Insecticide-induced hormesis in insects

极低剂量的杀虫剂可对昆虫产生刺激作用。这种双相毒理学现象，即一种化学物质在高剂量下可能有毒，但在低剂量下可能具有刺激性，被称为“激素效应”。我们先前表明，昆虫暴露于温和剂量的杀虫剂可以极大地刺激种群增长，并改变参与应激反应和发育的基因表达。然而，我们仍然有一个相对贫穷的理解的生态和进化的意义，昆虫的杀虫剂诱导的毒物兴奋效应。该研究计划的长期目标是了解昆虫激素应激反应的适应意义和潜在的实际应用。这将作为以下短期目标/问题的核心：

Very low doses of insecticide can have stimulatory effects on insects. This biphasic toxicological phenomenon, whereby a chemical may be toxic at high doses but stimulatory at low doses is called ‘hormesis’. We previously showed that exposure of insects to mild doses of insecticide can greatly stimulate population growth and alter expression of genes involved in stress response and development. However, we still have a relatively poor understanding of the ecological and evolutionary significance of insecticide-induced hormesis for insects. The long-term goal of the research program is to understand the adaptive significance and potential practical applications of hormetic stress responses in insects. This will serve as a centerpiece for the following short-term objectives/questions: