Ecdysone functions as_________________?
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Answer: C. A hormone that regulates moulting in arthropods
Explanation
Ecdysone is a vital steroid prohormone that plays a central regulatory role in controlling arthropod molting. It triggers the physiological cascade necessary for shedding the old cuticle during growth and development stages. Without adequate hormonal signaling from ecdysone, arthropods cannot successfully progress through their life cycle stages. Arthropods possess a rigid exoskeleton that must be periodically shed to accommodate internal body growth. Steroid hormones are lipid-soluble chemical messengers derived from cholesterol molecules within the endocrine system. Ecdysone is typically converted into its active form, 20-hydroxyecdysone, in peripheral target tissues.
Understanding insect endocrinology helps scientists develop targeted insecticides that disrupt pest development cycles safely. Molting regulation is a critical evolutionary adaptation shared by all members of the superphylum Ecdysozoa. Laboratory studies of ecdysone provided foundational insights into steroid hormone receptor mechanisms in biology. Enzymes digest the old endocuticle, but ecdysone itself functions strictly as a regulatory signaling hormone. The newly formed exoskeleton is a physical cuticular structure rather than a circulating regulatory hormone. Moulting is the physical developmental process itself, whereas ecdysone acts as the internal hormone driving it.
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