Fire ant alarm pheromone and venom alkaloids act in concert to attract parasitic phorid flies, Pseudacteon spp.

PubMed

Sharma, Kavita R; Fadamiro, Henry Y

2013-11-01

Pseudacteon tricuspis, Pseudacteon obtusus and Pseudacteon curvatus are three species of parasitic phorid flies (Diptera: Phoridae), which have been introduced as classical biological control agents of imported, Solenopsis fire ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the southern USA. Previous studies demonstrated the behavioral response of P. tricuspis to the venom alkaloids and alarm pheromone of the fire ant, S. invicta. In the present study, we compared the responses of P. tricuspis, P. obtusus and P. curvatus to Solenopsis invicta alarm pheromone, venom alkaloids, or a mixture of both chemicals in four-choice olfactometer bioassays. The main hypothesis tested was that the fire ant alarm pheromone and venom alkaloids act in concert to attract Pseudacteon phorid flies. Both sexes of all three Pseudacteon species were attracted to low doses of the fire ant alarm pheromone or venom alkaloids (i.e. 1 ant worker equivalent) alone. However, the flies were significantly more attracted to a mixture of both chemicals (i.e., 1:1 mixture of alarm pheromone+alkaloids) than to either chemical. The results suggest an additive rather than a synergistic effect of combining both chemicals. Comparing the fly species, P. tricuspis showed relatively greater attraction to cis alkaloids, whereas the alkaloid mixture (cis+trans) was preferred by P. obtusus and P. curvatus. In general, no key sexual differences were recorded, although females of P. tricuspis and P. obtusus showed slightly higher response than conspecific males to lower doses of the alarm pheromone. The ecological significance of these findings is discussed, and a host location model is proposed for parasitic phorid flies involving the use of fire ant alarm pheromone and venom alkaloids as long range and short range attractants, respectively. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Sexual selection on cuticular hydrocarbons in the Australian field cricket, Teleogryllus oceanicus

PubMed Central

Thomas, Melissa L; Simmons, Leigh W

2009-01-01

Background Females in a wide range of taxa have been shown to base their choice of mates on pheromone signals. However, little research has focussed specifically on the form and intensity of selection that mate choice imposes on the pheromone signal. Using multivariate selection analysis, we characterise directly the form and intensity of sexual selection acting on cuticular hydrocarbons, chemical compounds widely used in the selection of mates in insects. Using the Australian field cricket Teleogryllus oceanicus as a model organism, we use three measures of male attractiveness to estimate fitness; mating success, the duration of courtship required to elicit copulation, and subsequent spermatophore attachment duration. Results We found that all three measures of male attractiveness generated sexual selection on male cuticular hydrocarbons, however there were differences in the form and intensity of selection among these three measures. Mating success was the only measure of attractiveness that imposed both univariate linear and quadratic selection on cuticular hydrocarbons. Although we found that all three attractiveness measures generated nonlinear selection, again only mating success was found to exert statistically significant stabilizing selection. Conclusion This study shows that sexual selection plays an important role in the evolution of male cuticular hydrocarbon signals. PMID:19594896

A novel mechanism regulating a sexual signal: the testosterone-based inhibition of female sex pheromone expression in garter snakes.

PubMed

Parker, M Rockwell; Mason, Robert T

2014-08-01

Vertebrates communicate their sex to conspecifics through the use of sexually dimorphic signals, such as ornaments, behaviors and scents. Furthermore, the physiological connection between hormones and secondary sexual signal expression is key to understanding their dimorphism, seasonality and evolution. The red-sided garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis) is the only reptile for which a described pheromone currently exists, and because garter snakes rely completely on the sexual attractiveness pheromone for species identification and mate choice, they constitute a unique model species for exploring the relationship between pheromones and the endocrine system. We recently demonstrated that estrogen can activate female pheromone production in male garter snakes. The purpose of this study was to determine the mechanism(s) acting to prevent female pheromone production in males. We found that castrated males (GX) are courted by wild males in the field and produce appreciable amounts of female sex pheromone. Furthermore, pheromone production is inhibited in castrates given testosterone implants (GX+T), suggesting that pheromone production is actively inhibited by the presence of testosterone. Lastly, testosterone supplementation alone (T) increased the production of several saturated methyl ketones in the pheromone but not the unsaturated ketones; this may indicate that saturated ketones are testosterone-activated components of the garter snake's skin lipid milieu. Collectively, our research has shown that pheromone expression in snakes results from two processes: activation by the feminizing steroid estradiol and inhibition by testosterone. We suggest that basal birds and garter snakes share common pathways of activation that modulate crucial intraspecific signals that originate from skin. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sites of release of Putative Sex Pheromone and Sexual Behaviour in Female Carcinus maenas(Crustacea: Decapoda)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bamber, S. D.; Naylor, E.

1997-02-01

Pre-moult female Carcinus maenasurine was confirmed as a source of putative sex pheromone. The sexual and temporal specificity of bioactivity in pre-moult female urine was demonstrated when urine samples taken from inter-moult and pre-moult male crabs, and inter-moult females, failed to generate a sexual response from receptive males. Detection sensitivity of male crabs to pre-moult female urine was established at a dilution factor of 1 μl of urine in 10 ml of seawater. Experimental blockage of the site of urine release (the antennal gland opercula) failed to diminish the chemical attractiveness of pre-moult female crabs to test males, implicating at least one further site of putative pheromone release. Observations of female sexual behaviour demonstrated an active role by pre-moult and post-moult female crabs when introduced to male crabs whose locomotor movement had been temporarily restricted.

Phylogenetic distribution of a male pheromone that may exploit a nonsexual preference in lampreys

USGS Publications Warehouse

Buchinger, Tyler J.; Bussy, Ugo; Li, Ke; Wang, Huiyong; Huertas, Mar; Baker, Cindy F.; Jia, Liang; Hayes, Michael C.; Li, Weiming; Johnson, Nicholas

2017-01-01

Pheromones are among the most important sexual signals used by organisms throughout the animal kingdom. However, few are identified in vertebrates, leaving the evolutionary mechanisms underlying vertebrate pheromones poorly understood. Pre-existing biases in receivers’ perceptual systems shape visual and auditory signaling systems, but studies on how receiver biases influence the evolution of pheromone communication remain sparse. The lamprey Petromyzon marinus uses a relatively well-understood suite of pheromones and offers a unique opportunity to study the evolution of vertebrate pheromone communication. Previous studies indicate that male signaling with the mating pheromone 3-keto petromyzonol sulfate (3kPZS) may exploit a nonsexual attraction to juvenile-released 3kPZS that guides migration into productive rearing habitat. Here, we infer the distribution of male signaling with 3kPZS using a phylogenetic comparison comprising six of ten genera and two of three families. Our results indicate that only P. marinus and Ichthyomyzon castaneus release 3kPZS at high rates. Olfactory and behavioral assays with P. marinus, I. castaneus and a subset of three other species that do not use 3kPZS as a sexual signal indicate that male signaling might drive the evolution of female adaptations to detect 3kPZS with specific olfactory mechanisms and respond to 3kPZS with targeted attraction relevant during mate search. We postulate that 3kPZS communication evolved independently in I. castaneus and P. marinus, but cannot eliminate the alternative that other species lost 3kPZS communication. Regardless, our results represent a rare macroevolutionary investigation of a vertebrate pheromone and insight into the evolutionary mechanisms underlying pheromone communication.

Human pheromones and sexual attraction.

PubMed

Grammer, Karl; Fink, Bernhard; Neave, Nick

2005-02-01

Olfactory communication is very common amongst animals, and since the discovery of an accessory olfactory system in humans, possible human olfactory communication has gained considerable scientific interest. The importance of the human sense of smell has by far been underestimated in the past. Humans and other primates have been regarded as primarily 'optical animals' with highly developed powers of vision but a relatively undeveloped sense of smell. In recent years this assumption has undergone major revision. Several studies indicate that humans indeed seem to use olfactory communication and are even able to produce and perceive certain pheromones; recent studies have found that pheromones may play an important role in the behavioural and reproduction biology of humans. In this article we review the present evidence of the effect of human pheromones and discuss the role of olfactory cues in human sexual behaviour.

Supplementation of Male Pheromone on Rock Substrates Attracts Female Rock Lizards to the Territories of Males: A Field Experiment

PubMed Central

Martín, José; López, Pilar

2012-01-01

Background Many animals produce elaborated sexual signals to attract mates, among them are common chemical sexual signals (pheromones) with an attracting function. Lizards produce chemical secretions for scent marking that may have a role in sexual selection. In the laboratory, female rock lizards (Iberolacerta cyreni) prefer the scent of males with more ergosterol in their femoral secretions. However, it is not known whether the scent-marks of male rock lizards may actually attract females to male territories in the field. Methodology/Principal Findings In the field, we added ergosterol to rocks inside the territories of male lizards, and found that this manipulation resulted in increased relative densities of females in these territories. Furthermore, a higher number of females were observed associated to males in manipulated plots, which probably increased mating opportunities for males in these areas. Conclusions/Significance These and previous laboratory results suggest that female rock lizards may select to settle in home ranges based on the characteristics of scent-marks from conspecific males. Therefore, male rock lizards might attract more females and obtain more matings by increasing the proportion of ergosterol when scent-marking their territories. However, previous studies suggest that the allocation of ergosterol to secretions may be costly and only high quality males could afford it, thus, allowing the evolution of scent-marks as an honest sexual display. PMID:22253895

Concordant preferences for opposite-sex signals? Human pheromones and facial characteristics.

PubMed Central

Cornwell, R. Elisabeth; Boothroyd, Lynda; Burt, D. Michael; Feinberg, David R.; Jones, Ben C.; Little, Anthony C.; Pitman, Robert; Whiten, Susie; Perrett, David I.

2004-01-01

We have investigated whether preferences for masculine and feminine characteristics are correlated across two modalities, olfaction and vision. In study 1, subjects rated the pleasantness of putative male (4,16-androstadien-3-one; 5alpha-androst-16-en-3-one) and female (1,3,5 (10),16-estratetraen-3-ol) pheromones, and chose the most attractive face shape from a masculine-feminine continuum for a long- and a short-term relationship. Study 2 replicated study 1 and further explored the effects of relationship context on pheromone ratings. For long-term relationships, women's preferences for masculine face shapes correlated with ratings of 4,16-androstadien-3-one and men's preferences for feminine face shapes correlated with ratings of 1,3,5(10),16-estratetraen-3-ol. These studies link sex-specific preferences for putative human sex pheromones and sexually dimorphic facial characteristics. Our findings suggest that putative sex pheromones and sexually dimorphic facial characteristics convey common information about the quality of potential mates. PMID:15156922

Electrophysiological response and attraction of emerald ash borer to green leaf volatiles (GLVs) emitted by host foliage

Treesearch

Peter de Groot; Gary G. Grant; Therese M. Poland; Roger Scharbach; Linda Buchan; Reginald W. Nott; Linda Macdonald; Doug Pitt

2008-01-01

Green leaf volatiles (GLVs) function as host attractants, pheromone synergists, or sexual kairomones for a number of coleopteran folivores. Hence, we focused on host GLVs to determine if they were attractive to adults of the emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), which feeds on ash (Fraxinus) foliage....

Pheromone evolution and sexual behavior in Drosophila are shaped by male sensory exploitation of other males.

PubMed

Ng, Soon Hwee; Shankar, Shruti; Shikichi, Yasumasa; Akasaka, Kazuaki; Mori, Kenji; Yew, Joanne Y

2014-02-25

Animals exhibit a spectacular array of traits to attract mates. Understanding the evolutionary origins of sexual features and preferences is a fundamental problem in evolutionary biology, and the mechanisms remain highly controversial. In some species, females choose mates based on direct benefits conferred by the male to the female and her offspring. Thus, female preferences are thought to originate and coevolve with male traits. In contrast, sensory exploitation occurs when expression of a male trait takes advantage of preexisting sensory biases in females. Here, we document in Drosophila a previously unidentified example of sensory exploitation of males by other males through the use of the sex pheromone CH503. We use mass spectrometry, high-performance liquid chromatography, and behavioral analysis to demonstrate that an antiaphrodisiac produced by males of the melanogaster subgroup also is effective in distant Drosophila relatives that do not express the pheromone. We further show that species that produce the pheromone have become less sensitive to the compound, illustrating that sensory adaptation occurs after sensory exploitation. Our findings provide a mechanism for the origin of a sex pheromone and show that sensory exploitation changes male sexual behavior over evolutionary time.

Evolutionary relationships among pollinators and repeated pollinator sharing in sexually deceptive orchids.

PubMed

Phillips, R D; Brown, G R; Dixon, K W; Hayes, C; Linde, C C; Peakall, R

2017-09-01

The mechanism of pollinator attraction is predicted to strongly influence both plant diversification and the extent of pollinator sharing between species. Sexually deceptive orchids rely on mimicry of species-specific sex pheromones to attract their insect pollinators. Given that sex pheromones tend to be conserved among related species, we predicted that in sexually deceptive orchids, (i) pollinator sharing is rare, (ii) closely related orchids use closely related pollinators and (iii) there is strong bias in the wasp lineages exploited by orchids. We focused on species that are pollinated by sexual deception of thynnine wasps in the distantly related genera Caladenia and Drakaea, including new field observations for 45 species of Caladenia. Specialization was extreme with most orchids using a single pollinator species. Unexpectedly, seven cases of pollinator sharing were found, including two between Caladenia and Drakaea, which exhibit strikingly different floral morphology. Phylogenetic analysis of pollinators using four nuclear sequence loci demonstrated that although orchids within major clades primarily use closely related pollinator species, up to 17% of orchids within these clades are pollinated by a member of a phylogenetically distant wasp genus. Further, compared to the total diversity of thynnine wasps within the study region, orchids show a strong bias towards exploiting certain genera. Although these patterns may arise through conservatism in the chemical classes used in sex pheromones, apparent switches between wasp clades suggest unexpected flexibility in floral semiochemical production. Alternatively, wasp sex pheromones within lineages may exhibit greater chemical diversity than currently appreciated. © 2017 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2017 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Ejaculate of sneaker males is pheromonally inconspicuous in the black goby, Gobius niger (Teleostei, Gobiidae).

PubMed

Locatello, L; Mazzoldi, C; Rasotto, M B

2002-11-01

The black goby, Gobius niger, shows alternative male mating tactics, i.e., parental and sneaker males. Males release a sexual pheromone that attracts females and stimulates aggressive displays in males. This pheromone is produced by the mesorchial gland, a structure well developed in parental males but markedly undeveloped in sneakers. We measured the behavioral response of parental males to the ejaculates of males performing different reproductive tactics. Parental males reacted to the ejaculate of other parental males, with stereotypic aggressive behaviors, but not to the ejaculate of sneakers; consequently sneaker male ejaculate appears to be pheromonally inconspicuous. Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Pheromones: isolation of male sex attractants from a female primate.

PubMed

Michael, R P; Keverne, E B; Bonsall, R W

1971-05-28

Fractionation of vaginal secretions from rhesus monkeys by partitioning and chromatographic procedures, combined with behavioral studies, demonstrates that short-chain aliphatic acids are responsible for stimulating the sexual behavior of males. Injection of estradiol into ovariectomized females increases the concentration of volatile acids in secretions which will then sexually stimulate these male primates.

Experimental evolution of a sexually selected display in yeast

PubMed Central

Rogers, David W.; Greig, Duncan

2008-01-01

The fundamental principle underlying sexual selection theory is that an allele conferring an advantage in the competition for mates will spread through a population. Remarkably, this has never been demonstrated empirically. We have developed an experimental system using yeast for testing genetic models of sexual selection. Yeast signal to potential partners by producing an attractive pheromone; stronger signallers are preferred as mates. We tested the effect of high and low levels of sexual selection on the evolution of a gene determining the strength of this signal. Under high sexual selection, an allele encoding a stronger signal was able to invade a population of weak signallers, and we observed a corresponding increase in the amount of pheromone produced. By contrast, the strong signalling allele failed to invade under low sexual selection. Our results demonstrate, for the first time, the spread of a sexually selected allele through a population, confirming the central assumption of sexual selection theory. Our yeast system is a powerful tool for investigating the genetics of sexual selection. PMID:18842545

Multifunctional queen pheromone and maintenance of reproductive harmony in termite colonies.

PubMed

Matsuura, Kenji

2012-06-01

Pheromones are likely involved in all social activities of social insects including foraging, sexual behavior, defense, nestmate recognition, and caste regulation. Regulation of the number of fertile queens requires communication between reproductive and non-reproductive individuals. Queen-produced pheromones have long been believed to be the main factor inhibiting the differentiation of new reproductive individuals. However, since the discovery more than 50 years ago of the queen honeybee substance that inhibits the queen-rearing behavior of workers, little progress has been made in the chemical identification of inhibitory queen pheromones in other social insects. The recent identification of a termite queen pheromone and subsequent studies have elucidated the multifaceted roles of volatile pheromones, including functions such as a fertility signal, worker attractant, queen-queen communication signal, and antimicrobial agent. The proximate origin and evolutionary parsimony of the termite queen pheromone also are discussed.

Behavioural evidence of male volatile pheromones in the sex-role reversed wolf spiders Allocosa brasiliensis and Allocosa alticeps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aisenberg, Anita; Baruffaldi, Luciana; González, Macarena

2010-01-01

The use of chemical signals in a sexual context is widespread in the animal kingdom. Most studies in spiders report the use of female pheromones that attract potential sexual partners. Allocosa brasiliensis and Allocosa alticeps are two burrowing wolf spiders that show sex-role reversal. Females locate male burrows and initiate courtship before males perform any detectable visual or vibratory signal. So, females of these species would be detecting chemical or mechanical cues left by males. Our objective was to explore the potential for male pheromones to play a role in mate detection in A. brasiliensis and A. alticeps. We designed two experiments. In Experiment 1, we tested the occurrence of male contact pheromones by evaluating female courtship when exposed to empty burrows constructed by males or females (control). In Experiment 2, we tested the existence of male volatile pheromones by evaluating female behaviour when exposed to artificial burrows connected to tubes containing males, females or empty tubes (control). Our results suggest the occurrence of male volatile pheromones that trigger female courtship in both Allocosa species. The sex-role reversal postulated for these wolf spiders could be driving the consequent reversal in typical pheromone-emitter and detector roles expected for spiders.

The role of juvenile hormone in immune function and pheromone production trade-offs: a test of the immunocompetence handicap principle.

PubMed Central

Rantala, Markus J; Vainikka, Anssi; Kortet, Raine

2003-01-01

The immunocompetence handicap hypothesis postulates that secondary sexual traits are honest signals of mate quality because the hormones (e.g. testosterone) needed to develop secondary sexual traits have immunosuppressive effects. The best support for predictions arising from the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis so far comes from studies of insects, although they lack male-specific hormones such as testosterone. In our previous studies, we found that female mealworm beetles prefer pheromones of immunocompetent males. Here, we tested how juvenile hormone (JH) affects male investment in secondary sexual characteristics and immune functions in the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor. We injected male mealworm beetles with JH (type III) and found that injection increased the attractiveness of male pheromones but simultaneously suppressed immune functions (phenoloxidase activity and encapsulation). Our results suggest that JH, which is involved in the control of reproduction and morphogenesis, also plays a central role in the regulation of a trade-off between the immune system and sexual advertisement in insects. Thus, the results reflect a general mechanism by which the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis may work in insects. PMID:14613612

Female choice reveals terminal investment in male mealworm beetles, Tenebrio molitor, after a repeated activation of the immune system.

PubMed

Krams, I; Daukšte, J; Kivleniece, I; Krama, T; Rantala, M J; Ramey, G; Šauša, L

2011-01-01

Increasing evidence suggests that secondary sexual traits reflect immunocompetence of males in many animal species. This study experimentally investigated whether a parasite-like immunological challenge via a nylon implant affects sexual attractiveness of males in Tenebrio molitor L. (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) Although a single immunological challenge significantly reduced sexual attractiveness and locomotor activity of males, it had no adverse effect on their survival. A second immune challenge of the same males increased their attractiveness. However, it was found that the repeated challenge significantly reduced locomotor activity of males and caused higher mortality. This result indicates terminal investment on sexual signaling, which is supposedly based on a trade-off between pheromone production and energy expenditures needed for such activities as recovery of immune system and locomotor activity. When the third implantation was carried out in the same group of males, melanization of nylon implants was found to be lower in more attractive than in less attractive males. This suggests that males that became sexually attractive after the second immune challenge did not invest in recovery of their immune system.

