The sections were incubated overnight with antibodies (5 μg/mL) in blocking buffer and washed with PBS containing 0.2% (w/vol) Triton X-100, after each incubation. Endogenous biotin was blocked using a biotin blocking system (Dako Corporation, Glostrup, Denmark). Selleckchem PF-01367338 The sections were then incubated for 30 min with biotinylated secondary antibody, diluted 1:200 (vol/vol) in blocking buffer. Biotinylated secondary antibodies were detected using the Elite ABC kit with

diaminobenzidine (Vector Laboratories, Burlingame, CA, USA) as the chromogen. All incubations were carried out at room temperature. Sections were mounted with Permount and analyzed using a Reichert Polyvar binocular photomicroscope (Leica, Wien, Austria). Negative controls consisted of sections that

were not stained with the primary antibodies. Other sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E staining), Selleck VE 821 and mounted in Canada balsam. NMDA (0.04 nmol/μL) and melittin (100 mg/mL) were dissolved in saline and 20 mM Hepes buffer, pH 7.4, containing 1 M NaCl, 1 mM EGTA and 1.2 mM CaCl2, respectively. These reagents were then desalted using Sephadex G-10 resin (Pharmacia Biotech, Uppsala, Sweden), equilibrated with buffer, as described above, and stored. This stock was dissolved fourfold in saline. Groups of worker honey bees were caught before the experiments, maintained in small box at room temperature, and treated with each drug. The head injection site was the clypeus, and each honey bee received 0.1 μL of NMDA or melittin. A control group received saline. A response was counted only if the proboscis was fully extended and extension occurred shortly after stimulus onset. Only honey bees showing this behavioral response were included

in the data analysis and brains were dissected after 1, 2, and 3 h. Brain homogenates were prepared individually, Dapagliflozin and immunoblotted for myosin-Va. All chemicals were purchased from Sigma–Aldrich (St. Louis, MO, USA). The data of densitometry relating to myosin-V expression in honey bee brain after injection were initially analyzed by one-way ANOVA. When ANOVA analyses detected differences, sets of control and treated groups of animals were compared using t-test to determine if the differences were statistically significant. The level of significance was set at p < 0.05 in all cases. Western blot analyses of rabbit, rat and bee brain homogenates and supernatants with myosin-Va and CaMKII antibodies resulted in the detection of 190 and 60 kDa polypeptides, respectively, in all samples (Fig. 1A). Equal levels of cross-reactivity were observed for the immunodetection of myosin-Va in larval ganglia and brain homogenates of adult worker bees, queens and drones (Fig. 1B). By Western blot, we also observed cross-reaction between myosin-Va (190 kDa), myosin-VI (140 kDa) and DYNLL1/LC8 (10 kDa) in the supernatant fraction of honey bee brains (Fig. 1C).