神经元激发昆虫的导航系统

一项研究发现,大脑中神经元的地形阵列给蝗虫方向感。许多昆虫把蓝天中的偏振光当作导航的指南信号。Stanley Heinze和UweHomberg发现,当蝗虫通过它们眼中的光受体接受到偏振光后,线性偏振光的电场矢量(E-矢量)的方向在蝗虫大脑中心复合体的柱体中是以一个地形图来代表的。中心     

铜绿丽金龟对圆偏振光的行为和视网膜电位反应

圆偏振光在地球环境中是很少见的, 来自珠宝金龟甲体壁反射圆偏振光是稀有的自然资源之一。铜绿丽金龟Anomala corpulenta Motschulsky与其他珠宝金龟甲一样其体壁能够反射左旋圆偏振光。为了解铜绿丽金龟对圆偏振光的感知能力, 本研究利用室内行为、 田间诱集与视网膜电位(electroretinogram, ERG)等方法研究了铜绿丽金龟对圆偏振光的响应。室内行为研究结果表明, 铜绿丽金龟对左旋圆偏振光与右旋圆偏振光的趋光反应明显低于非偏振光, 避光反应明显大于非偏振光, 且对左旋圆偏振光的趋、 避光反应均大于右旋圆偏振光。田间选择试验结果显示, 铜绿丽金龟对左旋和右旋圆偏振光的选择明显低于非偏振光, 且右旋大于左旋圆偏振光。电生理学研究结果表明, 左旋和右旋圆偏振光与非偏振光一样, 均能引发铜绿丽金龟的ERG反应, 且无明显差异。这些研究结果表明铜绿丽金龟体壁能够反射产生左旋圆偏振光, 且能够感知和区分左旋和右旋圆偏振光, 说明铜绿丽金龟存在偏振视觉, 具有圆偏振光敏感性。     

昆虫与偏振光

十五年前,一位德国的昆虫学家K.v.Frisch在研究蜂群消息传递的问题时,发现蜜蜂的某些活动是受着来自天空的偏振光所支配的。这项重要的发现,不只揭露了蜜蜂活动的内幕,同时也开辟了一个新的研究阵地,引出了许多新的问题。接着,别人又陆续看到其他昆虫也有类似的现象。自此以后,人们对于光线与昆虫的关系就比以前更多了一层认识。昆虫的活动,除去常受光照的时间、光度的强弱、光波的长短和光源的位置等因素的影响外,原来也常常受到光波振动方向的影响。 这是一类比较新的问题。在这方面的工作现在似乎还处于起始的阶段。因此,这里只能简单地介绍一下昆虫对于偏振光的辨识能力和反应状况,以及有关这种特殊能力的一些视觉生理上的问题。 一、看不见的图景 根据光的电磁理论,光是一种波长很短的电磁波。光波的振动方向垂直于光的前进方向。在由光源发出的自然光中,光波的振动发生在垂直于光的前进路线的各个方向内,而且,在各方向内的振动强度是相等的。如果在上述各个方向内,光波的振动强度不相等,这种光就称为部分偏振光。如果使光波只在一个方向     

偏振光成像技术用于肿瘤病变检测的研究进展

偏振光成像是一种非标记、无损伤检测技术,它与现有非偏振光学方法硬件兼容,但能提供更丰富的样品结构和光学信息,并且对亚波长微观结构变化十分敏感.最近,偏振光成像方法在生物医学,特别是肿瘤癌症检测领域显示出很好的应用前景.本文介绍了常用的偏振光散射成像方法,包括偏振差、偏振度、旋转线偏振成像、偏振显微、穆勒矩阵成像等,并展示这些偏振方法在生物医学领域,特别是癌症检测方面的最新研究进展.目前偏振差、偏振度等成像方法已被初步用于皮肤癌的诊断,而穆勒矩阵包含更为丰富的组织微观结构信息,因而具有更好的诊断应用前景.通过对穆勒矩阵进行分解、变换等处理,可获得具有明确物理意义的成像参数,并发展为针对不同应用的特异性方法.目前,随着新型光源、偏振器件和探测器的出现,特别是数据计算处理能力的急剧提升,偏振成像在数据解释和测量方法方面的研究快速发展,已经在生物医学领域显示出很好的应用前景.     