Female Choice Reveals Terminal Investment in Male Mealworm Beetles, Tenebrio molitor, after a Repeated Activation of the Immune System

PubMed Central

Krams, I; Daukšte, J; Kivleniece, I; Krama, T; Rantala, MJ; Ramey, G; Šauša, L

2011-01-01

Increasing evidence suggests that secondary sexual traits reflect immunocompetence of males in many animal species. This study experimentally investigated whether a parasite-like immunological challenge via a nylon implant affects sexual attractiveness of males in Tenebrio molitor L. (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) Although a single immunological challenge significantly reduced sexual attractiveness and locomotor activity of males, it had no adverse effect on their survival. A second immune challenge of the same males increased their attractiveness. However, it was found that the repeated challenge significantly reduced locomotor activity of males and caused higher mortality. This result indicates terminal investment on sexual signaling, which is supposedly based on a trade-off between pheromone production and energy expenditures needed for such activities as recovery of immune system and locomotor activity. When the third implantation was carried out in the same group of males, melanization of nylon implants was found to be lower in more attractive than in less attractive males. This suggests that males that became sexually attractive after the second immune challenge did not invest in recovery of their immune system. PMID:21864151

Inbreeding affects sexual signalling in males but not females of Tenebrio molitor.

PubMed

Pölkki, Mari; Krams, Indrikis; Kangassalo, Katariina; Rantala, Markus J

2012-06-23

In many species of animals, individuals advertise their quality with sexual signals to obtain mates. Chemical signals such as volatile pheromones are species specific, and their primary purpose is to influence mate choice by carrying information about the phenotypic and genetic quality of the sender. The deleterious effects of consanguineous mating on individual quality are generally known, whereas the effect of inbreeding on sexual signalling is poorly understood. Here, we tested whether inbreeding reduces the attractiveness of sexual signalling in the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, by testing the preferences for odours of inbred and outbred (control) individuals of the opposite sex. Females were more attracted to the odours produced by outbred males than the odours produced by inbred males, suggesting that inbreeding reduces the attractiveness of male sexual signalling. However, we did not find any difference between the attractiveness of inbred and outbred female odours, which may indicate that the quality of females is either irrelevant for T. molitor males or quality is not revealed through female odours.

Inbreeding affects sexual signalling in males but not females of Tenebrio molitor

PubMed Central

Pölkki, Mari; Krams, Indrikis; Kangassalo, Katariina; Rantala, Markus J.

2012-01-01

In many species of animals, individuals advertise their quality with sexual signals to obtain mates. Chemical signals such as volatile pheromones are species specific, and their primary purpose is to influence mate choice by carrying information about the phenotypic and genetic quality of the sender. The deleterious effects of consanguineous mating on individual quality are generally known, whereas the effect of inbreeding on sexual signalling is poorly understood. Here, we tested whether inbreeding reduces the attractiveness of sexual signalling in the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, by testing the preferences for odours of inbred and outbred (control) individuals of the opposite sex. Females were more attracted to the odours produced by outbred males than the odours produced by inbred males, suggesting that inbreeding reduces the attractiveness of male sexual signalling. However, we did not find any difference between the attractiveness of inbred and outbred female odours, which may indicate that the quality of females is either irrelevant for T. molitor males or quality is not revealed through female odours. PMID:22237501

Sex-pairing pheromones and reproductive isolation in three sympatric Cornitermes species (Isoptera, Termitidae, Syntermitinae).

PubMed

Bordereau, Christian; Cancello, Eliana M; Sillam-Dussès, David; Sémon, Etienne

2011-04-01

The species-specificity of pairing has been studied in three sympatric Neotropical termites: Cornitermes bequaerti, Cornitermes cumulans and Cornitermes silvestrii (Termitidae, Syntermitinae). Bioassays showed that sex attraction was highly species-specific between C. bequaerti and C. cumulans but not between C. cumulans and C. silvestrii. The sex-pairing pheromone of the three species is secreted by the tergal glands of female alates. It consists of a common compound (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol. In C. bequaerti, this polyunsaturated alcohol is the only compound of the sex-pairing pheromone, whereas it is associated with the oxygenated sesquiterpene (E)-nerolidol in C. cumulans, and with (E)-nerolidol and (Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol in C. silvestrii. (3Z,6Z,8E)-Dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol is responsible for sexual attraction, whereas (E)-nerolidol, which is inactive in eliciting attraction of male alates, is responsible for the species-specificity of the attraction. This is the first time that a multicomponent sex-pairing pheromone has been identified in termites. The role of (Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol present on the surface of the tergal glands of the female alates of C. silvestrii could not be definitively determined, but it is suggested that this compound could be involved in the species-specificity of sex attraction with other sympatric species of Cornitermes. Our study shows that the reproductive isolation in termites is due to a succession of factors, as the chronology of dispersal flights, the species-specificity of sex-pairing pheromones and the species-specific recognition. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A new class of mealybug pheromones: a hemiterpene ester in the sex pheromone of Crisicoccus matsumotoi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabata, Jun; Narai, Yutaka; Sawamura, Nobuo; Hiradate, Syuntaro; Sugie, Hajime

2012-07-01

Mealybugs, which include several agricultural pests, are small sap feeders covered with a powdery wax. They exhibit clear sexual dimorphism; males are winged but fragile and short lived, whereas females are windless and less mobile. Thus, sex pheromones emitted by females facilitate copulation and reproduction by serving as a key navigation tool for males. Although the structures of the hitherto known mealybug pheromones vary among species, they have a common structural motif; they are carboxylic esters of monoterpene alcohols with irregular non-head-to-tail linkages. However, in the present study, we isolated from the Matsumoto mealybug, Crisicoccus matsumotoi (Siraiwa), a pheromone with a completely different structure. Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we identified the pheromone as 3-methyl-3-butenyl 5-methylhexanoate. Its attractiveness to males was confirmed in a series of field trapping experiments involving comparison between the isolated natural product and a synthetic sample. This is the first report of a hemiterpene mealybug pheromone. In addition, the acid moiety (5-methylhexanoate) appears to be rare in insect pheromones.

A honey bee odorant receptor for the queen substance 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid

PubMed Central

Wanner, Kevin W.; Nichols, Andrew S.; Walden, Kimberly K. O.; Brockmann, Axel; Luetje, Charles W.; Robertson, Hugh M.

2007-01-01

By using a functional genomics approach, we have identified a honey bee [Apis mellifera (Am)] odorant receptor (Or) for the queen substance 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid (9-ODA). Honey bees live in large eusocial colonies in which a single queen is responsible for reproduction, several thousand sterile female worker bees complete a myriad of tasks to maintain the colony, and several hundred male drones exist only to mate. The “queen substance” [also termed the queen retinue pheromone (QRP)] is an eight-component pheromone that maintains the queen's dominance in the colony. The main component, 9-ODA, acts as a releaser pheromone by attracting workers to the queen and as a primer pheromone by physiologically inhibiting worker ovary development; it also acts as a sex pheromone, attracting drones during mating flights. However, the extent to which social and sexual chemical messages are shared remains unresolved. By using a custom chemosensory-specific microarray and qPCR, we identified four candidate sex pheromone Ors (AmOr10, -11, -18, and -170) from the honey bee genome based on their biased expression in drone antennae. We assayed the pheromone responsiveness of these receptors by using Xenopus oocytes and electrophysiology. AmOr11 responded specifically to 9-ODA (EC50 = 280 ± 31 nM) and not to any of the other seven QRP components, other social pheromones, or floral odors. We did not observe any responses of the other three Ors to any of the eight QRP pheromone components, suggesting 9-ODA is the only QRP component that also acts as a long-distance sex pheromone. PMID:17761794

Fatal attraction: sexually cannibalistic invaders attract naive native mantids

PubMed Central

Fea, Murray P.; Stanley, Margaret C.; Holwell, Gregory I.

2013-01-01

Overlap in the form of sexual signals such as pheromones raises the possibility of reproductive interference by invasive species on similar, yet naive native species. Here, we test the potential for reproductive interference through heterospecific mate attraction and subsequent predation of males by females of a sexually cannibalistic invasive praying mantis. Miomantis caffra is invasive in New Zealand, where it is widely considered to be displacing the only native mantis species, Orthodera novaezealandiae, and yet mechanisms behind this displacement are unknown. We demonstrate that native males are more attracted to the chemical cues of introduced females than those of conspecific females. Heterospecific pairings also resulted in a high degree of mortality for native males. This provides evidence for a mechanism behind displacement that has until now been undetected and highlights the potential for reproductive interference to greatly influence the impact of an invasive species. PMID:24284560

Sensation in a single neuron pair represses male behavior in hermaphrodites

PubMed Central

White, Jamie Q.; Jorgensen, Erik M.

2012-01-01

Summary Pheromones elicit innate sex-specific mating behaviors in many species. We demonstrate that in C. elegans, male-specific sexual attraction behavior is programmed in both sexes but repressed in hermaphrodites. Repression requires a single sensory neuron pair, the ASIs. To represses attraction in adults, the ASIs must be present, active, and capable of sensing the environment during development. The ASIs release TGF-β, and ASI function can be bypassed by experimental activation of TGF-β signaling. Sexual attraction in de-repressed hermaphrodites requires the same sensory neurons as in males. The sexual identity of both these sensory neurons and a distinct subset of interneurons must be male to relieve repression and release attraction. TGF-β may therefore act to change connections between sensory- and interneurons during development to engage repression. Thus, sensation in a single sensory neuron pair during development reprograms a common neural circuit from male to female behavior. PMID:22920252

Effects of sex pheromones and sexual maturation on locomotor activity in female sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walaszczyk, Erin J.; Johnson, Nicholas S.; Steibel, Juan Pedro; Li, Weiming

2013-01-01

Synchronization of male and female locomotor rhythmicity can play a vital role in ensuring reproductive success. Several physiological and environmental factors alter these locomotor rhythms. As sea lamprey, Petromyzon marinus, progress through their life cycle, their locomotor activity rhythm changes multiple times. The goal of this study was to elucidate the activity patterns of adult female sea lamprey during the sexual maturation process and discern the interactions of these patterns with exposure to male pheromones. During these stages, preovulated and ovulated adult females are exposed to sex pheromone compounds, which are released by spermiated males and attract ovulated females to the nest for spawning. The locomotor behavior of adult females was monitored in a natural stream with a passive integrated tag responder system as they matured, and they were exposed to a sex pheromone treatment (spermiated male washings) or a control (prespermiated male washings). Results showed that, dependent on the hour of day, male sex pheromone compounds reduce total activity (p < 0.05) and cause increases in activity during several daytime hours in preovulated and ovulated females. These results are one of the first examples of how sex pheromones modulate a locomotor rhythm in a vertebrate, and they suggest that the interaction between maturity stage and sex pheromone exposure contributes to the differential locomotor rhythms found in adult female sea lamprey. This phenomenon may contribute to the reproductive synchrony of mature adults, thus increasing reproductive success in this species.

A conserved neuronal DAF-16/FoxO plays an important role in conveying pheromone signals to elicit repulsion behavior in Caenorhabditis elegans.

PubMed

Park, Donha; Hahm, Jeong-Hoon; Park, Saeram; Ha, Go; Chang, Gyeong-Eon; Jeong, Haelim; Kim, Heekyeong; Kim, Sunhee; Cheong, Eunji; Paik, Young-Ki

2017-08-03

Animals use pheromones as a conspecific chemical language to respond appropriately to environmental changes. The soil nematode Caenorhabditis elegans secretes ascaroside pheromones throughout the lifecycle, which influences entry into dauer phase in early larvae, in addition to sexual attraction and aggregation. In adult hermaphrodites, pheromone sensory signals perceived by worms usually elicit repulsion as an initial behavioral signature. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying neuronal pheromone sensory process from perception to repulsion in adult hermaphrodites remain poorly understood. Here, we show that pheromone signals perceived by GPA-3 is conveyed through glutamatergic neurotransmission in which neuronal DAF-16/FoxO plays an important modulatory role by controlling glutaminase gene expression. We further provide evidence that this modulatory role for DAF-16/FoxO seems to be conserved evolutionarily by electro-physiological study in mouse primary hippocampal neurons that are responsible for glutamatergic neurotransmission. These findings provide the basis for understanding the nematode pheromone signaling, which seems crucial for adaptation of adult hermaphrodites to changes in environmental condition for survival.

Chemical Characterization of Young Virgin Queens and Mated Egg-Laying Queens in the Ant Cataglyphis cursor: Random Forest Classification Analysis for Multivariate Datasets.

PubMed

Monnin, Thibaud; Helft, Florence; Leroy, Chloé; d'Ettorre, Patrizia; Doums, Claudie

2018-02-01

Social insects are well known for their extremely rich chemical communication, yet their sex pheromones remain poorly studied. In the thermophilic and thelytokous ant, Cataglyphis cursor, we analyzed the cuticular hydrocarbon profiles and Dufour's gland contents of queens of different age and reproductive status (sexually immature gynes, sexually mature gynes, mated and egg-laying queens) and of workers. Random forest classification analyses showed that the four groups of individuals were well separated for both chemical sources, except mature gynes that clustered with queens for cuticular hydrocarbons and with immature gynes for Dufour's gland secretions. Analyses carried out with two groups of females only allowed identification of candidate chemicals for queen signal and for sexual attractant. In particular, gynes produced more undecane in the Dufour's gland. This chemical is both the sex pheromone and the alarm pheromone of the ant Formica lugubris. It may therefore act as sex pheromone in C. cursor, and/or be involved in the restoration of monogyny that occurs rapidly following colony fission. Indeed, new colonies often start with several gynes and all but one are rapidly culled by workers, and this process likely involves chemical signals between gynes and workers. These findings open novel opportunities for experimental studies of inclusive mate choice and queen choice in C. cursor.

With or without pheromone habituation: possible differences between insect orders?

PubMed

Suckling, David Maxwell; Stringer, Lloyd D; Jiménez-Pérez, Alfredo; Walter, Gimme H; Sullivan, Nicola; El-Sayed, Ashraf M

2018-06-01

Habituation to sex pheromones is one of the key mechanisms in mating disruption, an insect control tactic. Male moths often show reduced sexual response after pre-exposure to female sex pheromone. Mating disruption is relatively rare in insect orders other than Lepidoptera. As a positive control we confirmed habituation in a moth (Epiphyas postvittana) using 24 h pre-exposure to sex pheromone to reduce subsequent activation behaviour. We then tested the impact of pre-exposure to sex or trail pheromone on subsequent behavioural response with insects from three other orders. Similar pre-exposure for 24 h to either sex pheromone [Pseudococcus calceolariae (Homoptera) and apple leaf curling midge Dasineura mali (Diptera), or trail pheromone of Argentine ants (Linepithema humile (Hymenoptera)], followed by behavioural assay in clean air provided no evidence of habituation after pre-exposure in these latter cases. The moths alone were affected by pre-exposure to pheromone. For pests without habituation, sustained attraction to a point source may make lure and kill more economical. Improved knowledge of behavioural processes should lead to better success in pest management and mechanisms should be investigated further to inform studies and practical efforts generally enhancing effectiveness of pheromone-based management. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Pretreatment with CP-154526 blocks the modifying effects of alarm pheromone on components of sexual behavior in male, but not in female, rats.

PubMed

Kobayashi, Tatsuya; Kiyokawa, Yasushi; Takeuchi, Yukari; Mori, Yuji

2011-09-01

We previously demonstrated that an alarm pheromone released from male donor Wistar rats evoked several physiological and behavioral responses in recipient rats. However, the pheromone effects on social behavior were not analyzed. In the present study, we examined whether the alarm pheromone affects sexual behavior in male or female rats. When a pair of male and female subjects was exposed to the alarm pheromone during sexual behavior, the ejaculation latency was elongated, the number of mounts was increased, and the hit rate (number of intromissions/number of mounts and intromissions) was decreased in the male subject. In contrast, female sexual behavior was not affected by the alarm pheromone. When we exposed only the male or female subject of the pair to the pheromone just before sexual behavior, the results were similar: the pheromone effects were evident in male, but not in female, subjects. In addition, when we pretreated with corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) antagonist (CP-154526) before exposing the male subject to the alarm pheromone, the pheromone effects were attenuated in a dose-dependent manner. These results indicate that the alarm pheromone modifies male, but not female, components of sexual behavior and that CRF participates in the effects.

Sex and Aggregation-Sex Pheromones of Cerambycid Beetles: Basic Science and Practical Applications.

PubMed

Hanks, Lawrence M; Millar, Jocelyn G

2016-07-01

Research since 2004 has shown that the use of volatile attractants and pheromones is widespread in the large beetle family Cerambycidae, with pheromones now identified from more than 100 species, and likely pheromones for many more. The pheromones identified to date from species in the subfamilies Cerambycinae, Spondylidinae, and Lamiinae are all male-produced aggregation-sex pheromones that attract both sexes, whereas all known examples for species in the subfamilies Prioninae and Lepturinae are female-produced sex pheromones that attract only males. Here, we summarize the chemistry of the known pheromones, and the optimal methods for their collection, analysis, and synthesis. Attraction of cerambycids to host plant volatiles, interactions between their pheromones and host plant volatiles, and the implications of pheromone chemistry for invasion biology are discussed. We also describe optimized traps, lures, and operational parameters for practical applications of the pheromones in detection, sampling, and management of cerambycids.

Evidence for partial overlap of male olfactory cues in lampreys

USGS Publications Warehouse

Buchinger, Tyler J.; Li, Ke; Huertas, Mar; Baker, Cindy F.; Jia, Liang; Hayes, Michael C.; Li, Weiming; Johnson, Nicholas S.

2016-01-01

Animals rely on a mosaic of complex information to find and evaluate mates. Pheromones, often comprised of multiple components, are considered to be particularly important for species-recognition in many species. While the evolution of species-specific pheromone blends is well-described in many insects, very few vertebrate pheromones have been studied in a macro-evolutionary context. Here, we report a phylogenetic comparison of multi-component male odours that guide reproduction in lampreys. Chemical profiling of sexually mature males from eleven species of lamprey, representing six of ten genera and two of three families, indicated the chemical profiles of sexually mature male odours are partially shared among species. Behavioural assays conducted with four species sympatric in the Laurentian Great Lakes indicated asymmetric female responses to heterospecific odours, where Petromyzon marinus were attracted to male odour collected from all species tested but other species generally preferred only the odour of conspecifics. Electro-olfactogram recordings from P. marinusindicated that although P. marinus exhibited behavioural responses to odours from males of all species, at least some of the compounds that elicited olfactory responses were different in conspecific male odours compared to heterospecific male odours. We conclude that some of the compounds released by sexually mature males are shared among species and elicit olfactory and behavioural responses in P. marinus, and suggest that our results provide evidence for partial overlap of male olfactory cues among lampreys. Further characterization of the chemical identities of odour components is needed to confirm shared pheromones among species.

Floral visual signal increases reproductive success in a sexually deceptive orchid

PubMed Central

Streinzer, Martin; Paulus, Hannes F.; Spaethe, Johannes

2013-01-01

Sexually deceptive orchids mimic signals emitted by female insects in order to attract mate-searching males. Specific attraction of the targeted pollinator is achieved by sex pheromone mimicry, which constitutes the major attraction channel. In close vicinity of the flower, visual signals may enhance attraction, as was shown recently in the sexually deceptive orchid Ophrys heldreichii. Here, we conducted an in situ manipulation experiment in two populations of O. heldreichii on Crete to investigate whether the presence/absence of the conspicuous pink perianth affects reproductive success in two natural orchid populations. We estimated reproductive success of three treatment groups (with intact, removed and artificial perianth) throughout the flowering period as pollinaria removal (male reproductive success) and massulae deposition (female reproductive success). Reproductive success was significantly increased by the presence of a strong visual signal—the conspicuous perianth—in one study population, however, not in the second, most likely due to the low pollinator abundance in the latter population. This study provides further evidence that the coloured perianth in O. heldreichii is adaptive and thus adds to the olfactory signal to maximise pollinator attraction and reproductive success. PMID:23750181

Floral visual signal increases reproductive success in a sexually deceptive orchid.

