Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees

Abstract Floral nectar is a pivotal element of the intimate relationship between plants and pollinators. Nectars are composed of a plethora of nutritionally valuable compounds but also hundreds of secondary metabolites (SMs) whose function remains elusive. Here we performed a set of behavioural expe...

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Autores principales:	Daniele Carlesso, Stefania Smargiassi, Elisa Pasquini, Giacomo Bertelli, David Baracchi
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/6fc1dd4ed97a4ac9a3a25e7596566bfc
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:6fc1dd4ed97a4ac9a3a25e7596566bfc2021-12-02T15:03:13ZNectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees10.1038/s41598-021-90895-z2045-2322https://doaj.org/article/6fc1dd4ed97a4ac9a3a25e7596566bfc2021-06-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-90895-zhttps://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Floral nectar is a pivotal element of the intimate relationship between plants and pollinators. Nectars are composed of a plethora of nutritionally valuable compounds but also hundreds of secondary metabolites (SMs) whose function remains elusive. Here we performed a set of behavioural experiments to study whether five ubiquitous nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs: β-alanine, GABA, citrulline, ornithine and taurine) interact with gustation, feeding preference, and learning and memory in Apis mellifera. We showed that foragers were unable to discriminate NPAAs from water when only accessing antennal chemo-tactile information and that freely moving bees did not exhibit innate feeding preferences for NPAAs. Also, NPAAs did not alter food consumption or longevity in caged bees over 10 days. Taken together our data suggest that natural concentrations of NPAAs did not alter nectar palatability to bees. Olfactory conditioning assays showed that honey bees were more likely to learn a scent when it signalled a sucrose reward containing either β-alanine or GABA, and that GABA enhanced specific memory retention. Conversely, when ingested two hours prior to conditioning, GABA, β-alanine, and taurine weakened bees’ acquisition performances but not specific memory retention, which was enhanced in the case of β-alanine and taurine. Neither citrulline nor ornithine affected learning and memory. NPAAs in nectars may represent a cooperative strategy adopted by plants to attract beneficial pollinators.Daniele CarlessoStefania SmargiassiElisa PasquiniGiacomo BertelliDavid BaracchiNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-14 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Daniele Carlesso Stefania Smargiassi Elisa Pasquini Giacomo Bertelli David Baracchi Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
description	Abstract Floral nectar is a pivotal element of the intimate relationship between plants and pollinators. Nectars are composed of a plethora of nutritionally valuable compounds but also hundreds of secondary metabolites (SMs) whose function remains elusive. Here we performed a set of behavioural experiments to study whether five ubiquitous nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs: β-alanine, GABA, citrulline, ornithine and taurine) interact with gustation, feeding preference, and learning and memory in Apis mellifera. We showed that foragers were unable to discriminate NPAAs from water when only accessing antennal chemo-tactile information and that freely moving bees did not exhibit innate feeding preferences for NPAAs. Also, NPAAs did not alter food consumption or longevity in caged bees over 10 days. Taken together our data suggest that natural concentrations of NPAAs did not alter nectar palatability to bees. Olfactory conditioning assays showed that honey bees were more likely to learn a scent when it signalled a sucrose reward containing either β-alanine or GABA, and that GABA enhanced specific memory retention. Conversely, when ingested two hours prior to conditioning, GABA, β-alanine, and taurine weakened bees’ acquisition performances but not specific memory retention, which was enhanced in the case of β-alanine and taurine. Neither citrulline nor ornithine affected learning and memory. NPAAs in nectars may represent a cooperative strategy adopted by plants to attract beneficial pollinators.
format	article
author	Daniele Carlesso Stefania Smargiassi Elisa Pasquini Giacomo Bertelli David Baracchi
author_facet	Daniele Carlesso Stefania Smargiassi Elisa Pasquini Giacomo Bertelli David Baracchi
author_sort	Daniele Carlesso
title	Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
title_short	Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
title_full	Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
title_fullStr	Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
title_full_unstemmed	Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
title_sort	nectar non-protein amino acids (npaas) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/6fc1dd4ed97a4ac9a3a25e7596566bfc
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Nectar non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) do not change nectar palatability but enhance learning and memory in honey bees

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