While animals and birds are mostly known for their complicated and intelligent brains, some insects can also impress us with how complex and unusual their brains work.
Ants are capable of amazing things, because they somehow can communicate and coordinate their actions so well that they can create very complex hierarchies and systems.
The newest research published on PNAS Nexus shows us that these insects are even more complicated than we thought.
The research
Researchers led by Christian Gruber from MedUni Vienna have developed a method to study the brain chemistry of ants, providing insights into their neurobiological processes.
The approach combines high-resolution mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) and micro-computed tomography (µCT) to map neuropeptides in the brains of two ant species.
The study, published in PNAS Nexus, revealed the distribution of specific peptides in different brain regions and identified differences between the ant species.
The key feature of the method is its correlative approach, which aligns 3D maps of neuropeptide distribution with anatomical models, enabling comprehensive analysis of complex social insect brains.
This method has the potential to enhance the study of neurobiology and understand the evolution of social behavior and hormone systems in ants and humans.