PubMed

Rakosy, Demetra; Streinzer, Martin; Paulus, Hannes F; Spaethe, Johannes

2012-12-01

Sexually deceptive orchids mimic signals emitted by female insects in order to attract mate-searching males. Specific attraction of the targeted pollinator is achieved by sex pheromone mimicry, which constitutes the major attraction channel. In close vicinity of the flower, visual signals may enhance attraction, as was shown recently in the sexually deceptive orchid Ophrys heldreichii . Here, we conducted an in situ manipulation experiment in two populations of O. heldreichii on Crete to investigate whether the presence/absence of the conspicuous pink perianth affects reproductive success in two natural orchid populations. We estimated reproductive success of three treatment groups (with intact, removed and artificial perianth) throughout the flowering period as pollinaria removal (male reproductive success) and massulae deposition (female reproductive success). Reproductive success was significantly increased by the presence of a strong visual signal-the conspicuous perianth-in one study population, however, not in the second, most likely due to the low pollinator abundance in the latter population. This study provides further evidence that the coloured perianth in O. heldreichii is adaptive and thus adds to the olfactory signal to maximise pollinator attraction and reproductive success.

Assessment of commercially available pheromone lures for monitoring diamondback moth (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) in canola.

PubMed

Evenden, M L; Gries, R

2010-06-01

Sex pheromone monitoring lures from five different commercial sources were compared for their attractiveness to male diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella L. (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) in canola, Brassica napus L., fields in western Canada. Lures that had the highest pheromone release rate, as determined by aeration analyses in the laboratory, were the least attractive in field tests. Lures from all the commercial sources tested released more (Z)-11-hexadecenal than (Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate and the most attractive lures released a significantly higher aldehyde to acetate ratio than less attractive lures. Traps baited with sex pheromone lures from APTIV Inc. (Portland, OR) and ConTech Enterprises Inc. (Delta, BC, Canada) consistently captured more male diamondback moths than traps baited with lures from the other sources tested. In two different lure longevity field trapping experiments, older lures were more attractive to male diamondback moths than fresh lures. Pheromone release from aged lures was constant at very low release rates. The most attractive commercially available sex pheromone lures tested attracted fewer diamondback moth males than calling virgin female moths suggesting that research on the development of a more attractive synthetic sex pheromone lure is warranted.

Honeybee drones are attracted by groups of consexuals in a walking simulator.

PubMed

Brandstaetter, Andreas Simon; Bastin, Florian; Sandoz, Jean-Christophe

2014-04-15

During the mating season, honeybee males, the drones, gather in congregation areas 10-40 m above ground. When a receptive female, a queen, enters the congregation, drones are attracted to her by queen-produced pheromones and visual cues and attempt to mate with the queen in mid-air. It is still unclear how drones and queens find the congregations. Visual cues on the horizon are most probably used for long-range orientation. For shorter-range orientation, however, attraction by a drone-produced aggregation pheromone has been proposed, yet so far its existence has not been confirmed conclusively. The low accessibility of congregation areas high up in the air is a major hurdle and precise control of experimental conditions often remains unsatisfactory in field studies. Here, we used a locomotion compensator-based walking simulator to investigate drones' innate odor preferences under controlled laboratory conditions. We tested behavioral responses of drones to 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid (9-ODA), the major queen-produced sexual attractant, and to queen mandibular pheromone (QMP), an artificial blend of 9-ODA and several other queen-derived components. While 9-ODA strongly dominates the odor bouquet of virgin queens, QMP rather resembles the bouquet of mated queens. In our assay, drones were attracted by 9-ODA, but not by QMP. We also investigated the potential attractiveness of male-derived odors by testing drones' orientation responses to the odor bouquet of groups of 10 living drones or workers. Our results demonstrate that honeybee drones are attracted by groups of other drones (but not by workers), which may indicate a role of drone-emitted cues for the formation of congregations.

Presence of Putative Male-Produced Sex Pheromone in Lutzomyia cruciata (Diptera: Psychodidae), Vector of Leishmania mexicana.

PubMed

Serrano, A K; Rojas, J C; Cruz-López, L C; Malo, Edi A; Mikery, O F; Castillo, A

2016-11-01

Lutzomyia cruciata (Coquillet) is a vector of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Mexico and Central America. However, several aspects of its ecology and behavior are unknown, including whether a male pheromone partially mediates the sexual behavior of this sand fly. In this study, we evaluated the behavioral response of females to male abdominal extracts in a Y-tube olfactometer. The volatile compounds from male abdominal extracts were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and compared with those of female abdominal extracts. Finally, the disseminating structures of the putative sex pheromone were examined by scanning electron microscopy in the male abdomen. Females were more attracted to male abdominal extract than to the hexane control, suggesting the presence of male-produced sex pheromone. The male abdominal extracts were characterized by the presence of 12 sesquiterpene compounds. The major component, an unknown sesquiterpene with an abundance of 60%, had a mass spectrum with molecular ion of m/z 262. In contrast, the abdominal female extracts contained saturated fatty acids. Finally, we detected the presence of small "papules" with a mammiform morphology distributed on the abdominal surface of tergites IV-VII of male Lu. cruciata These structures are not present in females. We conclude that Lu. cruciata males likely produce a pheromone involved in attracting or courting females. © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Knockdown of a metathoracic scent gland desaturase enhances the production of (E)-4-oxo-2-hexenal and suppresses female sexual attraction in the plant bug, Adelphocoris suturalis

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Insect sex pheromones (SPs) are central to mate-finding behavior, and play an essential role in the survival and reproduction of organisms. Understanding the roles, biosynthetic pathways, and evolution of insect chemical communication systems has been an exciting challenge for biologists. Compared w...

Cuticular hydrocarbons as sex pheromone of the bee Colletes cunicularius and the key to its mimicry by the sexually deceptive orchid, Ophrys exaltata.

PubMed

Mant, Jim; Brändli, Christoph; Vereecken, Nicolas J; Schulz, Claudia M; Francke, Wittko; Schiestl, Florian P

2005-08-01

Male Colletes cunicularius bees pollinate the orchid, Ophrys exaltata, after being sexually deceived by the orchid's odor-mimicry of the female bee's sex pheromone. We detected biologically active volatiles of C. cunicularius by using gas chromatographic-electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) with simultaneous flame ionization detection. After identification of the target compounds by coupled gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS), we performed behavioral tests using synthetic blends of the active components. We detected 22 EAD active compounds in cuticular extracts of C. cunicularius females. Blends of straight chain, odd-numbered alkanes and (Z)-7-alkenes with 21-29 carbon atoms constituted the major biologically active compounds. Alkenes were the key compounds releasing mating behavior, especially those with (Z)-7 unsaturation. Comparison of patterns of bee volatiles with those of O. exaltata subsp. archipelagi revealed that all EAD-active compounds were also found in extracts of orchid labella. Previous studies of the mating behavior in C. cunicularius showed linalool to be an important attractant for patrolling males. We confirmed this with synthetic linalool but found that it rarely elicited copulatory behavior, in accordance with previous studies. A blend of active cuticular compounds with linalool elicited both attraction and copulation behavior in patrolling males. Thus, linalool appears to function as a long-range attractant, whereas cuticular hydrocarbons are necessary for inducing short-range mating behavior.

Characteristic odor of Osmoderma eremita identified as a male-released pheromone.

PubMed

Larsson, Mattias C; Hedin, Jonas; Svensson, Glenn P; Tolasch, Till; Francke, Wittko

2003-03-01

Osmoderma eremita (Scopoli) is an endangered scarab beetle living in hollow trees. It has mainly been known for its characteristic odor, typically described as a fruity, peachlike or plumlike aroma. The odor emanating from a single beetle can sometimes be perceived from a distance of several meters. In this paper, we show that the characteristic odor from O. eremita is caused by the compound (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone, released in large quantities mainly or exclusively by male beetles. Antennae from male and female beetles responded in a similar way to (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone in electroantennographic recordings. Field trapping experiments showed that (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone is a pheromone attracting female beetles. Lactones similar to (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone are frequently used as female-released sex pheromones by phytophagous scarabs. This is, however, the first evidence of a lactone used as a male-produced pheromone in scarab beetles. We propose that the strong signal from males is a sexually selected trait used to compete for females and matings. The signal could work within trees but also act as a guide to tree hollows, which are an essential resource for O. eremita. Males may, thus, attract females dispersing from their natal tree by advertising a suitable habitat. This signal could also be exploited by other males searching for tree hollows or for females, which would explain the catch of several males in our traps.

Pheromones and pheromone receptors are required for proper sexual development in the homothallic ascomycete Sordaria macrospora.

PubMed

Mayrhofer, Severine; Weber, Jan M; Pöggeler, Stefanie

2006-03-01

The homothallic, filamentous ascomycete Sordaria macrospora is self-fertile and produces sexual fruiting bodies (perithecia) without a mating partner. Even so, S. macrospora transcriptionally expresses two pheromone-precursor genes (ppg1 and ppg2) and two pheromone-receptor genes (pre1 and pre2). The proteins encoded by these genes are similar to alpha-factor-like and a-factor-like pheromones and to G-protein-coupled pheromone receptors of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It has been suggested that in S. macrospora, PPG1/PRE2 and PPG2/PRE1 form two cognate pheromone-receptor pairs. To investigate their function, we deleted (delta) pheromone-precursor genes (delta ppg1, delta ppg2) and receptor genes (delta pre1, delta pre2) and generated single- as well as double-knockout strains. No effect on vegetative growth, fruiting-body, and ascospore development was seen in the single pheromone-mutant and receptor-mutant strains, respectively. However, double-knockout strains lacking any compatible pheromone-receptor pair (delta pre2/delta ppg2, delta pre1/delta ppg1) and the double-pheromone mutant (delta ppg1/delta ppg2) displayed a drastically reduced number of perithecia and sexual spores, whereas deletion of both receptor genes (delta pre1/delta pre2) completely eliminated fruiting-body and ascospore formation. The results suggest that pheromones and pheromone receptors are required for optimal sexual reproduction of the homothallic S. macrospora.

Sexual Biofilm Formation in Candida tropicalis Opaque Cells

PubMed Central

Jones, Stephen K.; Hirakawa, Matthew P.; Bennett, Richard J.

2014-01-01

Summary Candida albicans and Candida tropicalis are opportunistic fungal pathogens that can transition between white and opaque phenotypic states. White and opaque cells differ both morphologically and in their responses to environmental signals. In C. albicans, opaque cells respond to sexual pheromones by undergoing conjugation, while white cells are induced by pheromones to form sexual biofilms. Here, we show that sexual biofilm formation also occurs in C. tropicalis but, unlike C. albicans, biofilms are formed exclusively by opaque cells. C. tropicalis biofilm formation was dependent on the pheromone receptors Ste2 and Ste3, confirming the role of pheromone signaling in sexual biofilm development. Structural analysis of C. tropicalis sexual biofilms revealed stratified communities consisting of a basal layer of yeast cells and an upper layer of filamentous cells, together with an extracellular matrix. Transcriptional profiling showed that genes involved in pheromone signaling and conjugation were upregulated in sexual biofilms. Furthermore, FGR23, which encodes an agglutinin-like protein, was found to enhance both mating and sexual biofilm formation. Together, these studies reveal that C. tropicalis opaque cells form sexual biofilms with a complex architecture, and suggest a conserved role for sexual agglutinins in mediating mating, cell cohesion and biofilm formation. PMID:24612417

Old maids have more appeal: effects of age and pheromone source on mate attraction in an orb-web spider.

PubMed

Cory, Anna-Lena; Schneider, Jutta M

2016-01-01

Background. In many insects and spider species, females attract males with volatile sex pheromones, but we know surprisingly little about the costs and benefits of female pheromone emission. Here, we test the hypothesis that mate attraction by females is dynamic and strategic in the sense that investment in mate attraction is matched to the needs of the female. We use the orb-web spider Argiope bruennichi in which females risk the production of unfertilised egg clutches if they do not receive a copulation within a certain time-frame. Methods. We designed field experiments to compare mate attraction by recently matured (young) females with females close to oviposition (old). In addition, we experimentally separated the potential sources of pheromone transmission, namely the female body and the web silk. Results. In accordance with the hypothesis of strategic pheromone production, the probability of mate attraction and the number of males attracted differed between age classes. While the bodies and webs of young females were hardly found by males, the majority of old females attracted up to two males within two hours. Old females not only increased pheromone emission from their bodies but also from their webs. Capture webs alone spun by old females were significantly more efficient in attracting males than webs of younger females. Discussion. Our results suggest that females modulate their investment in signalling according to the risk of remaining unmated and that they thereby economize on the costs associated with pheromone production and emission.

(2E,6Z,9Z)-2,6,9-Pentadecatrienal as a Male-Produced Aggregation-Sex Pheromone of the Cerambycid Beetle Elaphidion mucronatum.

PubMed

Millar, Jocelyn G; Mitchell, Robert F; Meier, Linnea R; Johnson, Todd D; Mongold-Diers, Judith A; Hanks, Lawrence M

2017-12-01

An increasing body of evidence suggests that the volatile pheromones of cerambycid beetles are much more diverse in structure than previously hypothesized. Here, we describe the identification, synthesis, and field testing of (2E,6Z,9Z)-2,6,9-pentadecatrienal as a male-produced aggregation-sex pheromone of the cerambycid Elaphidion mucronatum (Say) (subfamily Cerambycinae, tribe Elaphidiini). This novel structure is unlike any previously described cerambycid pheromone, and in field bioassays attracted only this species. Males produced about 9 μg of pheromone per 24 h period, and, in field trials, lures loaded with 10, 25, and 100 mg of synthetic pheromone attracted beetles of both sexes, whereas lures loaded with 1 mg of pheromone or less were not significantly attractive. Other typical cerambycine pheromones such as 3-hydroxy-2-hexanone, syn-2,3-hexanediol, and anti-2,3-hexanediol were not attractive to E. mucronatum, and when combined with (2E,6Z,9Z)-2,6,9-pentadecatrienal, the former two compounds appeared to inhibit attraction. Unexpectedly, adults of the cerambycine Xylotrechus colonus (F.) were attracted in significant numbers to a blend of 3-hydroxyhexan-2-one and (2E,6Z,9Z)-2,6,9-pentadecatrienal, even though there is no evidence that this species produces the latter compound. From timed pheromone trap catches, adults of E. mucronatum were determined to be active from dusk until shortly after midnight.

Insulin Signaling Mediates Sexual Attractiveness in Drosophila

PubMed Central

Hansen, Ingrid; Dreisewerd, Klaus; Dierick, Herman A.; Yew, Joanne Y.; Pletcher, Scott D.

2012-01-01

Sexually attractive characteristics are often thought to reflect an individual's condition or reproductive potential, but the underlying molecular mechanisms through which they do so are generally unknown. Insulin/insulin-like growth factor signaling (IIS) is known to modulate aging, reproduction, and stress resistance in several species and to contribute to variability of these traits in natural populations. Here we show that IIS determines sexual attractiveness in Drosophila through transcriptional regulation of genes involved in the production of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHC), many of which function as pheromones. Using traditional gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) together with newly introduced laser desorption/ionization orthogonal time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) we establish that CHC profiles are significantly affected by genetic manipulations that target IIS. Manipulations that reduce IIS also reduce attractiveness, while females with increased IIS are significantly more attractive than wild-type animals. IIS effects on attractiveness are mediated by changes in CHC profiles. Insulin signaling influences CHC through pathways that are likely independent of dFOXO and that may involve the nutrient-sensing Target of Rapamycin (TOR) pathway. These results suggest that the activity of conserved molecular regulators of longevity and reproductive output may manifest in different species as external characteristics that are perceived as honest indicators of fitness potential. PMID:22570625

Promising new technology for managing diamondback moth (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) in cabbage with pheromone.

PubMed

Mitchell, Everett R

2002-05-01

Experiments were conducted in plantings of cabbage in spring 1999 and 2000 to evaluate a novel, new matrix system for delivering sex pheromone to suppress sexual communication by diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.). The liquid, viscous, slow-release formulation contained a combination of diamondback moth pheromone, a blend of Z-11-hexadecenyl acetate, 27%:Z-11-hexadecen-1-ol, 1%:Z-11-tetradecen-1-ol, 9%:Z-11-hexadecenal, 63%, and the insecticide permethrin (0.16% and 6% w/w of total formulated material, respectively). Field trapping experiments showed that the lure-toxicant combination was highly attractive to male moths for at least four weeks using as little as a 0.05 g droplet of formulated material per trap; and the permethrin insecticide had no apparent influence on response of moths to lure baited traps. Small field plots of cabbage were treated with the lure-toxicant-matrix combination using droplets of 0.44 and 0.05 g each applied to cabbage in a grid pattern at densities ranging from 990 to 4396 droplets/ha to evaluate the potential for disrupting sexual communication of diamondback moth. There was no significant difference in the level of suppression of sexual communication of diamondback moth, as measured by captures of males in pheromone-baited traps located in the treated plots, versus moths captured in untreated control plots, among the treatments regardless of droplet size (0.05 or 0.44 g) or number of droplets applied per ha. Plots treated with the smallest droplet size (0.05 g) and with the fewest number of droplets per ha (990) suppressed captures of male diamondback moths > 90% for up to 3 weeks post treatment. Although laboratory assays showed that the lure-toxicant combination was 100% effective at killing the diamondback moth, the mode of action in the field trials was not determined. The results indicate that the liquid, viscous, slow release formulation containing diamondback moth pheromone could be used to effectively suppress sexual communication of this pest in cabbage and other crucifers, although as many as three applications probably would be required for suppression over an entire growing season.

Pheromones and Pheromone Receptors Are Required for Proper Sexual Development in the Homothallic Ascomycete Sordaria macrospora

PubMed Central

Mayrhofer, Severine; Weber, Jan M.; Pöggeler, Stefanie

2006-01-01

The homothallic, filamentous ascomycete Sordaria macrospora is self-fertile and produces sexual fruiting bodies (perithecia) without a mating partner. Even so, S. macrospora transcriptionally expresses two pheromone-precursor genes (ppg1 and ppg2) and two pheromone-receptor genes (pre1 and pre2). The proteins encoded by these genes are similar to α-factor-like and a-factor-like pheromones and to G-protein-coupled pheromone receptors of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It has been suggested that in S. macrospora, PPG1/PRE2 and PPG2/PRE1 form two cognate pheromone–receptor pairs. To investigate their function, we deleted (Δ) pheromone-precursor genes (Δppg1, Δppg2) and receptor genes (Δpre1, Δpre2) and generated single- as well as double-knockout strains. No effect on vegetative growth, fruiting-body, and ascospore development was seen in the single pheromone-mutant and receptor-mutant strains, respectively. However, double-knockout strains lacking any compatible pheromone-receptor pair (Δpre2/Δppg2, Δpre1/Δppg1) and the double-pheromone mutant (Δppg1/Δppg2) displayed a drastically reduced number of perithecia and sexual spores, whereas deletion of both receptor genes (Δpre1/Δpre2) completely eliminated fruiting-body and ascospore formation. The results suggest that pheromones and pheromone receptors are required for optimal sexual reproduction of the homothallic S. macrospora. PMID:16387884

A new C12 alcohol identified as a sex pheromone and a trail-following pheromone in termites: the diene (Z,Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol.

