Which of the following has not been shown to be an important pollinator of crop plants November 28 a Honey bees b Bumble bees c Wild bees d Butterflies e Moths f Wasps g Mosquitoes h Birds i Bats They re all pollinators When getting rid of these species we can create more problems than we solve Bee pollination is worth 1 5B to the US farming industry Lots of big crops in the agriculture industry rely on pollinators Honey bees enable the production of at least 90 commercially grown crops in the US Not just produce Also oilseed farming and nut farming A compelling argument for biodiversity Many pollinators are specialists and don t pollinate all plants so a diversity of pollinators leads to a diversity of plants Neonicotinoid Collateral damage Birds may be harmed by directly feeding on pesticide treated seeds or poisoned insects and birds of prey may be affected by feeding on these infected birds Biomagnification Correlation or causation Correlation of insect feeding bird populations with concentrations of neonicotinoid insecticides Colony collapse disorder CCD The phenomenon that occurs when the majority of worker bees in a colony leave behind a queen plenty of food and a few nurse bees to care for the remaining immature bees and the queen Which of the following has been suggested to be a cause of CCD a Loss of habitat b Genetically modified organisms GMOs c Use of neonicotinoid pesticides d Reduced genetic diversity in bees e Electromagnetic fields What is a neonicotinoid Nicotine Naturally occurring proteins made by certain plants Atropa belladonna commonly known as belladonna or deadly nightshade Tobacco tomato potato tomatillo eggplant peppers These plants make this protein so that they don t get eaten Naturally occurring insecticide Deter insects from feeding on them The relationship of nicotine between neurotransmitters Acetylcholine When a motor neuron generates an action potential it travels rapidly along the nerve until it reaches the neuromuscular junction where it initiates an electrochemical process that causes acetylcholine ACh to be released into the space between the presynaptic terminal and the muscle fiber Ligand gated ion channel The shape and size of the nicotine molecule are close enough to that of the neurotransmitter molecule ACh that it binds to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and in doing so elicits a nervous system response as if acetylcholine had been released Agonists and antagonists An agonist binds to a receptor and causes a biological response whereas an antagonist binds to a receptor and blocks a biological response Why do neonicotinoids affect insects but not humans a Humans do not have nicotinic receptors b Humans have developed a tolerance to c nicotine due to tobacco use Insects have never encountered nicotine in the wild d Humans and insects have different nicotinic receptors November 30 Nervous system of various animals Hydra cnidarian Nerve net Starfish Radial nerves Squid Nerve ganglia Cricket Salamander Brain spinal cord nerve of extension Phosphorylation cascade Always looking out for ATP to phosphorylate something Membrane potential Other ions also have some role in creating membrane potential Amino acids proteins Net negatively charged amino acids in cytoplasm and none on the outside of the cell gives cytoplasm an overall net negative charge Resting state depolarization rising phase of the action potential falling phase of the action potential undershoot Ligand gated ion channels Neurotransmitter Allows sodium and potassium ions to flow and creates a signal to the cell next to it