麦红吸浆虫成虫对线偏振光的趋性

【目的】本研究旨在探索麦红吸浆虫Sitodiplosis mosellana对线偏振光的趋光效果。【方法】在室内采用自行设计的Y-型管装置,测试了麦红吸浆虫成虫对线偏振光与非偏振光的选择差异,并利用线偏振光诱捕装置进行了田间对比试验。【结果】结果显示,麦红吸浆虫成虫对线偏振光与非偏振光的趋光选择率分别为47.23%和20.31%,且二者之间差异显著;田间设置线偏振光与非偏振光紫外灯对麦红吸浆虫成虫的诱集量分别为:水平线偏振光(60.20)垂直线偏振光(37.60)非偏振光(25.60),且水平线偏振光与非偏振光源对麦红吸浆虫的诱集量具有显著差异。【结论】麦红吸浆虫对线偏振光具有较强的偏好性;水平线偏振紫外光诱捕装置与非偏振相比,对麦红吸浆虫有较强的诱集效果。     

昆虫复眼结构及视觉导航研究进展

复眼是昆虫主要的视觉器官,具有感受物体的大小、形状和颜色等功能。研究复眼结构是了解昆虫感光机制的基础,进而明确视觉信号在昆虫行为中的作用。昆虫的复眼包括了重叠像眼和并列像眼两种类型,重叠像眼具有聚光作用,可以感受到低强度的光,但是分辨率较低;并列像眼没有聚光作用,分辨率较高。大多数白天活动的昆虫具有并列像眼,夜晚活动的昆虫具有重叠像眼。分子生物学、视网膜电位和行为学研究结果均表明昆虫对紫外、蓝和绿光最敏感。昆虫利用天体和地面目标物信号定向和导航,依靠天体发出的偏振光和地面目标物与背景颜色的对比度进行视觉判断,对于任何一种昆虫,这两种信号都可能同时应用。视觉信号在昆虫定位植物寄主、寻找配偶和产卵过程中起着至关重要的作用,不能低估昆虫视觉能力的作用。利用昆虫对不同波长光波的趋性,研制专一性强的诱捕装置,可为害虫的无公害防治提供理论基础。     

昆虫足的附着机制

昆虫卓越的爬行和附着能力来源于其精细的功能性黏附系统。根据形态结构的不同,昆虫的黏附系统可分为光滑型黏附垫和刚毛型黏附垫两种类型,二者在分泌液的支持下均能附着于几乎所有的光滑或粗糙的物体表面,而且这两种类型的黏附垫与界面的附着的形成均主要依赖于范德华力。本文综述了昆虫足的附着机制,包括光滑型和刚毛型两种黏附垫的结构和其形成附着的机理,以及黏附垫分泌液的功能、组成成分和释放机制,阐明了昆虫如何巧妙地解决稳定附着和快速脱附这一矛盾的问题,讨论了诸如界面的理化性质和环境湿度等环境因素对昆虫附着的影响,以期帮助人们深入地理解昆虫足的附着机制,并为其在仿生学等方面的应用提供理论依据。     

长白山苔原带昆虫群落组成与时间动态

【目的】苔原是一种极地景观类型,本研究调查了长白山苔原带昆虫的物种组成与时间动态,以期为苔原带昆虫保护以及昆虫与苔原植物协同进化研究提供基础依据。【方法】2005-2007年每年6-9月,在长白山北坡、西坡苔原带利用网捕、灯诱、巴氏罐法采集昆虫标本。【结果】2005-2007年从长白山苔原带共获得昆虫标本4 634头,隶属于11目105科550种,其中鳞翅目、鞘翅目、膜翅目、双翅目的种类和个体数量较为丰富,这4个类群的物种数与个体数的最高峰都出现在7月份。对应分析显示,鳞翅目昆虫对7月份,鞘翅目昆虫对8和9月,膜翅目和双翅目昆虫对6月的适应性较强。苔原带7月份昆虫的物种数(382种)、个体数(2 571个个体)和多样性指数(4.673)都最高,物种数和个体数在9月份最低,仅22种265个个体。不同月份昆虫的物种数与个体数之间呈显著正相关(R=0.992)。不同月份间昆虫的相似性低(相似性系数＜0.20)。【结论】长白山苔原带昆虫多样性较低,7月为昆虫的活跃高峰期,9月昆虫的个体数和物种数均较少。鳞翅目昆虫的物种最丰富,对7月份气侯的适应性相对较强,鞘翅目对季节变化的适应能力强于其他类群,在维持苔原带生态平衡中起着重要作用。     