PubMed

Robert, Alain; Peppuy, Alexis; Sémon, Etienne; Boyer, François D; Lacey, Michael J; Bordereau, Christian

2004-01-01

The diunsaturated C12 alcohol (Z,Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol (dodecadienol) has been characterized by GC-MS and FTIR as a novel releaser pheromone in termites. This alcohol identified in Ancistrotermes pakistanicus (Termitidae, Macrotermitinae) possesses a double pheromonal function which again illustrates the chemical parsimony of termites compared with other social insects. In workers, dodecadienol elicits trail-following at a very low concentration (activity threshold at 0.1 pg/cm of trail); in male alates it induces trail-following at a low concentration (1-10 pg/cm) and sexual attraction at a higher concentration (about 1 ng). Traces of the monounsaturated C12 alcohol (Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol (dodecenol), known as a trail pheromone of several Macrotermitinae, were also found in the sternal gland extracts of A. pakistanicus, although only dodecadienol was present at the surface of the sternal gland. Workers of A. pakistanicus are not sensitive to dodecenol, but they are as sensitive to dodecatrienol as to dodecadienol. However, in the study area (Vietnam), A. pakistanicus is living in sympatry only with those Macrotermitinae using dodecenol as a trail pheromone, the foraging populations therefore being well isolated through their respective trail pheromones. The presence of three types of unsaturated C12 alcohols as releaser pheromones in the only Macrotermitinae subfamily is discussed, and a possible biosynthetic pathway from linoleic acid is proposed for dodecadienol.

Mating Disruption of the Navel Orangeworm (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) Using Widely Spaced, Aerosol Dispensers: Is the Pheromone Blend the Most Efficacious Disruptant?

PubMed

Higbee, Bradley S; Burks, Charles S; Cardé, Ring T

2017-10-01

The navel orangeworm, Amyelois transitella (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a key pest of almonds and pistachios and is sometimes controlled using mating disruption as part of a program of integrated management. The formulation used has a single, nonattractive compound [(11Z,13Z)-hexadecadienal] as the active ingredient that is emitted from timed aerosol dispensers. This study compared this nonattractive, single-compound formulation with two aerosol formulations also containing two additional compounds [(11Z,13Z)-hexadecadien-1-ol and (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)-tricosapentaene] that are found in the pheromone glands, and that in combination with the aldehyde are attractive in wind-tunnel and field-attraction trials. An experiment in pistachios found 97% to 99% suppression of males captured in female-baited traps and 82-93% suppression of mating in sentinel females. Both assays revealed a trend to greater suppression by the more complete pheromone formulations. In almonds, where the abundance of navel orangeworm was lower, all three formulations suppressed males captured in traps and mating in sentinel females by >99%. Each of the formulations significantly reduced damage to Nonpareil almonds. In almonds, there were no significant differences among the formulations in disruption of sexual communication or in damage. These findings suggest that it may be possible to make mating disruption more cost-effective and to achieve higher levels of mating disruption by using attractive aerosol formulations to reduce the number of dispenser per ha. Such a formulation, however, would be more expensive to register in the United States than pheromones meeting the definition of straight-chain lepidopteran pheromone, including the currently used aldehyde-only formulation. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America 2017. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Attraction of Cerambycid Beetles to Their Aggregation-Sex Pheromones Is Influenced by Volatiles From Host Plants of Their Larvae.

PubMed

Wong, J C H; Zou, Y; Millar, J G; Hanks, L M

2017-06-01

Here, we describe a field experiment that tested for attraction of cerambycid beetles to odors from angiosperm hosts, and whether plant volatiles also serve to enhance attraction of beetles to their aggregation-sex pheromones. Traps were baited with a blend of synthesized chemicals that are common pheromone components of species in the subfamilies Cerambycinae and Lamiinae. The source of plant volatiles was chipped wood from trees of three angiosperm species, as well as from one nonhost, gymnosperm species. Bioassays were conducted in wooded areas of east-central Illinois. Traps were baited with the pheromone blend alone, the blend + wood chips from one tree species, wood chips alone, or a solvent control lure. Seven species of cerambycids were significantly attracted to the pheromone blend, with or without wood chips. In two cases, wood chips from angiosperms appeared to enhance attraction to pheromones, whereas they inhibited attraction in another three cases. Pine chips did not strongly influence attraction of any species. Overall, our results suggest that host plant volatiles from wood chips may improve trap catch with synthesized pheromones for some cerambycid species, but the effect is not general, necessitating case-by-case testing to determine how individual target species are affected. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Intra-annual variation in responses by flying southern pine beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) to pheromone component endo-brevicomin

Treesearch

Brian T. Sullivan; Cavell Brownie; JoAnne P. Barrett

2016-01-01

The southern pine beetle Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmermann (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) is attracted to an aggregation pheromone that includes the multifunctional pheromone component endobrevicomin. The effect of endo-brevicomin on attractive lures varies from strong enhancement to reduction of beetle attraction depending upon release rate, lure component...

Synthetic Co-Attractants of the Aggregation Pheromone of the Date Palm Root Borer Oryctes agamemnon.

PubMed

Hasni, Narjes; Pinier, Centina; Imed, Cheraief; Ouhichi, Monêem; Couzi, Philippe; Chermiti, Brahim; Frérot, Brigitte; Saïd, Imen; Rochat, Didier

2017-07-01

Laboratory and field investigations to identify and evaluate plant co-attractants of the aggregation pheromone of the date palm pest Oryctes agamemnon are reported. Volatiles emitted by freshly cut palm core and palm core with feeding males, were collected, analyzed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry and evaluated in olfactometers alone or combined with synthetic pheromone. A collection of palm odor without male effluvia was attractive alone and enhanced attraction to synthetic pheromone in an olfactometer similar to that to a collection of palm odor emitted with feeding males and containing natural pheromone. Behavioral responses to collections of palm volatiles were correlated to the amount of volatiles material in them. Enhancement of the attractiveness of the pheromone was not correlated to chemicals specific to beetle feeding. The chemicals common to the active collections extracts were benzoate esters, mostly ethyl benzoate, anisole derivatives and sesquiterpenes. Blends of the most abundant components of the extracts were evaluated for enhancement of the attractiveness of pheromone (1 μg) in olfactometers at 1 or 10 μg doses. The mixtures were further evaluated by field trapping in Tunisia at 3-10 mg/day using reference (6 mg/day) or experimental pheromone formulations. A mixture of ethyl benzoate, 4-methylanisole and farnesol (1:1:1 w/w at 6.5 mg/day) enhanced captures in pheromone baited traps in 2014 and 2015 and this mixture was as active as the natural palm bait. The practical prospect of the result for the management for O. agamemnon, and other palm beetles is discussed.

Sexual response of male Drosophila to honey bee queen mandibular pheromone: implications for genetic studies of social insects.

PubMed

Croft, Justin R; Liu, Tom; Camiletti, Alison L; Simon, Anne F; Thompson, Graham J

2017-02-01

Honey bees secrete a queen mandibular pheromone that renders workers reproductively altruistic and drones sexually attentive. This sex-specific function of QMP may have evolved from a sexually dimorphic signaling mechanism derived from pre-social ancestors. If so, there is potential for pre-social insects to respond to QMP, and in a manner that is comparable to its normal effect on workers and drones. Remarkably, QMP applied to female Drosophila does induce worker-like qualities [Camiletti et al. (Entomol Exp Appl 147:262, 2013)], and we here extend this comparison to examine the effects of bee pheromone on male fruit flies. We find that male Drosophila melanogaster consistently orient towards a source of queen pheromone in a T-maze, suggesting a recruitment response comparable to the pheromone's normal effect on drones. Moreover, exposure to QMP renders male flies more sexually attentive; they display intensified pre-copulatory behavior towards conspecific females. We can inhibit this sexual effect through a loss-of-olfactory-function mutation, which suggests that the pheromone-responsive behavioral mechanism is olfactory-driven. These pheromone-induced changes to male Drosophila behavior suggest that aspects of sexual signaling are conserved between these two distantly related taxa. Our results highlight a role for Drosophila as a genetically tractable pre-social model for studies of social insect biology.

Identification and Differential Expression of a Candidate Sex Pheromone Receptor in Natural Populations of Spodoptera litura

PubMed Central

Lin, Xinda; Zhang, Qinhui; Wu, Zhongnan; Du, Yongjun

2015-01-01

Olfaction is primarily mediated by highly specific olfactory receptors (ORs), a subfamily of which are the pheromone receptors that play a key role in sexual communication and can contribute to reproductive isolation. Here we cloned and identified an olfactory receptor, SlituOR3 (Genbank NO. JN835270), from Spodoptera litura, to be the candidate pheromone receptor. It exhibited male-biased expression in the antennae, where they were localized at the base of sensilla trichoidea. Conserved orthologues of these receptors were found amongst known pheromone receptors within the Lepidoptera, and SlituOR3 were placed amongst a clade of candidate pheromone receptors in a phylogeny tree of insect ORs. SlituOR3 is required for the EAG responses to both Z9E11-14:OAc and Z9E12-14:OAc SlituOR3 showed differential expression in S. litura populations attracted to traps baited with a series of sex pheromone blends composed of different ratios of (9Z,11E)-tetradecadienyl acetate (Z9E11-14:OAc) and (9Z,12E)-tetradecadienyl acetate (Z9E12-14:OAc). The changes in the expression level of SlitOR3 and antennal responses after SlitOR3 silencing suggested that SlitOR3 is required for the sex pheromone signaling. We infer that variation in transcription levels of olfactory receptors may modulate sex pheromone perception in male moths and could affect both of pest control and monitoring efficiency by pheromone application after long time mass trapping with one particular ratio of blend in the field. PMID:26126192

How parasitoid females produce sexy sons: a causal link between oviposition preference, dietary lipids and mate choice in Nasonia

PubMed Central

Blaul, Birgit; Ruther, Joachim

2011-01-01

Sexual selection theory predicts that phenotypic traits used to choose a mate should reflect honestly the quality of the sender and thus, are often costly. Physiological costs arise if a signal depends on limited nutritional resources. Hence, the nutritional condition of an organism should determine both its quality as a potential mate and its ability to advertise this quality to the choosing sex. In insects, the quality of the offspring's nutrition is often determined by the ovipositing female. A causal connection, however, between the oviposition decisions of the mother and the mating chances of her offspring has never been shown. Here, we demonstrate that females of the parasitic wasp Nasonia vitripennis prefer those hosts for oviposition that have been experimentally enriched in linoleic acid (LA). We show by 13C-labelling that LA from the host diet is a precursor of the male sex pheromone. Consequently, males from LA-rich hosts produce and release higher amounts of the pheromone and attract more virgin females than males from LA-poor hosts. Finally, males from LA-rich hosts possess three times as many spermatozoa as those from LA-poor hosts. Hence, females making the right oviposition decisions may increase both the fertility and the sexual attractiveness of their sons. PMID:21429922

How parasitoid females produce sexy sons: a causal link between oviposition preference, dietary lipids and mate choice in Nasonia.

PubMed

Blaul, Birgit; Ruther, Joachim

2011-11-07

Sexual selection theory predicts that phenotypic traits used to choose a mate should reflect honestly the quality of the sender and thus, are often costly. Physiological costs arise if a signal depends on limited nutritional resources. Hence, the nutritional condition of an organism should determine both its quality as a potential mate and its ability to advertise this quality to the choosing sex. In insects, the quality of the offspring's nutrition is often determined by the ovipositing female. A causal connection, however, between the oviposition decisions of the mother and the mating chances of her offspring has never been shown. Here, we demonstrate that females of the parasitic wasp Nasonia vitripennis prefer those hosts for oviposition that have been experimentally enriched in linoleic acid (LA). We show by (13)C-labelling that LA from the host diet is a precursor of the male sex pheromone. Consequently, males from LA-rich hosts produce and release higher amounts of the pheromone and attract more virgin females than males from LA-poor hosts. Finally, males from LA-rich hosts possess three times as many spermatozoa as those from LA-poor hosts. Hence, females making the right oviposition decisions may increase both the fertility and the sexual attractiveness of their sons.

Sublethal exposure to methoxyfenozide-treated surfaces reduces the attractiveness and responsiveness in adult oriental fruit moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae).

PubMed

Reinke, Michael D; Barrett, Bruce A

2007-02-01

The chemical communication (female attractiveness and male responsiveness) of adult oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), exposed to surfaces treated with the ecdysteroid agonist methoxyfenozide for 48 h were investigated in two laboratory wind tunnel assays. The recapture assay examined the ability of treated males to orient to a single cage of treated females, and the data gathered were mean percentage of males recaptured per treatment. The male sexual behavior assay examined some specific orientation behaviors (associated with sexual excitability) of treated males when they were given a choice of two competing pheromone sources (cages of treated females), and the data gathered were mean time males spent in upwind plume orientations and at source contact (female cage) per treatment. Data from the recapture assay suggests that exposure to methoxyfenozide impacts male responsiveness more than female attractiveness. In contrast, data from the sexual behavior assay strongly revealed that exposure to methoxyfenozide-treated surfaces does negatively impact both the ability of calling females to attract males and of aroused males to display sustained upwind flight behavior and time spent at the female cages.

Synergism between Enantiomers Creates Species-Specific Pheromone Blends and Minimizes Cross-Attraction for Two Species of Cerambycid Beetles.

PubMed

Meier, Linnea R; Zou, Yunfan; Millar, Jocelyn G; Mongold-Diers, Judith A; Hanks, Lawrence M

2016-11-01

Research over the last decade has revealed extensive parsimony among pheromones within the large insect family Cerambycidae, with males of many species producing the same, or very similar aggregation pheromones. Among some species in the subfamily Cerambycinae, interspecific attraction is minimized by temporal segregation, and/or by minor pheromone components that synergize attraction of conspecifics or inhibit attraction of heterospecifics. Less is known about pheromone-based mechanisms of reproductive isolation among species in the largest subfamily, the Lamiinae. Here, we present evidence that the pheromone systems of two sympatric lamiine species consist of synergistic blends of enantiomers of (E)-6,10-dimethyl-5,9-undecadien-2-ol (fuscumol) and the structurally related (E)-6,10-dimethyl-5,9-undecadien-2-yl acetate (fuscumol acetate), as a mechanism by which species-specific blends of pheromone components can minimize interspecific attraction. Male Astylidius parvus (LeConte) were found to produce (R)- and (S)-fuscumol + (R)-fuscumol acetate + geranylacetone, whereas males of Lepturges angulatus (LeConte) produced (R)- and (S)-fuscumol acetate + geranylacetone. Field experiments confirmed that adult beetles were attracted only by their species-specific blend of the enantiomers of fuscumol and fuscumol acetate, respectively, and not to the individual enantiomers. Because other lamiine species are known to produce single enantiomers or blends of enantiomers of fuscumol and/or fuscumol acetate, synergism between enantiomers, or inhibition by enantiomers, may be a widespread mechanism for forming species-specific pheromone blends in this subfamily.

Sexual Communication in the Drosophila Genus.

PubMed

Bontonou, Gwénaëlle; Wicker-Thomas, Claude

2014-06-18

In insects, sexual behavior depends on chemical and non-chemical cues that might play an important role in sexual isolation. In this review, we present current knowledge about sexual behavior in the Drosophila genus. We describe courtship and signals involved in sexual communication, with a special focus on sex pheromones. We examine the role of cuticular hydrocarbons as sex pheromones, their implication in sexual isolation, and their evolution. Finally, we discuss the roles of male cuticular non-hydrocarbon pheromones that act after mating: cis-vaccenyl acetate, developing on its controversial role in courtship behavior and long-chain acetyldienylacetates and triacylglycerides, which act as anti-aphrodisiacs in mated females.

Monitoring and Detecting the Cigarette Beetle (Coleoptera: Anobiidae) Using Ultraviolet (LED) Direct and Reflected Lights and/or Pheromone Traps in a Laboratory and a Storehouse.

PubMed

Miyatake, Takahisa; Yokoi, Tomoyuki; Fuchikawa, Taro; Korehisa, Nobuyoshi; Kamura, Toru; Nanba, Kana; Ryouji, Shinsuke; Kamioka, Nagisa; Hironaka, Mantaro; Osada, Midori; Hariyama, Takahiko; Sasaki, Rikiya; Shinoda, Kazutaka

2016-12-01

The cigarette beetle, Lasioderma serricorne (F.), is an important stored-product pest worldwide because it damages dry foods. Detection and removal of the female L. serricorne will help to facilitate the control of the insect by removal of the egg-laying populations. In this manuscript, we examined the responses by L. serricorne to direct and reflected light in transparent cube (50 m3) set in a chamber (200 m3) and a stored facility with both direct and reflected UV-LED lights. The study also examined the responses by the beetles to light in the presence or absence of pheromone in traps that are placed at different heights. Reflected light attracted more beetles than the direct light in the experimental chamber, but the direct light traps attracted more beetles than the reflected light traps in the storehouse. Pheromone traps attracted only males; UV-LED traps attracted both sexes. The UV-LED traps with a pheromone, i.e., combined trap, attracted more males than UV-LED light traps without a pheromone, whereas the attraction of UV-LED traps with and without the pheromone was similar in females. The results suggest that UV-LED light trap combined with a sex pheromone is the best solution for monitoring and controlling L. serricorne. © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Synthetic Sex Pheromone in a Long-Lasting Lure Attracts the Visceral Leishmaniasis Vector, Lutzomyia longipalpis, for up to 12 Weeks in Brazil

PubMed Central

Bray, Daniel P.; Carter, Vicky; Alves, Graziella B.; Brazil, Reginaldo P.; Bandi, Krishna K.; Hamilton, James G. C.

2014-01-01

Current control methodologies have not prevented the spread of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) across Brazil. Here, we describe the development of a new tool for controlling the sand fly vector of the disease: a long-lasting lure, which releases a synthetic male sex pheromone, attractive to both sexes of Lutzomyia longipalpis. This device could be used to improve the effectiveness of residual insecticide spraying as a means of sand fly control, attracting L. longipalpis to insecticide-treated animal houses, where they could be killed in potentially large numbers over a number of weeks. Different lure designs releasing the synthetic pheromone (±)-9-methylgermacrene-B (CAS 183158-38-5) were field-tested in Araçatuba, São Paulo (SP). Experiments compared numbers of sand flies caught overnight in experimental chicken sheds with pheromone lures, to numbers caught in control sheds without pheromone. Prototype lures, designed to last one night, were first used to confirm the attractiveness of the pheromone in SP, and shown to attract significantly more flies to test sheds than controls. Longer-lasting lures were tested when new, and at fortnightly intervals. Lures loaded with 1 mg of pheromone did not attract sand flies for more than two weeks. However, lures loaded with 10 mg of pheromone, with a releasing surface of 15 cm2 or 7.5 cm2, attracted female L. longipalpis for up to ten weeks, and males for up to twelve weeks. Approximately five times more sand flies were caught with 7.5 cm2 10 mg lures when first used than occurred naturally in non-experimental chicken resting sites. These results demonstrate that these lures are suitably long-lasting and attractive for use in sand fly control programmes in SP. To our knowledge, this is the first sex pheromone-based technology targeting an insect vector of a neglected human disease. Further studies should explore the general applicability of this approach for combating other insect-borne diseases. PMID:24651528

Synthetic sex pheromone in a long-lasting lure attracts the visceral leishmaniasis vector, Lutzomyia longipalpis, for up to 12 weeks in Brazil.

PubMed

Bray, Daniel P; Carter, Vicky; Alves, Graziella B; Brazil, Reginaldo P; Bandi, Krishna K; Hamilton, James G C

2014-03-01

Current control methodologies have not prevented the spread of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) across Brazil. Here, we describe the development of a new tool for controlling the sand fly vector of the disease: a long-lasting lure, which releases a synthetic male sex pheromone, attractive to both sexes of Lutzomyia longipalpis. This device could be used to improve the effectiveness of residual insecticide spraying as a means of sand fly control, attracting L. longipalpis to insecticide-treated animal houses, where they could be killed in potentially large numbers over a number of weeks. Different lure designs releasing the synthetic pheromone (±)-9-methylgermacrene-B (CAS 183158-38-5) were field-tested in Araçatuba, São Paulo (SP). Experiments compared numbers of sand flies caught overnight in experimental chicken sheds with pheromone lures, to numbers caught in control sheds without pheromone. Prototype lures, designed to last one night, were first used to confirm the attractiveness of the pheromone in SP, and shown to attract significantly more flies to test sheds than controls. Longer-lasting lures were tested when new, and at fortnightly intervals. Lures loaded with 1 mg of pheromone did not attract sand flies for more than two weeks. However, lures loaded with 10 mg of pheromone, with a releasing surface of 15 cm2 or 7.5 cm2, attracted female L. longipalpis for up to ten weeks, and males for up to twelve weeks. Approximately five times more sand flies were caught with 7.5 cm2 10 mg lures when first used than occurred naturally in non-experimental chicken resting sites. These results demonstrate that these lures are suitably long-lasting and attractive for use in sand fly control programmes in SP. To our knowledge, this is the first sex pheromone-based technology targeting an insect vector of a neglected human disease. Further studies should explore the general applicability of this approach for combating other insect-borne diseases.

