I am a behavioral neuroscientist expert in neuropharmacology and animal models of nociception. During the last years i have become interested in the function of thermo-Transient Receptor Potential Channels (thermo-TRPs), temperature sensors that are present in the nerve endings of animals and allow temperature detection.
Animal Biotechnology
Behavioral Biology
Biochemistry
Biology of interactions
Biology of Organisms
Biophysics
Biotechnology
Botanics
Cellular Biology
Chemical Engineering
Entomology
Ethology
Molecular Biology
Neurosciences
Parasitology
Plant Biotechnology
Veterinary science
The nervous system of honeybees expresses AmHsTRPA, a TRPA channel activated by heat. Interestingly, the nervous system of their main parasite, Varroa destructor, expresses also TRPA1 ionic channels that have structural differences with the honeybee variant, being all those primitive versions of the TRPA1 channels found in the nervous system of humans and other mammals (Cabañero et al., 2022). These channels allow heat sensation, perception of pain and detection of chemical environmental irritants (Cabañero et al., 2020). This project aims to take advantage of the molecular differences between Varroa destructor VdTRPA1 and the honeybee AmHsTRPA to investigate the therapeutic potential of selective VdTRPA1 activation as a method to repel the mite. Thus, compounds like terpineol, a terpene found in plants, are effective in selectively activating vdTRPA1, and mites avoid the contact with the compounds. While these approaches seem interesting for the development of repellents, they have not been translated into widespread therapeutic strategies against Varroa so far. These compounds could be easily extracted in mediterranean scenarios where plant species containing these molecules can grow spontaneously. However, it is unknown which compounds could be efficiently used as a feasible therapeutic strategy to control Varroa infestations.
varroa, honey bee, transient receptor potential (trp), temperature perception, molecular modeling, behavioural pharmacology, mediterranean plants, mass spectometry, parasitology, virus control