The insect cuticle is the interface between internal homeostasis and the often harsh external environment. Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) are key constituents of this hard cuticle and are associated with a variety of functions including stress response and communication. CHC production and deposition on the insect cuticle vary among natural populations and are affected by developmental temperature; however, little is known about CHC plasticity in response to the environment experienced following eclosion, during which time the insect cuticle undergoes several crucial changes. We targeted this crucial to important phase and studied post‐eclosion temperature effects on CHC profiles in two natural populations of Drosophila melanogaster. A forty‐eight hour post‐eclosion exposure to three different temperatures (18, 25, and 30°C) significantly affected CHCs in both ancestral African and more recently derived North American populations of D. melanogaster. A clear shift from shorter to longer CHCs chain length was observed with increasing temperature, and the effects of post‐eclosion temperature varied across populations and between sexes. The quantitative differences in CHCs were associated with variation in desiccation tolerance among populations. Surprisingly, we did not detect any significant differences in water loss rate between African and North American populations. Overall, our results demonstrate strong genetic and plasticity effects in CHC profiles in response to environmental temperatures experienced at the adult stage as well as associations with desiccation tolerance, which is crucial in understanding holometabolan responses to stress.

中文翻译：

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羽化后温度对昆虫表皮碳氢化合物谱的影响

昆虫角质层是内部稳态和通常恶劣的外部环境之间的界面。角质层碳氢化合物 (CHC) 是这种硬角质层的关键成分，并与多种功能相关，包括压力反应和交流。昆虫表皮上的 CHC 产生和沉积因自然种群而异，并受发育温度的影响；然而，关于 CHC 可塑性对羽化后经历的环境的反应知之甚少，在此期间昆虫角质层经历了几个关键的变化。我们将这一关键阶段定位到重要阶段，并研究了羽化后温度对黑腹果蝇两个自然种群的 CHC 谱的影响. 羽化后 48 小时暴露于三种不同的温度（18、25 和 30°C）显着影响了非洲祖先和最近派生的北美黑腹果蝇种群的CHC. 随着温度的升高，观察到 CHCs 链长度从较短到较长的明显转变，并且羽化后温度的影响在不同种群和性别之间存在差异。CHC 的数量差异与种群间干燥耐受性的差异有关。令人惊讶的是，我们没有发现非洲和北美人口之间的失水率有任何显着差异。总体而言，我们的结果表明 CHC 谱中对成年阶段经历的环境温度的强烈遗传和可塑性影响以及与干燥耐受性的关联，这对于理解全代谢对压力的反应至关重要。