Sex versus sweet: opposite effects of opioid drugs on the reward of sucrose and sexual pheromones.

PubMed

Agustín-Pavón, Carmen; Martínez-Ricós, Joana; Martínez-García, Fernando; Lanuza, Enrique

2008-04-01

Endogenous opioids mediate some reward processes involving both natural (food, sweet taste) and artificial (morphine, heroin) rewards. In contrast, sexual behavior (which is also reinforcing) is generally inhibited by opioids. To establish the role of endogenous opioids for a newly described natural reinforcer, namely male sexual pheromones for female mice, we checked the effects of systemic injections of the general opioid antagonist naloxone (1-10 mg/kg) and the agonist fentanyl (0.1- 0.5 mg/kg) in a number of behavioral tests. Naloxone affected neither the innate preference for male-soiled bedding (vs. female-soiled bedding) in 2-choice tests nor the induction of place conditioning using male pheromones as rewarding stimuli, although it effectively blocked the preference for consuming a sucrose solution. In contrast, fentanyl inhibited the preference for male chemosignals without altering sucrose preference. These results suggest that, in macrosmatic animals such as rodents, opioidergic inhibition of sexual behavior might be due, at least partially, to an impaired processing of pheromonal cues and that the hedonic value of sweet-tasting solutions and sexual pheromones are under different opioid modulation.

Short-chain alkanes synergise responses of moth pests to their sex pheromones.

PubMed

Gurba, Alexandre; Guerin, Patrick M

2016-05-01

The use of sex pheromones for mating disruption of moth pests of crops is increasing worldwide. Efforts are under way to augment the efficiency and reliability of this control method by adding molecules derived from host plants to the sex attractants in dispensers. We show how attraction of the European grapevine moth, Lobesia botrana Den. & Schiff., and the codling moth, Cydia pomonella L., males to underdosed levels of their sex pheromones is increased by adding heptane or octane over a range of release rates. Pheromone-alkane mixtures enhance male recruitment by up to 30%, reaching levels induced by calling females, and shorten the flight time to the sex attractant by a factor of 2. The findings show the promise of using short-chain alkanes as pheromone synergists for mating disruption of insect pests of food crops. Alkane-pheromone combinations are expected to increase the competitiveness of dispensers with females, and to reduce the amount of pheromone needed for the control of these pests. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

Drones of the dwarf honey bee Apis florea are attracted to (2E)-9-oxodecenoic acid and (2E)-10-hydroxydecenoic acid.

PubMed

Nagaraja, Narayanappa; Brockmann, Axel

2009-06-01

The queen mandibular gland component (2E)-9-oxodecenoic acid (9-ODA) has been suggested to function as the major sex pheromone component in all honey bee species. In contrast to this hypothesis, chemical analyses showed that in the Asian dwarf honey bee species, Apis florea, a different decenoic acid, (2E)-10-hydroxydecenoic acid (10-HDA), is the major component in the mandibular gland secretion. We show here that A. florea drones are attracted to 9-ODA as well as to 10-HDA. However, 10-HDA attracted higher numbers of drones at lower dosages than 9-ODA, and also was more attractive when directly compared to 9-ODA in a dual attraction experiment. We conclude that 10-HDA has to be viewed as the major sex pheromone in A. florea. The result that both pheromone components are capable of attracting drones when presented alone was unexpected with regard to existing sex pheromone attraction experiments in honey bees.

[Ethyl 4-methyloctanoate, major component of male pherome in Oryctes rhinoceros (L.) (Coleoptera, Dynastidae)].

PubMed

Morin, J P; Rochat, D; Malosse, C; Lettere, M; de Chenon, R D; Wibwo, H; Descoins, C

1996-07-01

Ethyl 4-methyloctanoate, which has already been described in Oryctes monoceros, has been identified, using extracts of effluvia collected from males, as being a major component of the male pheromone of O. rhinoceros. Field trials have been carried out in North Sumatra, Indonesia. Ethyl 4-methyloctanoate synthesized in the laboratory and released at 10 mg/d resulted in the capture of 6.8 insects per week per trap, whereas ethyl chrysanthemate (40 mg/d), an allelochemical compound once used as an attractant, only led to the capture of 0.3 insects, and the control none at all. The insects captured with the pheromone were 81% females, the majority being sexually mature. Discovery of this compound opens up new prospects for O. rhinoceros control.

Structure-Activity Studies of Semiochemicals from the Spider Orchid Caladenia plicata for Sexual Deception.

PubMed

Bohman, Bjorn; Karton, Amir; Flematti, Gavin R; Scaffidi, Adrian; Peakall, Rod

2018-05-01

Sexually deceptive orchids attract specific pollinators by mimicking insect sex pheromones. Normally this mimicry is very specific and identical compounds have been identified from orchids and matching females of the pollinators. In this study, we conduct a detailed structure-activity investigation on isomers of the semiochemicals involved in the sexual attraction of the male pollinator of the spider orchid Caladenia plicata. This orchid employs an unusual blend of two biosynthetically unrelated compounds, (S)-β-citronellol and 2-hydroxy-6-methylacetophenone, to lure its Zeleboria sp. thynnine wasp pollinator. We show that the blend is barely attractive when (S)-β-citronellol is substituted with its enantiomer, (R)-β-citronellol. Furthermore, none of the nine-possible alternative hydroxy-methylacetophenone regioisomers of the natural semiochemical are active when substituted for the natural 2-hydroxy-6-methylacetophenone. Our results were surprising given the structural similarity between the active compound and some of the analogues tested, and results from previous studies in other sexually deceptive orchid/wasp systems where substitution with analogues was possible. Interestingly, high-level ab initio and density functional theory calculations of the hydroxy-methylacetophenones revealed that the active natural isomer, 2-hydroxy-6-methylacetophenone, has the strongest intramolecular hydrogen bond of all regioisomers, which at least in part may explain the specific activity.

Males of Hylamorpha elegans burmeister (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) are attracted to odors released from conspecific females.

PubMed

Quiroz, Andrés; Palma, Ruben; Etcheverría, Paulina; Navarro, Vicente; Rebolledo, Ramón

2007-04-01

The behavioral responses of Hylamorpha elegans L. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae, Rutelinae) to the semiochemicals released from conspecific individual adults were studied, with particular attention paid to female attraction of males. Odors released from virgin females significantly attracted male conspecifics in both the field and laboratory olfactometer and wind tunnel bioassays. However, females did not attract other females, and males attracted no one. The response of male H. elegans to (1) compounds (1,4-hydroquinone and 1,4-benzoquinone) released only by unmated females; (2) the essential oil of the secondary host (Nothofagus obliqua); and (3) the blend of 1,4-hydroquinone and 1,4-benzoquinone with N. obliqua essential oil was studied. The blend of 1,4-benzoquinone mixed with essential oil at the trial concentration was attractive with males. The same response was found with 1,4-hydroquinone alone. The essential oil did not have the expected attractant effect on conspecific males. These results suggest that, when combined with essential oil, 1,4-benzoquinone may function in the sexual behavior of males and females. These findings are discussed in terms of the ecological role of this putative sexual pheromone and its potential use in a strategy of control of this pest.

Evidence of an aggregation pheromone in the flea beetle,Phyllotreta Cruciferae (Goeze) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

PubMed

Peng, C; Weiss, M J

1992-06-01

Laboratory olfactometer bioassays and field trapping experiments showed that the flea beetle,Phyllotreta cruciferae (Goeze), was highly attracted by oilseed rape(Brassica napus L.) when flea beetles were on the plant. This attraction was mediated by a flea beetle-produced aggregation pheromone based upon: (1) Oilseed rape damaged mechanically, or byP. cruciferae, or by diamondback moth,Plutella xylostella (L.), did not attractP. cruciferae. (2) Contact with the plants or feeding was required for the production of aggregation pheromone because oilseed rape alone was not attractive when separated from flea beetles by a screen. (3) Equal numbers of males and females were attracted.

Virgin queen attraction toward males in honey bees.

PubMed

Bastin, Florian; Cholé, Hanna; Lafon, Grégory; Sandoz, Jean-Christophe

2017-07-24

Although the honeybee is a crucial agricultural agent and a prominent scientific model organism, crucial aspects of its reproductive behaviour are still unknown. During the mating season, honeybee males, the drones, gather in congregations 10-40 m above ground. Converging evidence suggests that drones emit a pheromone that can attract other drones, thereby increasing the size of the congregation. Virgin queens join the vicinity of the congregation after it has formed, and mate with as many as 20 males in mid-air. It is still unclear which sensory cues help virgin queens find drone congregations in the first place. Beside visual cues for long-range orientation, queens may use olfactory cues. We thus tested virgin queens' olfactory orientation on a walking simulator in which they have full control over odour stimulation. We show that sexually-mature virgin queens are attracted to the odour bouquet from a group of living drones. They are not attracted to the bouquet from a group of workers. In addition, non-sexually receptive females (workers) of the same age are not attracted to the drone odour bouquet. Interpreted in the context of mating, these results may suggest that virgin queens use volatile olfactory cues from the drones to find the congregations.

Synthetic sex pheromone attracts the leishmaniasis vector Lutzomyia longipalpis to experimental chicken sheds treated with insecticide

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Current strategies for controlling American visceral leishmaniasis (AVL) have been unable to prevent the spread of the disease across Brazil. With no effective vaccine and culling of infected dogs an unpopular and unsuccessful alternative, new tools are urgently needed to manage populations of the sand fly vector, Lutzomyia longipalpis Lutz and Neiva (Diptera: Psychodidae). Here, we test two potential strategies for improving L. longipalpis control using the synthetic sand fly pheromone (±)-9-methylgermacrene-B: the first in conjunction with spraying of animal houses with insecticide, the second using coloured sticky traps. Results Addition of synthetic pheromone resulted in greater numbers of male and female sand flies being caught and killed at experimental chicken sheds sprayed with insecticide, compared to pheromone-less controls. Furthermore, a ten-fold increase in the amount of sex pheromone released from test sheds increased the number of females attracted and subsequently killed. Treating sheds with insecticide alone resulted in a significant decrease in numbers of males attracted to sheds (compared to pre-spraying levels), and a near significant decrease in numbers of females. However, this effect was reversed through addition of synthetic pheromone at the time of insecticide spraying, leading to an increase in number of flies attracted post-treatment. In field trials of commercially available different coloured sticky traps, yellow traps caught more males than blue traps when placed in chicken sheds. In addition, yellow traps fitted with 10 pheromone lures caught significantly more males than pheromone-less controls. However, while female sand flies showed a preference for both blue and yellow pheromone traps sticky traps over white traps in the laboratory, neither colour caught significant numbers of females in chicken sheds, either with or without pheromone. Conclusions We conclude that synthetic pheromone could currently be most effectively deployed for sand fly control through combination with existing insecticide spraying regimes. Development of a standalone pheromone trap remains a possibility, but such devices may require an additional attractive host odour component to be fully effective. PMID:20222954

A contact anti-aphrodisiac pheromone supplied by the spermatophore in the rove beetle Aleochara curtula: mode of transfer and evolutionary significance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schlechter-Helas, Jerry; Schmitt, Thomas; Peschke, Klaus

2011-10-01

By reducing the attractiveness of their mating partner via an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone, males can prevent a remating of the female and thus reduce the risk of sperm competition. For females, the main benefit from allowing the chemical manipulation of their attractiveness is probably the avoidance of sexual harassments from rival males. While mating plugs generally constitute a physical barrier which hinders male mating attempts, chemical manipulations must trustfully inform the responding male of the female's reluctance to mate; otherwise, it would be beneficial to ignore the repellent information. In our experiments, males of the polyandrous rove beetle Aleochara curtula chemically manipulated the attractiveness of their mating partner. Coincident with the deposition of a spermatophore into the female genital chamber, an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone was transferred and readily spread onto the female surface, where it was subsequently perceived by rival males via parameres, the claspers of the male genitalia. Males aborted contact with the mated female to avoid further time- and energy-consuming elements of the mating sequence. The chemical mode of action was demonstrated inter alia by spicing virgin females with spermatophore extracts. The action of the anti-aphrodisiac correlated with the persistence of the spermatophore in the female genital chamber and corresponded to the length of stay of the mated female at a carcass, where the density of rival males is highest. The ensuing benefits for all three parties involved in this communication system, which render this post-copulatory mate guarding strategy evolutionary stable, are discussed.

Range of Attraction of Pheromone Lures and Dispersal Behavior of Cerambycid Beetles

Treesearch

E. Dunn; J. Hough-Goldstein; L. M. Hanks; J. G. Millar; V. D' Amico

2016-01-01

Cerambycid beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) can locate suitable hosts and mates by sensing pheromones and plant volatiles. Many cerambycid pheromone components have been identified and are now produced synthetically for trap lures. The range over which these lures attract cerambycids within a forest, and the tendency for cerambycids to move out of a forest in...

Blends of Pheromones, With and Without Host Plant Volatiles, Can Attract Multiple Species of Cerambycid Beetles Simultaneously

Treesearch

L.M. Hanks; J.A. Mongold-Diers; T.H. Atkinson; M.K. Fierke; M.D. Ginzel; E.E. Graham; T.M. Poland; A.B. Richards; M.L. Richardson; J.G. Millar

2018-01-01

Pheromone components of cerambycid beetles are often conserved, with a given compound serving as a pheromone component for multiple related species, including species native to different continents. Consequently, a single synthesized compound may attract multiple species to a trap simultaneously. Furthermore, our previous research in east-central Illinois had...

Disruption by conophthorin of the kairomonal response of sawyer beetles to bark beetle pheromones.

PubMed

Morewood, W D; Simmonds, K E; Gries, R; Allison, J D; Borden, J H

2003-09-01

Antennally active nonhost angiosperm bark volatiles were tested for their ability to reduce the response of three common species of coniferophagous wood-boring Cerambycidae to attractant-baited multiple funnel traps in the southern interior of British Columbia. Of the nonhost volatiles tested, only conophthorin was behaviorally active, disrupting the attraction of sawyer beetles, Monochamus spp., to traps baited with the host volatiles alpha-pinene and ethanol and the bark beetle pheromones ipsenol and ipsdienol. Conophthorin did not affect the attraction of sawyer beetles to the host kairomones alpha-pinene and ethanol in the absence of bark beetle pheromones, nor did it have any behavioral effect on adults of Xylotrechus longitarsis, which were not attracted to bark beetle pheromones. These results indicate that conophthorin does not act as a general repellent for coniferophagous Cerambycidae, as it seems to do for many species of Scolytidae, but has the specific activity of disrupting the kairomonal response of sawyer beetles to bark beetle pheromones.

Synthetic Sex Pheromone Attracts the Leishmaniasis Vector Lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae) to Traps in the Field

PubMed Central

Bray, D. P.; Bandi, K. K.; Brazil, R. P.; Oliveira, A. G.; Hamilton, J.G.C.

2011-01-01

Improving vector control remains a key goal in reducing the world’s burden of infectious diseases. More cost-effective approaches to vector control are urgently needed, particularly as vaccines are unavailable and treatment is prohibitively expensive. The causative agent of AVL, Leishmania chagasi, Cunha and Chagas (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae) is transmitted between animal and human hosts by blood-feeding female sand flies, attracted to mating aggregations formed on or above host animals by male-produced sex pheromones. Our results demonstrate the potential of using synthetic pheromones to control populations of Lutzomyia longipalpis Lutz and Neiva (Diptera: Psychodidae), the sand fly vector of one of the world’s most important neglected diseases, American visceral leishmaniasis (AVL). We showed that a synthetic pheromone, (±)-9-methylgermacrene-B, produced from a low-cost plant intermediate, attracted females in the laboratory. Then by formulating dispensers that released this pheromone at a rate similar to that released by aggregating males, we were able to attract flies of both sexes to traps in the field. These dispensers worked equally well when deployed with mechanical light traps and inexpensive sticky traps. If deployed effectively, pheromone-based traps could be used to decrease AVL transmission rates through specific targeting and reduction of L. longipalpis populations. This is the first study to show attraction of a human disease-transmitting insect to a synthetic pheromone in the field, demonstrating the general applicability of this novel approach for developing new tools for use in vector control. PMID:19496409

Synthetic sex pheromone attracts the leishmaniasis vector Lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae) to traps in the field.

PubMed

Bray, D P; Bandi, K K; Brazil, R P; Oliveira, A G; Hamilton, J G C

2009-05-01

Improving vector control remains a key goal in reducing the world's burden of infectious diseases. More cost-effective approaches to vector control are urgently needed, particularly because vaccines are unavailable and treatment is prohibitively expensive. The causative agent of American visceral leishmaniasis (AVL), Leishmania chagasi, Cunha and Chagas (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae), is transmitted between animal and human hosts by blood-feeding female sand flies attracted to mating aggregations formed on or above host animals by male-produced sex pheromones. Our results show the potential of using synthetic pheromones to control populations of Lutzomyia longipalpis Lutz and Neiva (Diptera: Psychodidae), the sand fly vector of one of the world's most important neglected diseases, AVL. We showed that a synthetic pheromone, (+/-)-9-methylgermacrene-B, produced from a low-cost plant intermediate, attracted females in the laboratory. By formulating dispensers that released this pheromone at a rate similar to that released by aggregating males, we were able to attract flies of both sexes to traps in the field. These dispensers worked equally well when deployed with mechanical light traps and inexpensive sticky traps. If deployed effectively, pheromone-based traps could be used to decrease AVL transmission rates through specific targeting and reduction of L. longipalpis populations. This is the first study to show attraction of a human disease-transmitting insect to a synthetic pheromone in the field, showing the general applicability of this novel approach for developing new tools for use in vector control.

The Male Produced Aggregation Pheromone of a Strawberry Sap Beetle, Lobiopa insularis (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae).

PubMed

Moliterno, Antonioni A C; Martins, Camila B C; Szczerbowski, Daiane; Zawadneak, Maria Aparecida C; Zarbin, Paulo H G

2017-06-01

The nitidulid beetle Lobiopa insularis is an important pest of strawberry crops in the United States and Brazil. Both larvae and adults feed on ripe strawberries, causing 20-70% loss in production during serious infestations. Aiming at the development of efficient, clean, and highly specific pest management systems, semiochemicals, especially pheromones, are particularly useful. Analyses of the extracts of both males and females obtained from aeration of live beetles showed the presence of three male specific compounds, 2-nonanone, 2-undecanone, and 2-undecanol (in an enantiomeric ratio of S:R = 3.5:1). This is the first record of ketones and an alcohol as pheromone components in Nitidulidae. These compounds were emitted by males in amounts of 0.3:6:1.5 ng per insect within 24 h (1:30:3), respectively, during the scotophase, indicating nocturnal sexual activity. Field tests with pitfall traps containing different mixtures of compounds and ripe strawberries as a co-attractant summed up to five treatments with 25 replications. As a result, 59% males and 41% females (1:0.7) were caught, indicating the L. insularis pheromone to cause aggregation of both sexes. Results of the field tests showed that the attractivity of the binary mixture of ketones (T3) differed from the control (T5), from traps with 2-undecanone alone (T4), and from the mixture of 2-undecanone and racemic 2-undecanol (T2). Moreover, the activity of the ternary mixture of compounds (T1) was not different from that of T3, indicating that the racemic alcohol did not positively influence trap catches. In future applications, a mixture of synthetic strawberry-derived compounds that are attractive to L. insularis may substitute rapidly decaying fruit in the field, maintaining catches for longer periods. Because of its efficiency and low cost, a mixture of 2-undecanone and 2-nonanone is recommended to catch adult L. insularis in the field.

