Dissertation Research: Mechanisms and Significance of Ontogenetic Changes in Respiratory Function During Insect Locomotion

论文研究：昆虫运动过程中呼吸功能个体发生变化的机制和意义本研究的目的是研究体型如何影响活动昆虫的呼吸生理。 初步结果表明，较大/较老的蚱蜢在重复跳跃过程中疲劳更快，这表明氧气输送到肌肉可能存在问题。 本研究利用美洲蝗虫（Schistocerca americana）来研究其呼吸气管系统和跳跃肌的结构变化在发育过程中是如何随体型的变化而变化的。 将使用光学和电子显微镜测量气管结构，而腿部肌肉代谢生物化学将使用酶测定法测量。 将使用流通式呼吸测定法测量整个动物在跳跃过程中消耗的氧气量，并使用电子顺磁共振测量腿部肌肉氧气水平。 该项目的结果将有助于了解身体大小和气管功能之间的一般关系，并提供了一个假设的测试，即古生代的巨型昆虫是由于大气中氧气水平的增加而成为可能的。

Dissertation Research: Mechanisms and Significance of Ontogenetic Changes in Respiratory Function During Insect LocomotionJon Harrison and Scott Kirkton The goal of this research is to examine how body size affects the respiratory physiology of active insects. Initial results show that larger/older grasshoppers fatigue quicker during repeated jumping, which suggests possible problems with oxygen delivery to the muscle. This project utilizes American locusts (Schistocerca americana) to determine how structural changes in both the respiratory tracheal system and the jumping muscle vary with body size during development. The tracheal structure will be measured using light and electron microscopy, while the leg muscle metabolic biochemistry will be measured using enzymatic assays. The amount of oxygen consumed during jumping will be measured for the whole animal using flow-through respirometry and leg muscle oxygen levels will be measured with electron paramagnetic resonance. The results of this project will help understand the general relationship between body size and tracheal function and provide a test of the hypothesis that gigantic insects of the Paleozoic Era were made possible by increased atmospheric oxygen levels.