This book covers a broad range of topics about the cricket from its development, regeneration, physiology, nervous system, and behavior with remarkable recent updates by adapting the new, sophisticated molecular techniques including RNAi and other genome editing methods. It also provides detailed protocols on an array of topics and for basic experiments on the cricket.While the cricket has been one of the best models for neuroethological studies over the past 60 years, it has now become the most important system for studying basal hemimetabolous insects. The studies of Gryllus and related species of cricket will yield insight into evolutionary features that are not evident in other insect model systems, which mainly focus on holometabolous insects such as Drosophila, Tribolium, and Bombyx. Research on crickets and grasshoppers will be important for the development of pest-control strategies, given that some of the most notorious pests also belong to the order Orthoptera. At the same time, crickets possess an enormously high “food conversion efficiency”, making them a potentially important food source for an ever-expanding human population.This volume provides a comprehensive source of information as well as potential new applications in pest management and food production of the cricket. It will inspire scientists in various disciplines to use the cricket model system to investigate interesting and innovative questions.

Evolutionary developmental biology or evo-devo is a field of biological research that compares the underlying mechanisms of developmental processes in different organisms to infer the ancestral condition of these processes and elucidate how they have evolved. It addresses questions about the developmental bases of evolutionary changes and evolution of developmental processes. The book’s content is divided into three parts, the first of which discusses the theoretical background of evo-devo. The second part highlights new and emerging model organisms in the evo-devo field, while the third and last part explores the evo-devo approach in a broad comparative context. To the best of our knowledge, no other book combines these three evo-devo aspects: theoretical considerations, a comprehensive list of emerging model species, and comparative analyses of developmental processes. Given its scope, the book will offer readers a new perspective on the natural diversity of processes at work in cells and during the development of various animal groups, and expand the horizons of seasoned and young researchers alike.

An ever-growing roster of model organisms is a hallmark of 21st century Developmental Biology. Emerging model organisms are well suited to asking some fascinating and important questions that cannot be addressed using established model systems. And new methods are increasingly facilitating the adoption of new research organisms in laboratories. This volume is written by some of the scientists who have played pivotal roles in developing new models or in significantly advancing tools in emerging systems. - Presents some of the most interesting additions to the core set of model organisms - Contains contributions from people who have developed new model systems or advanced tools - Includes personal stories about how and why model systems were developed

In this volume leading experts provide chapters on 23 emerging model systems, ranging from bat and butterfly to cave fish and choanoflagellates; cricket and finch to quail, snail, and tomato.

Since Erspamer and Boretti, 1951 first described the biogenic amine octopamine in the octopus salivary gland as a molecule with “adrenaline-like” action, decades of extensive studies demonstrated the important role octopamine and its precursor tyramine play in invertebrate physiology and behavior. This book contains the latest original research papers on tyramine/octopamine and their receptors in different neuronal and non-neuronal circuits of insects. Additonally, this book elucidates in detail the latest research on the function of other biogenic amines and their receptors, such as dopamine and serotonin in insects and mice. The reviews in this book summarize the most recent research on the role of biogenic amines in insect antennae, synaptic development, and behavioral modulation by spontaneous dopamine release in Drosophila. Finally, one perspective paper discusses the evolution of social behavior and biogenic amines. We recommend this book for all scholars interested in the latest advanced research on the role of biogenic amines in animal behavior. ITS dedicates the topic to her teacher, Plotnikova Svetlana Ivanovna (1922-2013).