Condition-dependent pheromone signaling by male rock lizards: more oily scents are more attractive.

PubMed

Martín, José; López, Pilar

2010-05-01

Pheromones of vertebrates are often a mixture of several chemicals with different properties and messages, and their production seems condition dependent. Thus, pheromones are a good, but little studied, example of multiple sexual signals. Femoral gland secretions of male rock lizards Iberolacerta cyreni contain steroids that may act as pheromones, but there are also many other lipids, such as oleic acid, whose allocation to secretions may be costly because it has to be diverted from body fat reserves. This suggests that oleic acid could also have some function in secretions. Chemical analyses showed that proportions of oleic acid in femoral secretions of males were positively related to body condition of males, suggesting that the oleic acid secreted may reflect the amount of body fat reserves of a male. Tongue-flick bioassays showed that females were able to detect by chemosensory cues alone differences in proportions of oleic acid in secretions of males. Scents of males with more oleic acid elicited stronger chemosensory responses by females. Further tests with chemical standards confirmed that females distinguished oleic acid, and changes in its concentration, from other chemicals that are naturally found in secretions of males. Moreover, choice trials of scent-marked substrates showed that females were more attracted to areas that were experimentally manipulated to increase the proportion of oleic acid in natural scent marks of males. We suggest that oleic acid in femoral secretions might be a reliable advertisement of a male's body condition, which females could use to select high-quality mates in conjunction with information provided by other chemicals. Alternatively, scent marks with more oleic acid might be simply more attractive to females if chemosensory responses of females to scent of males were originated by a preexisting sensory bias for food chemicals such as the oleic acid. Nevertheless, this sensory trap might have evolved into an honest signal because the elaboration of the signal seems differentially costly for males with different body conditions.

Sex-pairing pheromone in the Asian termite pest species Odontotermes formosanus.

PubMed

Wen, Ping; Ji, Bao-Zhong; Liu, Shu-Wen; Liu, Cong; Sillam-Dussès, David

2012-05-01

The sex-pairing pheromone of the black winged subterranean termite, Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki) (Isoptera, Termitidae), was investigated using headspace-SPME, GC-MS, GC-EAD, and attraction bioassays. Females secrete the pheromone from their sternal gland to attract males. The sex-pairing pheromone is composed of (Z,Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol and (Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol, estimated at 9 to 16.64 ng and 0.2 to 0.54 ng, respectively. Both short- and long-distance sex attraction bioassays were employed to show that these compounds act in synergy at long distance, but only (Z,Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol is active at short distance. The pheromone may be useful in efforts to control this pest, which is considered one of the most harmful termite species in Southeast Asia.

Attraction of Chrysoperla carnea complex and Chrysopa spp. lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) to aphid sex pheromone components and a synthetic blend of floral compounds in Hungary.

PubMed

Koczor, Sándor; Szentkirályi, Ferenc; Birkett, Michael A; Pickett, John A; Voigt, Erzsébet; Tóth, Miklós

2010-12-01

The deployment of synthetic attractants for the manipulation of lacewing populations as aphid predators is currently used in integrated pest management. This study investigates a synthetic bait comprising floral compounds previously found to attract the Chrysoperla carnea complex, and, for the first time, the aphid sex pheromone components (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol and (4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactone, in field experiments in Hungary, for their ability to manipulate lacewing populations. The synthetic floral bait attracted both sexes of the Chrysoperla carnea complex, and Chrysopa formosa Brauer showed minimal attraction. The aphid sex pheromone compounds alone attracted males of C. formosa and C. pallens (Rambur). When the two baits were combined, Chrysopa catches were similar to those with aphid sex pheromone baits alone, but carnea complex catches decreased significantly (by 85-88%). As the floral bait alone attracted both sexes of the carnea complex, it showed potential to manipulate the location of larval density via altering the site of oviposition. Aphid sex pheromone compounds alone attracted predatory males of Chrysopa spp. and can potentially be used to enhance biological control of aphids. For the carnea complex, however, a combination of both baits is not advantageous because of the decrease in adults attracted. Assumptions of intraguild avoidance underlying this phenomenon are discussed. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry.

Identification of Sex Pheromones and Sex Pheromone Mimics for Two North American Click Beetle Species (Coleoptera: Elateridae) in the Genus Cardiophorus Esch.

PubMed

Serrano, Jacqueline M; Collignon, R Maxwell; Zou, Yunfan; Millar, Jocelyn G

2018-04-01

To date, all known or suspected pheromones of click beetles (Coleoptera: Elateridae) have been identified solely from species native to Europe and Asia; reports of identifications from North American species dating from the 1970s have since proven to be incorrect. While conducting bioassays of pheromones of a longhorned beetle (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), we serendipitously discovered that males of Cardiophorus tenebrosus L. and Cardiophorus edwardsi Horn were specifically attracted to the cerambycid pheromone fuscumol acetate, (E)-6,10-dimethylundeca-5,9-dien-2-yl acetate, suggesting that this compound might also be a sex pheromone for the two Cardiophorus species. Further field bioassays and electrophysiological assays with the enantiomers of fuscumol acetate determined that males were specifically attracted by the (R)-enantiomer. However, subsequent analyses of extracts of volatiles from female C. tenebrosus and C. edwardsi showed that the females actually produced a different compound, which was identified as (3R,6E)-3,7,11-trimethyl-6,10-dodecadienoic acid methyl ester (methyl (3R,6E)-2,3-dihydrofarnesoate). In field trials, both the racemate and the (R)-enantiomer of the pheromone attracted similar numbers of male beetles, suggesting that the (S)-enantiomer was not interfering with responses to the insect-produced (R)-enantiomer. This report constitutes the first conclusive identification of sex pheromones for any North American click beetle species. Possible reasons for the strong and specific attraction of males to fuscumol acetate, which is markedly different in structure to the actual pheromone, are discussed.

A Single Sex Pheromone Receptor Determines Chemical Response Specificity of Sexual Behavior in the Silkmoth Bombyx mori

PubMed Central

Sakurai, Takeshi; Mitsuno, Hidefumi; Haupt, Stephan Shuichi; Uchino, Keiro; Yokohari, Fumio; Nishioka, Takaaki; Kobayashi, Isao; Sezutsu, Hideki; Tamura, Toshiki; Kanzaki, Ryohei

2011-01-01

In insects and other animals, intraspecific communication between individuals of the opposite sex is mediated in part by chemical signals called sex pheromones. In most moth species, male moths rely heavily on species-specific sex pheromones emitted by female moths to identify and orient towards an appropriate mating partner among a large number of sympatric insect species. The silkmoth, Bombyx mori, utilizes the simplest possible pheromone system, in which a single pheromone component, (E, Z)-10,12-hexadecadienol (bombykol), is sufficient to elicit full sexual behavior. We have previously shown that the sex pheromone receptor BmOR1 mediates specific detection of bombykol in the antennae of male silkmoths. However, it is unclear whether the sex pheromone receptor is the minimally sufficient determination factor that triggers initiation of orientation behavior towards a potential mate. Using transgenic silkmoths expressing the sex pheromone receptor PxOR1 of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella in BmOR1-expressing neurons, we show that the selectivity of the sex pheromone receptor determines the chemical response specificity of sexual behavior in the silkmoth. Bombykol receptor neurons expressing PxOR1 responded to its specific ligand, (Z)-11-hexadecenal (Z11-16:Ald), in a dose-dependent manner. Male moths expressing PxOR1 exhibited typical pheromone orientation behavior and copulation attempts in response to Z11-16:Ald and to females of P. xylostella. Transformation of the bombykol receptor neurons had no effect on their projections in the antennal lobe. These results indicate that activation of bombykol receptor neurons alone is sufficient to trigger full sexual behavior. Thus, a single gene defines behavioral selectivity in sex pheromone communication in the silkmoth. Our findings show that a single molecular determinant can not only function as a modulator of behavior but also as an all-or-nothing initiator of a complex species-specific behavioral sequence. PMID:21738481

A single sex pheromone receptor determines chemical response specificity of sexual behavior in the silkmoth Bombyx mori.

PubMed

Sakurai, Takeshi; Mitsuno, Hidefumi; Haupt, Stephan Shuichi; Uchino, Keiro; Yokohari, Fumio; Nishioka, Takaaki; Kobayashi, Isao; Sezutsu, Hideki; Tamura, Toshiki; Kanzaki, Ryohei

2011-06-01

In insects and other animals, intraspecific communication between individuals of the opposite sex is mediated in part by chemical signals called sex pheromones. In most moth species, male moths rely heavily on species-specific sex pheromones emitted by female moths to identify and orient towards an appropriate mating partner among a large number of sympatric insect species. The silkmoth, Bombyx mori, utilizes the simplest possible pheromone system, in which a single pheromone component, (E, Z)-10,12-hexadecadienol (bombykol), is sufficient to elicit full sexual behavior. We have previously shown that the sex pheromone receptor BmOR1 mediates specific detection of bombykol in the antennae of male silkmoths. However, it is unclear whether the sex pheromone receptor is the minimally sufficient determination factor that triggers initiation of orientation behavior towards a potential mate. Using transgenic silkmoths expressing the sex pheromone receptor PxOR1 of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella in BmOR1-expressing neurons, we show that the selectivity of the sex pheromone receptor determines the chemical response specificity of sexual behavior in the silkmoth. Bombykol receptor neurons expressing PxOR1 responded to its specific ligand, (Z)-11-hexadecenal (Z11-16:Ald), in a dose-dependent manner. Male moths expressing PxOR1 exhibited typical pheromone orientation behavior and copulation attempts in response to Z11-16:Ald and to females of P. xylostella. Transformation of the bombykol receptor neurons had no effect on their projections in the antennal lobe. These results indicate that activation of bombykol receptor neurons alone is sufficient to trigger full sexual behavior. Thus, a single gene defines behavioral selectivity in sex pheromone communication in the silkmoth. Our findings show that a single molecular determinant can not only function as a modulator of behavior but also as an all-or-nothing initiator of a complex species-specific behavioral sequence.

Attraction of spathius agrili yang (Hymenoptera: eulophidae) to male-produced "aggregation-sex pheromone:" differences between the sexes and mating status

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Male and female Spathius agrili Yang were tested for attraction to the synthetic male pheromone. Lures consisting of a 3-component pheromone blend were placed in the center of a white filter paper target used to activate upwind flight in the wind tunnel. When virgin males and females were tested for...

Pheromone Signalling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hart, Adam G.

2011-01-01

Pheromones are chemicals used to communicate with members of the same species. First described in insects, pheromones are often used to attract mates but in social insects, such as ants and bees, pheromone use is much more sophisticated. For example, ants use pheromones to make foraging trails and the chemical and physical properties of the…

Genetic Dissection of Sexual Reproduction in a Primary Homothallic Basidiomycete

PubMed Central

Sampaio, José Paulo; Gonçalves, Paula

2016-01-01

In fungi belonging to the phylum Basidiomycota, sexual compatibility is usually determined by two genetically unlinked MAT loci, one of which encodes one or more pheromone receptors (P/R) and pheromone precursors, and the other comprehends at least one pair of divergently transcribed genes encoding homeodomain (HD) transcription factors. Most species are heterothallic, meaning that sexual reproduction requires mating between two sexually compatible individuals harboring different alleles at both MAT loci. However, some species are known to be homothallic, one individual being capable of completing the sexual cycle without mating with a genetically distinct partner. While the molecular underpinnings of the heterothallic life cycles of several basidiomycete model species have been dissected in great detail, much less is known concerning the molecular basis for homothallism. Following the discovery in available draft genomes of the homothallic basidiomycetous yeast Phaffia rhodozyma of P/R and HD genes, we employed available genetic tools to determine their role in sexual development. Two P/R clusters, each harboring one pheromone receptor and one pheromone precursor gene were found in close vicinity of each other and were shown to form two redundant P/R pairs, each receptor being activated by the pheromone encoded by the most distal pheromone precursor gene. The HD locus is apparently genetically unlinked to the P/R locus and encodes a single pair of divergently transcribed HD1 and HD2 transcription factors, both required for normal completion of the sexual cycle. Given the genetic makeup of P. rhodozyma MAT loci, we postulate that it is a primarily homothallic organism and we propose a model for the interplay of molecular interactions required for sexual development in this species. Phaffia rhodozyma is considered one of the most promising microbial source of the carotenoid astaxanthin. Further development of this yeast as an industrial organism will benefit from new insights regarding its sexual reproduction system. PMID:27327578

On the success of a swindle: pollination by deception in orchids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schiestl, Florian P.

2005-06-01

A standing enigma in pollination ecology is the evolution of pollinator attraction without offering reward in about one third of all orchid species. Here I review concepts of pollination by deception, and in particular recent findings in the pollination syndromes of food deception and sexual deception in orchids. Deceptive orchids mimic floral signals of rewarding plants (food deception) or mating signals of receptive females (sexual deception) to attract pollen vectors. In some food deceptive orchids, similarities in the spectral reflectance visible to the pollinator in a model plant and its mimic, and increased reproductive success of the mimic in the presence of the model have been demonstrated. Other species do not mimic specific model plants but attract pollinators with general attractive floral signals. In sexually deceptive orchids, floral odor is the key trait for pollinator attraction, and behaviorally active compounds in the orchids are identical to the sex pheromone of the pollinator species. Deceptive orchids often show high variability in floral signals, which may be maintained by negative frequency-dependent selection, since pollinators can learn and subsequently avoid common deceptive morphs more quickly than rare ones. The evolution of obligate deception in orchids seems paradoxical in the light of the typically lower fruit set than in rewarding species. Pollination by deception, however, can reduce self-pollination and encourage pollen flow over longer distances, thus promoting outbreeding. Although some food deceptive orchids are isolated through postzygotic reproductive barriers, sexually deceptive orchids lack post-mating barriers and species isolation is achieved via specific pollinator attraction. Recent population genetic and phylogenetic investigations suggest gene-flow within subgeneric clades, but pollinator-mediated selection may maintain species-specific floral traits.

Evolved differences in larval social behavior mediated by novel pheromones

PubMed Central

Mast, Joshua D; De Moraes, Consuelo M; Alborn, Hans T; Lavis, Luke D; Stern, David L

2014-01-01

Pheromones, chemical signals that convey social information, mediate many insect social behaviors, including navigation and aggregation. Several studies have suggested that behavior during the immature larval stages of Drosophila development is influenced by pheromones, but none of these compounds or the pheromone-receptor neurons that sense them have been identified. Here we report a larval pheromone-signaling pathway. We found that larvae produce two novel long-chain fatty acids that are attractive to other larvae. We identified a single larval chemosensory neuron that detects these molecules. Two members of the pickpocket family of DEG/ENaC channel subunits (ppk23 and ppk29) are required to respond to these pheromones. This pheromone system is evolving quickly, since the larval exudates of D. simulans, the sister species of D. melanogaster, are not attractive to other larvae. Our results define a new pheromone signaling system in Drosophila that shares characteristics with pheromone systems in a wide diversity of insects. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.04205.001 PMID:25497433

Investigations of novel unsaturated bile salts of male sea lamprey as potential chemical cues

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, Nicholas S.; Yun, Sang-Seon; Li, Weiming

2014-01-01

Sulfated bile salts function as chemical cues that coordinate reproduction in sea lamprey, Petromyzon marinus. 7α, 12α, 24-trihydroxy-5α-cholan-3-one 24-sulfate (3kPZS) is the most abundant known bile salt released by sexually mature male sea lampreys and attracts ovulated females. However, previous studies showed that the male-produced pheromone consists of unidentified components in addition to 3kPZS. Here, analysis of water conditioned with mature male sea lampreys indicated the presence of 4 oxidized, unsaturated compounds with molecular weights of 466 Da, 468 Da, and 2 of 470 Da. These compounds were not detectable in water conditioned with immature male sea lampreys. By using mass spectrometry, 4 A-ring unsaturated sulfated bile salts were tentatively identified from male washings as 2 4-ene, a 1-ene, and a 1,4-diene analogs. These were synthesized to determine if they attracted ovulated female sea lampreys to spawning nests in natural streams. One of the novel synthetic bile salts, 3 keto-1-ene PZS, attracted ovulated females to the point of application at a concentration of 10-12 M. This study reveals the structural diversity of bile salts in sea lamprey, some of which have been demonstrated to be pheromonal cues.

A pheromone analogue affects the evaporation rate of (+)-disparlure in Lymantria dispar.

PubMed

Sollai, Giorgia; Murgia, Sergio; Secci, Francesco; Frongia, Angelo; Cerboneschi, Anna; Masala, Carla; Liscia, Anna; Crnjar, Roberto; Solari, Paolo

2014-04-01

The gypsy moth Lymantria dispar L. is a widespread pest that causes economic damage to cork oak forests. Females produce the sex pheromone (+)-(7R,8S)-epoxy-2-methyloctadecane, known as (+)-disparlure [(+)D], for long-distance attraction of conspecific males. A (+)D analogue, 2-decyl-1-oxaspiro[2.2]pentane (OXP-01), neither stimulating nor attractive by itself, causes short-time inhibition of male response in a 1:1 blend with (+)D. The authors investigated whether and how the biological activity of the natural pheromone is affected by OXP-01 on a long-time basis (up to 16 days), also by looking at possible physicochemical reciprocal interactions. Blending of (+)D with OXP-01 decreased, under low evaporation rate, the pheromone effectiveness, as assessed by electroantennogram recordings. In male trappings, within the first 24 h, OXP-01 decreased and later enhanced the blend attractiveness, but only under high evaporation rate. Gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy indicates that quantitative retrieval of (+)D from blend cartridges is higher than for pure pheromone, and nuclear magnetic resonance measurements show that OXP-01 produces, possibly by Van der Waals interactions, a bimolecular entity with pheromone causing retention and lengthening of its attractiveness over time. The biological and physicochemical interactions between (+)D and OXP-01 may provide valuable information for the optimisation of pheromone-based control strategies for gypsy moths. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry.

A queen pheromone induces workers to kill sexual larvae in colonies of the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klobuchar, Emily; Deslippe, Richard

2002-05-01

We conducted five bioassays to study how queens control the execution of sexual larvae by workers in colonies of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta. In each assay, subset colonies were made from many large polygyne colonies, and the 20 sexual larvae they contained were monitored over time. Sexual larvae mostly survived in queenless colonies, but were mostly killed in colonies with a single dealated queen, regardless of whether or not the queen was fertilized. The larvae were also killed when fresh corpses of queens were added to queenless colonies. Whereas acetone extracts of queens did not produce a significant increase in killings, extracts in buffered saline induced workers to execute most sexual larvae, indicating successful extraction of an execution pheromone. We identified the probable storage location of the chemical as the poison sac, and found both fresh (1 day) and old (21 day) extracts of poison sacs to be equally effective in inducing executions. The pheromone is stable at room temperature, perhaps because venom alkaloids also present in the extracts keep the pheromone from degrading. It is apparently either proteinaceous or associated with a proteinaceous molecule, a novel finding, as no queen pheromone of a proteinaceous nature has been previously demonstrated in ants.

A queen pheromone induces workers to kill sexual larvae in colonies of the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta).

PubMed

Klobuchar, Emily A; Deslippe, Richard J

2002-07-01

We conducted five bioassays to study how queens control the execution of sexual larvae by workers in colonies of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta. In each assay, subset colonies were made from many large polygyne colonies, and the 20 sexual larvae they contained were monitored over time. Sexual larvae mostly survived in queenless colonies, but were mostly killed in colonies with a single dealated queen, regardless of whether or not the queen was fertilized. The larvae were also killed when fresh corpses of queens were added to queenless colonies. Whereas acetone extracts of queens did not produce a significant increase in killings, extracts in buffered saline induced workers to execute most sexual larvae, indicating successful extraction of an execution pheromone. We identified the probable storage location of the chemical as the poison sac, and found both fresh (1 day) and old (21 day) extracts of poison sacs to be equally effective in inducing executions. The pheromone is stable at room temperature, perhaps because venom alkaloids also present in the extracts keep the pheromone from degrading. It is apparently either proteinaceous or associated with a proteinaceous molecule, a novel finding, as no queen pheromone of a proteinaceous nature has been previously demonstrated in ants.

