Manipulating the light/dark cycle: effects on dopamine levels in optic lobes of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) brain

Oct 26, 2006Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology

Changing light and dark cycles affects dopamine levels in honey bee vision centers

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Abstract

Changing the light-dark regimen significantly impacts forager bee behaviour and dopamine levels in their optic lobes.

Foraging behaviour in bees shows characteristics of a circadian rhythm, aligning closely to a 24-hour cycle.
Bees adjust their foraging activity predictably in response to changes in light phases.
Dopamine levels in the optic lobes of bees vary cyclically and are influenced by light/dark cycle alterations.
The changes in dopamine levels occur on a different time scale compared to behavioural changes.
No direct correlation was identified between dopamine levels in the optic lobes and the circadian rhythmic activity of honey bees.

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This study examines the relationship between cyclical variations in optic-lobe dopamine levels and the circadian behavioural rhythmicity exhibited by forager bees. Our results show that changing the light-dark regimen to which bees are exposed has a significant impact not only on forager behaviour, but also on the levels of dopamine that can be detected in the optic lobes of the brain. Consistent with earlier reports, we show that foraging behaviour exhibits properties characteristic of a circadian rhythm. Foraging activity is entrained by daily light cycles to periods close to 24 h, it changes predictably in response to phase shifts in light, and it is able to free-run under constant conditions. Dopamine levels in the optic lobes also undergo cyclical variations, and fluctuations in endogenous dopamine levels are influenced significantly by alterations to the light/dark cycle. However, the time course of these changes is markedly different from changes observed at a behavioural level. No direct correlation could be identified between levels of dopamine in the optic lobes and circadian rhythmic activity of the honey bee.

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Manipulating the light/dark cycle: effects on dopamine levels in optic lobes of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) brain

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