环形光瞳滤波径向偏振光紧聚焦特性研究

环形光瞳滤波常被用于径向偏振光聚焦系统,以实现焦斑压缩,进而提高共焦显微的横向分辨率。但是在对不同孔径的光瞳进行分析时缺乏比较的标准,无法进行定量的对比。本文对三种不同的光瞳孔径变化方式进行了定量对比研究,它们分别是:固定环角宽度,增大环孔径;固定环有效入射面积,增大环孔径;固定环形瞳外半径,改变遮光比。结果表明,不同模式下,焦平面处纵、横向场分布变化方式明显不同,只有当三者均为大孔径(大于1.1 rad)的窄光环时才基本等同。另外随着孔径的增大,纵、横向场之比也随之增大,说明孔径的增大可以抑制旁瓣光场。三种孔径增大方式均表明当窄环孔径角增大到1.26 rad时焦斑压缩将到达极限值0.4λ,与同数值孔径标量实心光束相比,窄环对焦斑压缩了1.6倍。     

昆虫化学感受蛋白研究进展

昆虫化学感受蛋白(chemosensory proteins)是在长期进化过程中形成的一类低分子量酸性可溶性蛋白,广泛分布于昆虫触角、跗节等各种化学感受器中,蛋白质序列具有较高的保守性,种内种间同源性一般为30%～90％。其主要功能是感受、识别、转运、传导环境化学因子刺激信息,参与调节生理节律和生长发育。该文从昆虫化学感受蛋白的生态进化意义、分布表达部位、生化特性、分子结构、生理功能和研究方法等角度,较详细地综述了近年来国内外昆虫化学感受蛋白的研究进展,指出昆虫化学感受蛋白的深入研究,对于阐明昆虫与环境化学信息联系规律、昆虫行为反应本质原因,探索害虫综合治理和益虫利用效率新途径,开辟创制昆虫行为控制剂新领域等具有重要的理论和实践意义。     

Asymmetric Photolysis with Elliptically Polarized Light

Previous investigations have shown the efficacyof right-(RCPL) and left-(LCPL) circularly polarized light inpromoting the asymmetric photolysis of racemic organic substratesand producing measurable enantiomeric excesses (e.e.s) whenphotolysis is incomplete. Synchrotron radiation, polychromaticand having out-of-plane components which are elliptically andultimately circularly polarized, has been suggested as auniversal source of RCPL and LCPL on a cosmic scale. The moreprevalent right-(REPL) and left-(LEPL) elliptically polarizedcomponents have never been investigated for similar capabilities.The present study, using a 212.8 nm laser beam to mimic thesynchtrotron radiation, explores the potential of REPL and LEPLin this context and finds a qualitative trend indicating thateach induces asymmetric photolysis in the same sense as RCPL andLCPL, but to a lesser degree.     

The physical mechanism of cuticular color in Phelotrupes auratus (Coleoptera,Geotrupidae)

The physical mechanism of cuticular color in Phelotrupes auratus was investigated by polarized inspection, spectrophotometry and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). No color change was observed when viewed through either a right‐ or left‐handed circular polarizer. Further, under the incidence of linearly polarized light, the reflected intensity was markedly reduced when observed through a linear polarizer set with its optical axis perpendicular to that of the incident light. These results indicate that P. auratus does not possess any circularly polarizing reflectors. TEM observations revealed a total of ten or twelve thin layers (about 60–120 nm in thickness) of two types of material (electron‐dense and electron‐lucent) alternately stacked in the epicuticle. The thickness of the layers in the different color forms of the beetle corresponded to the peak wavelengths in the reflectance spectra, λmax(α), with thicker layers found in beetles exhibiting reflectance peaks at longer wavelengths and vice versa. Based on these findings, we concluded that all the cuticular color forms of P. auratus were not produced by a circularly polarizing reflector but by a simple multilayer reflector.     

Astronomical Sources of Circularly Polarized Light and the Origin of Homochirality

Possible astronomical sources of ultraviolet circularly polarized light(UVCPL) which might be responsible for enantiomeric selection in interstellarorganic molecules are considered, Synchrotron radiation from magnetic neutronstars has been suggested as a possible source of UVCPL. However, synchrotronradiation in these situations is not predicted to be strongly circularlypolarized. Very few such sources show optical synchrotron radiation and in thefew that do circular polarization has not been observed. Magnetic white dwarfsand white dwarf binaries (Polars) can be highly circularly polarized but anyeffect on molecular clouds and star formation regions must rely on rare chance encounters. Recent observations show that substantial levels of circularpolarization are present in reflection nebulae in star formation regions. Thismechanism produces polarized light exactly when and where it is needed inregions where star formation is occurring and organic molecules are known to be present.     

