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Abdominal stretch in the regulation of protein ingestion by the black blowfly, Phormia regina
Author(s) -
BELZER W. R.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
physiological entomology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1365-3032
pISSN - 0307-6962
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3032.1979.tb00172.x
Subject(s) - phormia regina , biology , anatomy , limiting , meal , abdomen , ingestion , medicine , zoology , endocrinology , calliphoridae , food science , larva , ecology , mechanical engineering , engineering
. Negative feedback to protein feeding by Phormia is transmitted to the brain via the abdominal nerve. The inhibition is apparently generated by stretch receptors in the abdominal wall. This feedback makes a protein meal self‐limiting, supplying progressively more inhibition as the fly's swelling crop enlarges the abdomen during a meal. Abdominal stretch resulting from a mature egg mass also inhibits protein feeding by gravid females. This stretch seems to terminate protein feeding ‘prematurely’, leaving the female ‘primed’ to consume protein as soon as abdominal stretch is relaxed. The adaptive value of such a mechanism can be envisioned when one notes that the abdominal stretch normally will be relaxed only at a source of proteinaceous material, where the female lays her eggs. This would permit the fly to take advantage of the protein source before she flies away. The amount of protein consumed at such a time would normally be greater than the total amount stored in the fat body, thereby providing an important contribution toward the development of the next batch of eggs.