Effects of bark beetle pheromones on the attraction of Monochamus alternatus to pine volatiles

Treesearch

Jian-Ting Fan; Daniel Miller; Long-Wa Zhang; Jiang-Hua Sun

2010-01-01

We evaluated the attraction of Monochamus alternatus Hope (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), Dryocoetes luteus Blandford and Orthotomicus erosusWollaston (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) to multiple-funnel traps baited with the pine volatiles, ethanol and (+)-α-pinene and the bark beetle pheromones, ipsenol and ipsdienol. M. alternatus were attracted to traps baited...

Aggregation pheromone of coconut rhinoceros beetle,Oryctes rhinoceros (L.) (coleoptera: Scarabaeidae).

PubMed

Hallett, R H; Perez, A L; Gries, G; Gries, R; Pierce, H D; Yue, J; Oehlschlager, A C; Gonzalez, L M; Borden, J H

1995-10-01

Male coconut rhinoceros beetles,Oryctes rhinoceros (L.), produce three sex-specific compounds, ethyl 4-methyloctanoate, ethyl 4-methylheptanoate, and 4-methyloctanoic acid, the first of which is an aggregation pheromone. Synthesis of these compounds involving conjugate addition of organocuprates to ethyl acrylate is reported. In field trapping experiments, (4S)-ethyl 4-methyloctanoate and the racemic mixture were equally attractive and 10 times more effective in attracting beetles than ethyl chrysanthemumate, a previously recommended attractant. Ethyl 4-methylheptanoate was as attractive as ethyl chrysanthemumate and more attractive than 4-methyloctanoic acid, but further studies are required before it can be classed as an aggregation pheromone. Compared to ethyl 4-methyloctanoate alone, combinations of the three male-produced compounds did not increase attraction, whereas addition of freshly rotting oil palm fruit bunches to pheromone-baited traps significantly enhanced attraction. With increasing dose, captures ofO. rhinoceros increased, but doses of 6, 9, and 18 mg/day were competitive with 30 mg/day lures. Newly designed vane traps were more effective in capturing beetles than were barrier or pitfall traps. Results of this study indicate that there is potential for using ethyl 4-methyloctanoate in operational programs to controlO. rhinoceros in oil palm plantations.

Sex pheromone and trail pheromone of the sand termite Psammotermes hybostoma.

PubMed

Sillam-Dussès, David; Hanus, Robert; Abd El-Latif, Ashraf Oukasha; Jiroš, Pavel; Krasulová, Jana; Kalinová, Blanka; Valterová, Irena; Sobotník, Jan

2011-02-01

Within the complex network of chemical signals used by termites, trail pheromones and sex pheromones are among the best known. Numerous recent papers map the chemical identity and glandular origin of these pheromones in nearly all major isopteran taxa. In this study, we aimed to describe the sex pheromone and the trail pheromone of a poorly known sand termite, Psammotermes hybostoma. We identified (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol (dodecatrienol) as the sex pheromone released by tergal and sternal glands of female imagos and, at the same time, as the trail pheromone secreted from the sternal gland of workers. We conclude that chemical communication in Psammotermes does not differ from that of most other Rhinotermitidae, such as Reticulitermes, despite the presence of a diterpene as a major component of the trail pheromone of Prorhinotermes to which Psammotermes is presumed to be phylogenetically close. Our findings underline once again the conservative nature of chemical communication in termites, with dodecatrienol being a frequent component of pheromonal signals in trail following and sex attraction and, at the same time, a tight evolutionary relationship between the trail following of working castes and the sex attraction of imagos.

Insect Cuticular Hydrocarbons as Dynamic Traits in Sexual Communication

PubMed Central

Ingleby, Fiona C.

2015-01-01

Recent research has demonstrated extensive within-species variation in pheromone expression in insect species, contrary to the view that pheromones are largely invariant within species. In fact, many studies on insect cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) show that pheromones can be highly dynamic traits that can express significant short-term plasticity across both abiotic and social environments. It is likely that this variability in CHC expression contributes to their important role in sexual signaling and mate choice. In this review, I discuss CHC plasticity and how this might influence sexual communication. I also highlight two important avenues for future research: examining plasticity in how individuals respond to CHC signals, and testing how sexual communication varies across abiotic and social environments. PMID:26463413

Sex and seasonal differences in mRNA expression of estrogen receptor α (ESR1) in red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis).

PubMed

Ashton, Sydney E; Vernasco, Ben J; Moore, Ignacio T; Parker, M Rockwell

2018-05-25

Estrogens are important regulators of reproductive physiology including sexual signal expression and vitellogenesis. For the regulation to occur, the hormone must bind and activate receptors in target tissues, and expression of the receptors can vary by sex and/or season. By simultaneously comparing circulating hormone levels with receptor expression, a more complete understanding of hormone action can be gained. Our study species, the red-sided garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis), provides an excellent opportunity to study the interaction between sex steroid hormones and receptor expression in addition to sexual dimorphism and seasonality. During the spring mating season, male garter snakes rely exclusively on the female's skin-based, estrogen-dependent sex pheromone to direct courtship. Males can be stimulated to produce this sexual attractiveness pheromone by treatment with estradiol (E 2 ), which also induces male vitellogenesis. Estrogen receptors (ESRs) are required to transduce the effects of estrogens, thus we used quantitative RT-PCR to analyze expression of ESR alpha (ERα; gene ESR1) mRNA in the skin and liver of wild caught male and female garter snakes across simulated spring and fall conditions in the laboratory. While ESR1 was present in the skin of both sexes, there were no sex or seasonal differences in expression levels. Liver expression of ESR1, however, was sexually dimorphic, with females showing greatest expression in fall when circulating E 2 concentrations were lowest. There were no statistically significant correlations between E 2 and ESR1 expression. Our data suggest that the skin of both sexes is sensitive to estrogen signaling and thus the production of sex pheromone is dependent on bioavailable levels of E 2 . Female expression of ESR1 in the liver may increase in the fall to prime energy storage mechanisms required for vitellogenesis the following year. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Tissue-specific insulin signaling mediates female sexual attractiveness

PubMed Central

Arbuthnott, Devin; Rundle, Howard D.; Promislow, Daniel E. L.; Pletcher, Scott D.

2017-01-01

Individuals choose their mates so as to maximize reproductive success, and one important component of this choice is assessment of traits reflecting mate quality. Little is known about why specific traits are used for mate quality assessment nor about how they reflect it. We have previously shown that global manipulation of insulin signaling, a nutrient-sensing pathway governing investment in survival versus reproduction, affects female sexual attractiveness in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. Here we demonstrate that these effects on attractiveness derive from insulin signaling in the fat body and ovarian follicle cells, whose signals are integrated by pheromone-producing cells called oenocytes. Functional ovaries were required for global insulin signaling effects on attractiveness, and manipulations of insulin signaling specifically in late follicle cells recapitulated effects of global manipulations. Interestingly, modulation of insulin signaling in the fat body produced opposite effects on attractiveness, suggesting a competitive relationship with the ovary. Furthermore, all investigated tissue-specific insulin signaling manipulations that changed attractiveness also changed fecundity in the corresponding direction, pointing to insulin pathway activity as a reliable link between fecundity and attractiveness cues. The cues themselves, cuticular hydrocarbons, responded distinctly to fat body and follicle cell manipulations, indicating independent readouts of the pathway activity from these two tissues. Thus, here we describe a system in which female attractiveness results from an apparent connection between attractiveness cues and an organismal state of high fecundity, both of which are created by lowered insulin signaling in the fat body and increased insulin signaling in late follicle cells. PMID:28817572

Tissue-specific insulin signaling mediates female sexual attractiveness.

PubMed

Fedina, Tatyana Y; Arbuthnott, Devin; Rundle, Howard D; Promislow, Daniel E L; Pletcher, Scott D

2017-08-01

Individuals choose their mates so as to maximize reproductive success, and one important component of this choice is assessment of traits reflecting mate quality. Little is known about why specific traits are used for mate quality assessment nor about how they reflect it. We have previously shown that global manipulation of insulin signaling, a nutrient-sensing pathway governing investment in survival versus reproduction, affects female sexual attractiveness in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. Here we demonstrate that these effects on attractiveness derive from insulin signaling in the fat body and ovarian follicle cells, whose signals are integrated by pheromone-producing cells called oenocytes. Functional ovaries were required for global insulin signaling effects on attractiveness, and manipulations of insulin signaling specifically in late follicle cells recapitulated effects of global manipulations. Interestingly, modulation of insulin signaling in the fat body produced opposite effects on attractiveness, suggesting a competitive relationship with the ovary. Furthermore, all investigated tissue-specific insulin signaling manipulations that changed attractiveness also changed fecundity in the corresponding direction, pointing to insulin pathway activity as a reliable link between fecundity and attractiveness cues. The cues themselves, cuticular hydrocarbons, responded distinctly to fat body and follicle cell manipulations, indicating independent readouts of the pathway activity from these two tissues. Thus, here we describe a system in which female attractiveness results from an apparent connection between attractiveness cues and an organismal state of high fecundity, both of which are created by lowered insulin signaling in the fat body and increased insulin signaling in late follicle cells.

(R)-Desmolactone Is a Sex Pheromone or Sex Attractant for the Endangered Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle Desmocerus californicus dimorphus and Several Congeners (Cerambycidae: Lepturinae)

PubMed Central

Ray, Ann M.; Arnold, Richard A.; Swift, Ian; Schapker, Philip A.; McCann, Sean; Marshall, Christopher J.; McElfresh, J. Steven; Millar, Jocelyn G.

2014-01-01

We report here that (4R,9Z)-hexadec-9-en-4-olide [(R)-desmolactone] is a sex attractant or sex pheromone for multiple species and subspecies in the cerambycid genus Desmocerus. This compound was previously identified as a female-produced sex attractant pheromone of Desmocerus californicus californicus. Headspace volatiles from female Desmocerus aureipennis aureipennis contained (R)-desmolactone, and the antennae of adult males of two species responded strongly to synthetic (R)-desmolactone in coupled gas chromatography-electroantennogram analyses. In field bioassays in California, Oregon, and British Columbia, traps baited with synthetic (R)-desmolactone captured males of several Desmocerus species and subspecies. Only male beetles were captured, indicating that this compound acts as a sex-specific attractant, rather than as a signal for aggregation. In targeted field bioassays, males of the US federally threatened subspecies Desmocerus californicus dimorphus responded to the synthetic attractant in a dose dependent manner. Our results represent the first example of a “generic” sex pheromone used by multiple species in the subfamily Lepturinae, and demonstrate that pheromone-baited traps may be a sensitive and efficient method of monitoring the threatened species Desmocerus californicus dimorphus, commonly known as the valley elderberry longhorn beetle. PMID:25521293

Neural correlates underlying naloxone-induced amelioration of sexual behavior deterioration due to an alarm pheromone

PubMed Central

Kobayashi, Tatsuya; Kiyokawa, Yasushi; Takeuchi, Yukari; Mori, Yuji

2015-01-01

Sexual behavior is suppressed by various types of stressors. We previously demonstrated that an alarm pheromone released by stressed male Wistar rats is a stressor to other rats, increases the number of mounts needed for ejaculation, and decreases the hit rate (described as the number of intromissions/sum of the mounts and intromissions). This deterioration in sexual behavior was ameliorated by pretreatment with the opioid receptor antagonist naloxone. However, the neural mechanism underlying this remains to be elucidated. Here, we examined Fos expression in 31 brain regions of pheromone-exposed rats and naloxone-pretreated pheromone-exposed rats 60 min after 10 intromissions. As previously reported, the alarm pheromone increased the number of mounts and decreased the hit rate. In addition, Fos expression was increases in the anterior medial division (BNSTam), anterior lateral division (BNSTal) and posterior division (BNSTp) of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, parvocellular part of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, arcuate nucleus, dorsolateral and ventrolateral periaqueductal gray, and nucleus paragigantocellularis (nPGi). Fos expression was decreased in the magnocellular part of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Pretreatment with naloxone blocked the pheromone-induced changes in Fos expression in the magnocellular part of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, ventrolateral periaqueductal gray, and nPGi. Based on these results, we hypothesize that the alarm pheromone deteriorated sexual behavior by activating the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray-nucleus paragigantocellularis cluster and suppressing the magnocellular part of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) via the opioidergic pathway. PMID:25755631

Attraction of acorn-infesting Cydia latiferreana (lepidoptera:tortricidae) to pheromone-baited traps

Treesearch

J.W. Peacock; S.L. Wright; J.R. Galford

1988-01-01

Males of acorn-infesting Cydia latiferreana are attracted to an equilibrium mixture of the four isomers of 8, I10-dodecadien-1-ol acetate, the virgin female-produced pheromone. Trap height relative to the height of trees in which traps are placed seems to be a significant factor influencing moth catches at attractant-baited traps. In an oak woodlot...

The Male Sex Pheromone of the Butterfly Bicyclus anynana: Towards an Evolutionary Analysis

PubMed Central

Nieberding, Caroline M.; de Vos, Helene; Schneider, Maria V.; Lassance, Jean-Marc; Estramil, Natalia; Andersson, Jimmy; Bång, Joakim; Hedenström, Erik; Löfstedt, Christer; Brakefield, Paul M.

2008-01-01

Background Female sex pheromones attracting mating partners over long distances are a major determinant of reproductive isolation and speciation in Lepidoptera. Males can also produce sex pheromones but their study, particularly in butterflies, has received little attention. A detailed comparison of sex pheromones in male butterflies with those of female moths would reveal patterns of conservation versus novelty in the associated behaviours, biosynthetic pathways, compounds, scent-releasing structures and receiving systems. Here we assess whether the African butterfly Bicyclus anynana, for which genetic, genomic, phylogenetic, ecological and ethological tools are available, represents a relevant model to contribute to such comparative studies. Methodology/Principal Findings Using a multidisciplinary approach, we determined the chemical composition of the male sex pheromone (MSP) in the African butterfly B. anynana, and demonstrated its behavioural activity. First, we identified three compounds forming the presumptive MSP, namely (Z)-9-tetradecenol (Z9-14:OH), hexadecanal (16:Ald ) and 6,10,14-trimethylpentadecan-2-ol (6,10,14-trime-15-2-ol), and produced by the male secondary sexual structures, the androconia. Second, we described the male courtship sequence and found that males with artificially reduced amounts of MSP have a reduced mating success in semi-field conditions. Finally, we could restore the mating success of these males by perfuming them with the synthetic MSP. Conclusions/Significance This study provides one of the first integrative analyses of a MSP in butterflies. The toolkit it has developed will enable the investigation of the type of information about male quality that is conveyed by the MSP in intraspecific communication. Interestingly, the chemical structure of B. anynana MSP is similar to some sex pheromones of female moths making a direct comparison of pheromone biosynthesis between male butterflies and female moths relevant to future research. Such a comparison will in turn contribute to understanding the evolution of sex pheromone production and reception in butterflies. PMID:18648495

Novel nanoscale pheromone dispenser for more accurate evaluation of Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) attract-and-kill strategies in the laboratory.

PubMed

Czarnobai De Jorge, Bruna; Bisotto-de-Oliveira, Ricardo; Pereira, Cláudio Nunes; Sant'Ana, Josué

2017-09-01

Nanotechnology has recently allowed the production of formulations for controlled release of active ingredients. In the present study, the electrospinning technique was used to produce nanoscale dispensers for attract-and-kill strategies. Non-woven nanofibres containing insecticide (cypermethrin) and (E)-8,(Z)-8-dodecenyl acetate and (Z)-8-dodecanol (0.87 mg L -1 ), the main components of Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) (Busck) pheromone, were evaluated in laboratory experiments. Male electroantennographic (EAG) responses and mortality (tarsal-contact and attract-and-kill behavioural cages) bioassays were performed for nanofibres (with and without insecticide) exposed for different periods (21, 42, 63 and 84 days) in controlled and non-exposed conditions. There were no significant differences in G. molesta male EAG responses based on the time of exposure within treatments. Nanofibres with pheromone only and with pheromone plus insecticide elicited equal EAG responses. Mortality in tarsal-contact bioassays was greater than 87% after exposure for 84 days. In the attract-and-kill bioassays, mortality ranged from 28.4 to 56.6%, although no difference was observed on insect mortalities over time (24, 48 and 72 h). Incorporation of cypermethrin in nanofibres did not interfere with G. molesta attractiveness. Both aspects of the strategy, the attractant and killing effects, were recorded using innovative nanofibres, and long-term effects suggest a controlled release of pheromone and insecticide. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

A host beetle pheromone regulates development and behavior in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus.

PubMed

Cinkornpumin, Jessica K; Wisidagama, Dona R; Rapoport, Veronika; Go, James L; Dieterich, Christoph; Wang, Xiaoyue; Sommer, Ralf J; Hong, Ray L

2014-10-15

Nematodes and insects are the two most speciose animal phyla and nematode-insect associations encompass widespread biological interactions. To dissect the chemical signals and the genes mediating this association, we investigated the effect of an oriental beetle sex pheromone on the development and behavior of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. We found that while the beetle pheromone is attractive to P. pacificus adults, the pheromone arrests embryo development, paralyzes J2 larva, and inhibits exit of dauer larvae. To uncover the mechanism that regulates insect pheromone sensitivity, a newly identified mutant, Ppa-obi-1, is used to reveal the molecular links between altered attraction towards the beetle pheromone, as well as hypersensitivity to its paralyzing effects. Ppa-obi-1 encodes lipid-binding domains and reaches its highest expression in various cell types, including the amphid neuron sheath and excretory cells. Our data suggest that the beetle host pheromone may be a species-specific volatile synomone that co-evolved with necromeny.

Uncoupling primer and releaser responses to pheromone in honey bees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grozinger, Christina M.; Fischer, Patrick; Hampton, Jacob E.

2007-05-01

Pheromones produce dramatic behavioral and physiological responses in a wide variety of species. Releaser pheromones elicit rapid responses within seconds or minutes, while primer pheromones produce long-term changes which may take days to manifest. Honeybee queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) elicits multiple distinct behavioral and physiological responses in worker bees, as both a releaser and primer, and thus produces responses on vastly different time scales. In this study, we demonstrate that releaser and primer responses to QMP can be uncoupled. First, treatment with the juvenile hormone analog methoprene leaves a releaser response (attraction to QMP) intact, but modulates QMP’s primer effects on sucrose responsiveness. Secondly, two components of QMP (9-ODA and 9-HDA) do not elicit a releaser response (attraction) but are as effective as QMP at modulating a primer response, downregulation of foraging-related brain gene expression. These results suggest that different responses to a single pheromone may be produced via distinct pathways.

Pheromone communication in amphibians and reptiles.

PubMed

Houck, Lynne D

2009-01-01

This selective review considers herpetological papers that feature the use of chemical cues, particularly pheromones involved in reproductive interactions between potential mates. Primary examples include garter snake females that attract males, lacertid lizards and the effects of their femoral gland secretions, aquatic male newts that chemically attract females, and terrestrial salamander males that chemically persuade a female to mate. Each case study spans a number of research approaches (molecular, biochemical, behavioral) and is related to sensory processing and the physiological effects of pheromone delivery. These and related studies show that natural pheromones can be identified, validated with behavioral tests, and incorporated in research on vomeronasal functional response.

(R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one is a major pheromone component of Anelaphus inflaticollis (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae).