Homochirality of Biomolecules: Counter-Arguments Against Critical Notes

Three recently published critical papersby Bonner and coworkers on the extraterrestrial origin of thehomochirality of biomolecules and the amplification of tinyenantiomeric excess are discussed. The presented arguments showthe difficulties involved in circularly polarized u.v. andvisible synchrotron radiation from neutron stars, in their ratioto non circularly polarized light and in racemization of theproducts. Attention is called upon another mechanism forproduction of extraterrestrial handedness based on Salam'scondensation theory and on the recent experimental demonstrationof the enantioselective magnetochiral photochemistry. Arguments,as well as experiments, point out that tiny enantiomeric excessesmight be amplified via the Yamagata accumulation principlequestioned by Bonner.     

Patterns and properties of polarized light in air and water

Natural sources of light are at best weakly polarized, but polarization of light is common in natural scenes in the atmosphere, on the surface of the Earth, and underwater. We review the current state of knowledge concerning how polarization and polarization patterns are formed in nature, emphasizing linearly polarized light. Scattering of sunlight or moonlight in the sky often forms a strongly polarized, stable and predictable pattern used by many animals for orientation and navigation throughout the day, at twilight, and on moonlit nights. By contrast, polarization of light in water, while visible in most directions of view, is generally much weaker. In air, the surfaces of natural objects often reflect partially polarized light, but such reflections are rarer underwater, and multiple-path scattering degrades such polarization within metres. Because polarization in both air and water is produced by scattering, visibility through such media can be enhanced using straightforward polarization-based methods of image recovery, and some living visual systems may use similar methods to improve vision in haze or underwater. Although circularly polarized light is rare in nature, it is produced by the surfaces of some animals, where it may be used in specialized systems of communication.     

Circularly polarized light at the mirror: Caveats and opportunities

Moving from the simple concept that reflection onto a mirror surface changes the handedness of circularly polarized light, we describe what happens to the emergent polarization in two different cases after reflection on a back mirror. In the first case, a regular emitter is taken into account, where reflection has the effect to destroy the emergent polarization. In the second case, we show what could happen when a hypothetical apparently non-reciprocal emitting material undergoes a similar experiment. These simple concepts have important implications in the design of efficient circularly polarized emitting devices.     

Angular optimization for cancer identification with circularly polarized light

Depolarization of circularly polarized light scattered from biological tissues depends on structural changes in cell nuclei, which can provide valuable information for differentiating cancer tissues concealed in healthy tissues. In this study, we experimentally verified the possibility of cancer identification using scattering of circularly polarized light. We investigated the polarization of light scattered from a sliced biological tissue with various optical configurations. A significant difference between circular polarizations of light scattered from cancerous and healthy tissues is observed, which is sufficient to distinguish a cancerous region. The line-scanning experiments along a region incorporating healthy and cancerous parts indicate step-like behaviors in the degree of circular polarization corresponding to the state of tissues, whether cancerous or normal. An oblique and perpendicular incidence induces different resolutions for identifying cancerous tissues, which indicates that the optical arrangement can be selected according to the priority of resolution.     

Scanning eye movements of the stomatopod crustacean,Neogonodactylus oerstedii,in polarized light fields

ABSTRACT

Stomatopod crustaceans have highly mobile, independently moving compound eyes that are sensitive to both linearly and circularly polarized light. They rotate their eyes to predictable angles when viewing a linearly polarized target, and they scan their eyes frequently to sample the visual field. Angles of scans are roughly perpendicular to the plane of the midband (a set of specialized parallel rows of equatorial ommatidia). We investigated scanning eye movements in one Caribbean stomatopod species (Neogonodactylus oerstedii) in uniform visual fields that were vertically polarized, horizontally polarized, or depolarized. We found that mean eye rotation and scan angles differed significantly among these different treatments. Average scan angles differed by 12°, being more horizontal in a vertically polarized field than in a horizontally polarized one, and also more horizontal in a vertically polarized field than in a depolarized field. Thus, these stomatopods adjusted visual scanning to the polarization of the visual environment.     

Photoreaction of a racemate proceeding through radical or ion pairs. The effect of circularly polarized light on the enantiomeric excess of recovered reactant

A simple theory has been developed to explain how circularly polarized light will affect the outcome of a photoreaction of a racemic substrate proceeding through ion pairs or radical pairs. One can calculate the enantiomeric excess and amount of recovered substrate at any stage of the reaction.