EAPSI:Investigating the Evolution of Color Vision in the Japanese Yellow Swallowtail Butterfly

大脑结构和连接的变化，无论是通过发展还是作为一个成年人，通常与负面影响有关，如疾病的发展。然而，行为和大脑解剖学因物种而异的事实清楚地表明，大脑的某些变化可能是适应性的。这个项目的目的是开始阐明大脑进化的基本原则，通过检查颜色视觉在日本黄燕尾蝶，凤蝶。与大多数昆虫不同，它们可以看到紫外线，蓝色和绿色光，P. xuthus也可以看到红光。来自大脑的记录和与其他昆虫的比较将被进行，以深入了解这种蝴蝶的视觉系统是如何进化到看到更大范围的颜色的。由于进化是一个塑造和限制动物多样性的基本过程，因此这项研究的结果有助于更好地了解基本的大脑功能。本研究将与日本创研大学院大学昆虫色觉神经科学领域的顶尖专家木下代博士合作进行。神经系统在产生昆虫遗传多样性行为方面发挥着不可或缺的作用。然而，人们对大脑的进化知之甚少，也不知道改变神经回路的复杂和错综复杂的组织是如何产生适应性行为而不是有害影响的。从一个三色的祖先在凤蝶xuthus四色视觉的演变提供了一个很好的机会，研究神经进化，因为利用光谱对手过程在昆虫和脊椎动物，使其成为一个易于处理的和相对简单的计算，以评估在一个比较的框架。将使用来自髓质的细胞内记录来研究P. xuthus中的颜色处理，并与蜜蜂和其他昆虫使用的已知对手过程进行比较。这些结果将有助于对大脑在系统发育约束下如何进化的基本原理的新见解。 这个NSF EAPSI奖是与日本科学促进协会合作资助的。

Changes in brain structure and connections, either through development or as an adult, are typically associated with negative effects, such as the development of disease. However, the fact that behavior and brain anatomy vary from species to species clearly indicates that some changes to the brain can be adaptive. This project aims to begin elucidating basic principles of brain evolution by examining color vision in the Japanese yellow swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus. Unlike most insects, which can see ultraviolet, blue, and green light, P. xuthus also sees red light. Recordings from the brain and comparisons with other insects will be conducted to provide insights into how the visual system of this butterfly evolved to see a larger array of colors. Because evolution is a fundamental process that shapes and constrains animal diversity, the results of this study could contribute to a better understanding of basic brain function. This research will be conducted in collaboration with Dr. Michiyo Kinoshita, a leading expert in the neuroscience of insect color vision, at The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (Sokendai) in Japan.Nervous systems play an integral role in producing phylogenetically diverse behaviors. However, little is known about brain evolution and how altering the complex and intricate organization of neural circuits can give rise to adaptive behavior rather than deleterious effects. The evolution of tetrachromatic vision from a trichromatic ancestor in Papilio xuthus presents an excellent opportunity to study neural evolution because the utilization of spectrally opponent processes across insects and vertebrates makes it a tractable and relatively simple computation to assess within a comparative framework. Color processing in P. xuthus will be investigated using intracellular recordings from the medulla and compared to the known opponent processes used by bees and other insects. These results will contribute new insights into basic principles underlying how the brain evolves within phylogenetic constraints. This NSF EAPSI award is funded in collaboration with the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.