcher J. Young Amaia Alcalde Anton Lina Melo-Flórez Antoine Couto Jessica Foley Monica Monllor W. Owen McMillan Stephen H. Montgomery |
| author_facet | Fletcher J. Young Amaia Alcalde Anton Lina Melo-Flórez Antoine Couto Jessica Foley Monica Monllor W. Owen McMillan Stephen H. Montgomery |
| author_sort | Fletcher J. Young |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Summary: Heliconius butterflies exhibit expanded mushroom bodies, a key brain region for learning and memory in insects, and a novel foraging strategy unique among Lepidoptera – traplining for pollen. We tested visual long-term memory across six Heliconius and outgroup Heliconiini species. Heliconius species exhibited greater fidelity to learned colors after eight days without reinforcement, with further evidence of recall at 13 days. We also measured the plastic response of the mushroom body calyces over this time period, finding substantial post-eclosion expansion and synaptic pruning in the calyx of Heliconius erato, but not in the outgroup Heliconiini Dryas iulia. In Heliconius erato, visual associative learning experience specifically was associated with a greater retention of synapses and recall accuracy was positively correlated with synapse number. These results suggest that increases in the size of specific brain regions and changes in their plastic response to experience may coevolve to support novel behaviors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T04:51:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e492c1bab00648ef883d3515875542fd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2589-0042 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T04:51:05Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | iScience |
| spelling | doaj.art-e492c1bab00648ef883d3515875542fd2024-02-08T05:12:48ZengElsevieriScience2589-00422024-02-01272108949Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterfliesFletcher J. Young0Amaia Alcalde Anton1Lina Melo-Flórez2Antoine Couto3Jessica Foley4Monica Monllor5W. Owen McMillan6Stephen H. Montgomery7Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama; School of Biological Science, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK; Corresponding authorSchool of Biological Science, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UKSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, PanamaSchool of Biological Science, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UKSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama; School of Biological Science, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UKSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, PanamaSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, PanamaSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama; School of Biological Science, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK; Corresponding authorSummary: Heliconius butterflies exhibit expanded mushroom bodies, a key brain region for learning and memory in insects, and a novel foraging strategy unique among Lepidoptera – traplining for pollen. We tested visual long-term memory across six Heliconius and outgroup Heliconiini species. Heliconius species exhibited greater fidelity to learned colors after eight days without reinforcement, with further evidence of recall at 13 days. We also measured the plastic response of the mushroom body calyces over this time period, finding substantial post-eclosion expansion and synaptic pruning in the calyx of Heliconius erato, but not in the outgroup Heliconiini Dryas iulia. In Heliconius erato, visual associative learning experience specifically was associated with a greater retention of synapses and recall accuracy was positively correlated with synapse number. These results suggest that increases in the size of specific brain regions and changes in their plastic response to experience may coevolve to support novel behaviors.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224001706EntomologyNeuroscienceEvolutionary biology |
| spellingShingle | Fletcher J. Young Amaia Alcalde Anton Lina Melo-Flórez Antoine Couto Jessica Foley Monica Monllor W. Owen McMillan Stephen H. Montgomery Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies iScience Entomology Neuroscience Evolutionary biology |
| title | Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies |
| title_full | Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies |
| title_fullStr | Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies |
| title_full_unstemmed | Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies |
| title_short | Enhanced long-term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in Heliconius butterflies |
| title_sort | enhanced long term memory and increased mushroom body plasticity in heliconius butterflies |
| topic | Entomology Neuroscience Evolutionary biology |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224001706 |
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