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The Heat Shock Response Under Natural Conditions in Two Paper Wasp Species

A. Amstrup,H. Kovac,H. Käfer,A. Stabentheiner,J. G. Sørensen

Published 2025 in Insects

ABSTRACT

Simple Summary Paper wasps live in a wide variety of thermal environments, and it has previously been shown that different species from different climates use the heat shock response (HSR) differently. The HSR is a cellular stress response, in which the expression of heat shock protein genes (hsps) can aid in the recovery from and resistance towards stressors such as heat stress. Much of the available knowledge on the HSR comes from laboratory studies, including all knowledge from paper wasps. In this study, we sought to investigate whether paper wasp broods express hsps under natural conditions. We did this by collecting larvae and pupae in the morning and afternoon, which were the expected low and high points of hsp expression. While some aspects of hsp expression in this field study matched those under laboratory conditions, some dissimilarities emerged. The difference between hsp expression in the morning and afternoon was smaller than in laboratory studies, despite afternoon temperatures exceeding the laboratory heat stress temperature in some cases. Moreover, only larvae, and not pupae, showed significant changes in hsp expression. These findings highlight the importance of field studies, as they can reveal differences to take into account when applying knowledge from laboratory studies to real world situations.

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