Meeting Abstract

P2.17  Jan. 5  Increased chemo-investigation of an atrazine-contaminated substrate in the terrestrial salamander, Plethodon shermani. LANZEL, S.L.*; WOODLEY, S.K.; Duquesne University; Duquesne University lanzels@duq.edu

Atrazine is the most commonly used herbicide in the United States. In salmon, atrazine interferes with pheromonal communication by dampening the response of olfactory sensory neurons (Moore and Lower, 2001). By interfering with chemoreception, atrazine may potentially affect foraging and reproductive success in various species. We hypothesized that in Plethodon shermani, a terrestrial salamander in which chemical communication is important in foraging and social interactions, atrazine would interfere with chemosensory dependent behaviors. We predicted that acute exposure to atrazine would decrease chemo-investigative behavior (nose-tapping) in response to pheromones. Male animals were placed on substrates containing water, 750ppb atrazine, 750ppb atrazine + female pheromones, or female pheromones alone. Levels of nose-tapping were significantly higher on substrates containing atrazine than those substrates that did not contain atrazine. A second experiment testing response to different concentrations of atrazine found no increase in nose-tapping response, perhaps because the atrazine was no longer a novel chemosensory cue. Our findings suggest that atrazine exposure influences chemosensory investigation of the environment. Nose-tapping is a specialized behavior that delivers substrate-bound chemosensory cues to the lumen of the vomeronasal organ (VNO) where cues can be detected by sensory neurons. A future experiment will determine if atrazine is detected by the VNO sensory neurons. These results will provide insight into whether atrazine affects more subtle traits like behavior, which are nonetheless critical to survival.