PubMed

Ray, A M; Swift, I P; Moreira, J A; Millar, J G; Hanks, L M

2009-10-01

We report the identification and field bioassays of a major component of the male-produced aggregation pheromone of Anelaphus inflaticollis Chemsak, an uncommon desert cerambycine beetle. Male A. inflaticollis produced a sex-specific blend of components that included (R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one, (S)-2-hydroxyhexan-3-one, 2,3-hexanedione, and (2R,3R)- and (2R,3S)-2,3-hexanediols. Field trials with baited bucket traps determined that the reconstructed synthetic pheromone blend and (R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one alone attracted adult A. inflaticollis of both sexes, with significantly more beetles being attracted to the blend. We conclude that (R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one is a major pheromone component of A. inflaticollis, and our results suggest that one or more of the minor components may further increase attraction of conspecifics. Scanning electron microscopy showed that male A. inflaticollis have pores on the prothorax that are consistent in structure with sex-specific pheromone gland pores in related species. Males also displayed stereotyped calling behavior similar to that observed in other cerambycine species. This study represents the first report of volatile pheromones for a cerambycine species in the tribe Elaphidiini.

Pheromone interruption of pine engraver, Ips pini, by pheromones of mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; John H. Borden

2000-01-01

The effect of pheromones of Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins on the attraction of Ips pini (Say) to its pheromone, ipsdienol, was investigated in stands of lodgepole pine. The mixture of cis- and trans-verbenol significantly reduced catches of I. pini in traps baited with...

RNA interference of pheromone biosynthesis-activating neuropeptide receptor suppresses mating behavior by inhibiting sex pheromone production in Plutella xylostella (L.).

PubMed

Lee, Dae-Weon; Shrestha, Sony; Kim, A Young; Park, Seok Joo; Yang, Chang Yeol; Kim, Yonggyun; Koh, Young Ho

2011-04-01

Sex pheromone production is regulated by pheromone biosynthesis-activating neuropeptide (PBAN) in many lepidopteran species. We cloned a PBAN receptor (Plx-PBANr) gene from the female pheromone gland of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.). Plx-PBANr encodes 338 amino acids and has conserved structural motifs implicating in promoting G protein coupling and tyrosine-based sorting signaling along with seven transmembrane domains, indicating a typical G protein-coupled receptor. The expression of Plx-PBANr was found only in the pheromone gland of female adults among examined tissues and developmental stages. Heterologous expression in human uterus cervical cancer cells revealed that Plx-PBANr induced significant calcium elevation when challenged with Plx-PBAN. Female P. xylostella injected with double-stranded RNA specific to Plx-PBANr showed suppression of the receptor gene expression and exhibited significant reduction in pheromone biosynthesis, which resulted in loss of male attractiveness. Taken together, the identified PBAN receptor is functional in PBAN signaling via calcium secondary messenger, which leads to activation of pheromone biosynthesis and male attraction. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Olfactory responses of banana weevil predators to volatiles from banana pseudostem tissue and synthetic pheromone.

PubMed

Tinzaara, W; Gold, C S; Dicke, M; van Huis, A

2005-07-01

As a response to attack by herbivores, plants can emit a variety of volatile substances that attract natural enemies of these insect pests. Predators of the banana weevil, Cosmopolites sordidus (Germar) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) such as Dactylosternum abdominale (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) and Pheidole megacephala (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), are normally found in association with weevil-infested rotten pseudostems and harvested stumps. We investigated whether these predators are attracted to such environments in response to volatiles produced by the host plant, by the weevil, or by the weevil plant complex. We evaluated predator responses towards volatiles from banana pseudostem tissue (synomones) and the synthetic banana weevil aggregation pheromone Cosmolure+ in a two-choice olfactometer. The beetle D. abdominale was attracted to fermenting banana pseudostem tissue and Cosmolure+, whereas the ant P. megacephala was attracted only to fermented pseudostem tissue. Both predators were attracted to banana pseudostem tissue that had been damaged by weevil larvae irrespective of weevil presence. Adding pheromone did not enhance predator response to volatiles from pseudostem tissue fed on by weevils. The numbers of both predators recovered with pseudostem traps in the field from banana mats with a pheromone trap were similar to those in pseudostem traps at different distance ranges from the pheromone. Our study shows that the generalist predators D. abdominale and P. megacephala use volatiles from fermented banana pseudostem tissue as the major chemical cue when searching for prey.

Insectivorous birds eavesdrop on the pheromones of their prey.

PubMed

Saavedra, Irene; Amo, Luisa

2018-01-01

Chemical cues play a fundamental role in mate attraction and mate choice. Lepidopteran females, such as the winter moth (Operophtera brumata), emit pheromones to attract males in the reproductive period. However, these chemical cues could also be eavesdropped by predators. To our knowledge, no studies have examined whether birds can detect pheromones of their prey. O. brumata adults are part of the winter diet of some insectivorous tit species, such as the great tit (Parus major) and blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). We performed a field experiment aimed to disentangle whether insectivorous birds can exploit the pheromones emitted by their prey for prey location. We placed artificial larvae and a dispenser on branches of Pyrenean oak trees (Quercus pyrenaica). In half of the trees we placed an O. brumata pheromone dispenser and in the other half we placed a control dispenser. We measured the predation rate of birds on artificial larvae. Our results show that more trees had larvae with signs of avian predation when they contained an O. brumata pheromone than when they contained a control dispenser. Furthermore, the proportion of artificial larvae with signs of avian predation was greater in trees that contained the pheromone than in control trees. Our results indicate that insectivorous birds can exploit the pheromones emitted by moth females to attract males, as a method of prey detection. These results highlight the potential use of insectivorous birds in the biological control of insect pests.

Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) response to pyramid traps baited with attractive light and pheromonal stimuli

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Halyomorpha halys is an invasive insect that causes severe economic damage to multiple agricultural commodities. Several monitoring techniques have been developed to monitor H. halys including pheromone and light-baited black pyramid traps. Here, we evaluated the attractiveness of these traps bait...

Sex Pheromone Investigation of Anastrepha serpentina (Diptera: Tephritidae)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Attraction of virgin females to odor of calling males was demonstrated. This sex pheromone mediated attraction occurred during the latter half of a 13-h photophase but not during the first half of the day. Two major components of emissions of calling males, 2,5-dimethylpyrazine (DMP) and 2,5-dihyd...

Attractant pheromone of the neotropical species Neomegalotomus parvus (Westwood)(Heteroptera: Alydidae)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The Neotropical broad-headed bug, Neomegalotomus parvus (Westwood), is adapted to various leguminous crops, and is considered a pest in common bean and soybean. The chemical communication of this species was studied in order to identify an attractant pheromone. Males and females of N. parvus produce...

Identifying Possible Pheromones of Cerambycid Beetles by Field Testing Known Pheromone Components in Four Widely Separated Regions of the United States

Treesearch

Jocelyn G Millar; Robert F Mitchell; Judith A Mongold-Diers; Yunfan Zou; Carlos E Bográn; Melissa K Fierke; Matthew D Ginzel; Crawford W Johnson; James R Meeker; Therese M Poland; Iral Ragenovich; Lawrence M Hanks

2017-01-01

The pheromone components of many cerambycid beetles appear to be broadly shared among related species, including species native to different regions of the world. This apparent conservation of pheromone structures within the family suggests that field trials of common pheromone components could be used as a means of attracting multiple species, which then could be...

Utilization of pheromones in the population management of moth pests.

PubMed Central

Cardé, R T

1976-01-01

Pheromones are substances emitted by one individual of a species and eliciting a specific response in a second individual of the same species. In moths (Lepidoptera) generally females lure males for mating by emission of a sex attractant pheromone comprised of either one or more components. Since 1966 the identification of the pheromone blends of many moth pests has allowed investigations into the use of these messengers for population manipulation. Pheromone-baited traps may be used both to detect pest presence and to estimate population density, so that conventional control tactics can be employed only as required and timed precisely for maximum effectiveness. Attractant traps also can be utilized for direct population suppression when the traps are deployed at a density effective in reducing mating success sufficiently to achieve control. A third use pattern of pheromones and related compounds is disruption of pheromone communication via atmospheric permeation with synthetic disruptants. The behavioral modifications involved in disruption of communication may include habituation of the normal response sequence (alteration of the pheromone response threshold) and "confusion" (inability of the organism to perceive and orient to the naturally emitted lure). Disruption of communication employing the natural pheromone components as the disruptant has been most successful, although nonattractant behavioral modifiers structurally similar to the pheromone components also may prove useful. Possible future resistance to direct pheromone manipulation may be expected to involve the evolution of behavioral and sensory changes that minimize the informational overlap between the natural pheromone system and the pheromone control technique. PMID:789060

A synergistic aggregation pheromone component in the banana weevil Cosmopolites sordidus Germar 1824 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae).

PubMed

Cerda, H; Mori, K; Nakayama, T; Jaffe, K

1998-01-01

Cosmopolites sordidus is an important pest on banana plantations worldwide. The chemistry of the aggregation pheromone of this insect has been recently resolved and here we present the first evidence from field trails that sordidin, a compound from the male released aggregation pheromone, attracts significant number of weevils only if host plant odors are also present. Sordidin attracts few insects when it is presented without the host plant tissue. However, the attractiveness of host plant tissue increases more than tenfold when it is presented simultaneously with sordidin in field traps. We confirm experimentally that sordidin may be used as part of a system for mass trapping and monitoring this insect.

Evaluating Predators and Competitors in Wisconsin Red Pine Forests for Attraction to Mountain Pine Beetle Pheromones for Anticipatory Biological Control.

PubMed

Pfammatter, Jesse A; Krause, Adam; Raffa, Kenneth F

2015-08-01

Mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an irruptive tree-killing species native to pine forests of western North America. Two potential pathways of spread to eastern forests have recently been identified. First, warming temperatures have driven range expansion from British Columbia into Albertan jack pine forests that are contiguous with the Great Lakes region. Second, high temperatures and drought have fostered largescale outbreaks within the historical range, creating economic incentives to salvage killed timber by transporting logs to midwestern markets, which risks accidental introduction. We evaluated the extent to which local predators and competitors that exploit bark beetle semiochemicals would respond to D. ponderosae in Wisconsin. We emulated D. ponderosae attack by deploying lures containing synthetic aggregation pheromones with and without host tree compounds and blank control traps in six red pine plantations over 2 yr. Predator populations were high in these stands, as evidenced by catches in positive control traps, baited with pheromones of local bark beetles and were deployed distant from behavioral choice plots. Only one predator, Thanasimus dubius F. (Coleoptera: Cleridae) was attracted to D. ponderosae's aggregation pheromones relative to blank controls, and its attraction was relatively weak. The most common bark beetles attracted to these pheromones were lower stem and root colonizers, which likely would facilitate rather than compete with D. ponderosae. There was some, but weak, attraction of potentially competing Ips species. Other factors that might influence natural enemy impacts on D. ponderosae in midwestern forests, such as phenological synchrony and exploitation of male-produced pheromones, are discussed. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

It's All in the Mix: Blend-Specific Behavioral Response to a Sexual Pheromone in a Butterfly

PubMed Central

Larsdotter-Mellström, Helena; Eriksson, Kerstin; Liblikas I, Ilme; Wiklund, Christer; Borg-Karlson, Anna K.; Nylin, Sören; Janz, Niklas; Carlsson, Mikael A.

2016-01-01

Among insects, sexual pheromones are typically mixtures of two to several components, all of which are generally required to elicit a behavioral response. Here we show for the first time that a complete blend of sexual pheromone components is needed to elicit a response also in a butterfly. Males of the Green-veined White, Pieris napi, emit an aphrodisiac pheromone, citral, from wing glands. This pheromone is requisite for females to accept mating with a courting male. Citral is a mixture of the two geometric isomers geranial (E-isomer) and neral (Z-isomer) in an approximate 1:1 ratio. We found that both these compounds are required to elicit acceptance behavior, which indicates synergistic interaction between processing of the isomers. Using functional Ca2+ imaging we found that geranial and neral evoke significantly different but overlapping glomerular activity patterns in the antennal lobe, which suggests receptors with different affinity for the two isomers. However, these glomeruli were intermingled with glomeruli responding to, for example, plant-related compounds, i.e., no distinct subpopulation of pheromone-responding glomeruli as in moths and other insects. In addition, these glomeruli showed lower specificity than pheromone-activated glomeruli in moths. We could, however, not detect any mixture interactions among four identified glomeruli, indicating that the synergistic effect may be generated at a higher processing level. Furthermore, correlations between glomerular activity patterns evoked by the single isomers and the blend did not change over time. PMID:26973536

Response of the engraver beetle, Ipsperturbatus, to semiochemicals in white spruce stands of interior Alaska.

Treesearch

Richard A. Werner

1993-01-01

Field tests on the efficacy of various scolytid bark beetle pheromones to attract Ipsperturbatus (Eichhoff) were conducted from 1977 through 1992 in stands of white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) in interior Alaska. Several pheromones attracted high numbers of L. perturbatus and species of the predator...

Verbenone: Dose-Dependent Interruption of Pheromone-Based Attraction of Three Sympatric Species of Pine Bark Beetles (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; John H. Borden; B. Staffan Lindgren

1995-01-01

Verbenone significantly reduced catches of Ips latidens (LeConte), I. pini (Say), and Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins in multiple-funnel traps, baited with aggregation pheromones, in stands of lodgepole pine in southern British Columbia. Interruption of attraction was dose dependent for all three species. There...

Combined Sprays of Sex Pheromone and Insecticides to Attract and Kill Codling Moth

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Field trials were conducted to evaluate the potential of an "attract-and-kill" approach for control of codling moth by adding half-rates of microencapsulated (MEC) lambda-cyhalothrin or acetamiprid to a sex pheromone formulation in Turkey and the USA in 2006. Two apple orchards were divided into six...

The Rare North American Cerambycid Beetle Dryobius sexnotatus Shares a Novel Pyrrole Pheromone Component with Species in Asia and South America.

PubMed

Diesel, Natalie M; Zou, Yunfan; Johnson, Todd D; Diesel, Donald A; Millar, Jocelyn G; Mongold-Diers, Judith A; Hanks, Lawrence M

2017-08-01

The compound 1-(1H-pyrrol-2-yl)-1,2-propanedione ("pyrrole") is an important pheromone component of several Asian and South American species of longhorned beetles in the subfamily Cerambycinae. Here, we report the first confirmed identification of this compound as a pheromone component of a cerambycine species native to North America, the rare beetle Dryobius sexnotatus Linsley. Headspace volatiles from males contained (R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one and pyrrole (ratio 1:0.13), neither of which were detected in samples from a female. A field bioassay confirmed that adults of both sexes were attracted only to the binary blend of racemic 3-hydroxyhexan-2-one plus pyrrole, and not by either compound alone. Adults of another cerambycine, Xylotrechus colonus (F.), were attracted by 3-hydroxyhexan-2-one, consistent with this compound being the primary component of the pheromone of this species; attraction was not influenced by the presence of pyrrole. This study attests to the effectiveness of pheromone-baited traps in capturing rarely encountered species of cerambycids. It also provides further evidence that pyrrole represents another conserved pheromone motif within the Cerambycinae, now having been found in representatives of five cerambycid tribes from three continents.

Role of the vomeronasal system in intersexual attraction in female mice.

PubMed

Martínez-Ricós, J; Agustín-Pavón, C; Lanuza, E; Martínez-García, F

2008-05-02

Although it is generally accepted that rodents' sociosexual behavior relies mainly on chemosignals, the specific roles played by the vomeronasal and olfactory systems in detecting these signals are presently unclear. This work reports the results of three experiments aimed at clarifying the role of the vomeronasal system on gender recognition and intersexual attraction, by analyzing the effects of lesions of the accessory olfactory bulbs (AOB) in chemically naïve female mice. The first experiment demonstrates that lesions of the AOB abolish the preference that females show for male-soiled bedding in tests in which the females can contact the bedding, thus having access to both volatile and involatile male chemosignals. The second experiment shows that airborne male-derived chemosignals are not attractive to intact, chemically naïve females but tend to be preferentially explored by females whose AOB has been lesioned. However, repeated exposure to male-soiled bedding has opposite effects in sham-operated and AOB-lesioned female mice. Whereas after this experience sham-operated females show an (acquired) attraction toward male airborne chemosignals, in AOB-lesioned females the same experience makes male-derived volatiles aversive. Finally, in the third experiment we have confirmed that our AOB-lesioned females are able to detect urine-borne male odorants, as well as to discriminate them from the synthetic terpene geraniol. These findings strongly suggest that in mice, the involatile male sexual pheromone that is intrinsically attractive is detected by the vomeronasal system of the females. In addition, the repeated experience of females with male-soiled bedding would probably allow the association of this pheromone, acting as unconditioned stimulus, with olfactory stimuli (odorants) that therefore would become conditioned attractors to the females.

Cerambycid Beetle Species with Similar Pheromones are Segregated by Phenology and Minor Pheromone Components.

PubMed

Mitchell, Robert F; Reagel, Peter F; Wong, Joseph C H; Meier, Linnea R; Silva, Weliton Dias; Mongold-Diers, Judith; Millar, Jocelyn G; Hanks, Lawrence M

2015-05-01

Recent research has shown that volatile sex and aggregation-sex pheromones of many species of cerambycid beetles are highly conserved, with sympatric and synchronic species that are closely related (i.e., congeners), and even more distantly related (different subfamilies), using the same or similar pheromones. Here, we investigated mechanisms by which cross attraction is averted among seven cerambycid species that are native to eastern North America and active as adults in spring: Anelaphus pumilus (Newman), Cyrtophorus verrucosus (Olivier), Euderces pini (Olivier), Neoclytus caprea (Say), and the congeners Phymatodes aereus (Newman), P. amoenus (Say), and P. varius (F.). Males of these species produce (R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one as their dominant or sole pheromone component. Our field bioassays support the hypothesis that cross attraction between species is averted or at least minimized by differences among species in seasonal phenology and circadian flight periods of adults, and/or by minor pheromone components that act as synergists for conspecifics and antagonists for heterospecifics.

Altered sexual and social behaviors in trp2 mutant mice

PubMed Central

Leypold, Bradley G.; Yu, C. Ron; Leinders-Zufall, Trese; Kim, Michelle M.; Zufall, Frank; Axel, Richard

2002-01-01

We have used gene targeting to generate mice with a homozygous deficiency in trp2, a cation channel expressed in the vomeronasal organ (VNO). Trp2 mutant animals reveal a striking reduction in the electrophysiological response to pheromones in the VNO, suggesting that trp2 plays a central role in mediating the pheromone response. These mutants therefore afford the opportunity to examine the role of the VNO in the generation of innate sexual and social behaviors in mice. Trp2 mutant males and nursing females are docile and fail to initiate aggressive attacks on intruder males. Male–female sexual behavior appears normal, but trp2 mutant males also vigorously mount other males. These results suggest that the cation channel trp2 is required in the VNO to detect male-specific pheromones that elicit aggressive behaviors and dictate the choice of sexual partners. PMID:11972034

Intraspecific Variation in Female Sex Pheromone of the Codling Moth Cydia pomonella

PubMed Central

Duménil, Claire; Judd, Gary J. R.; Bosch, Dolors; Baldessari, Mario; Gemeno, César; Groot, Astrid T.

2014-01-01

The codling moth, Cydia pomonella L. (Lepidoptera, Tortricidae), is a major pest of apple, pear and walnut orchards worldwide. This pest is often controlled using the biologically friendly control method known as pheromone-based mating disruption. Mating disruption likely exerts selection on the sexual communication system of codling moth, as male and female moths will persist in their attempt to meet and mate. Surprisingly little is known on the intraspecific variation of sexual communication in this species. We started an investigation to determine the level of individual variation in the female sex pheromone composition of this moth and whether variation among different populations might be correlated with use of mating disruption against those populations. By extracting pheromone glands of individual females from a laboratory population in Canada and from populations from apple orchards in Spain and Italy, we found significant between- and within-population variation. Comparing females that had been exposed to mating disruption, or not, revealed a significant difference in sex pheromone composition for two of the minor components. Overall, the intraspecific variation observed shows the potential for a shift in female sexual signal when selection pressure is high, as is the case with continuous use of mating disruption. PMID:26462935

Intraspecific Variation in Female Sex Pheromone of the Codling Moth Cydia pomonella.

PubMed

Duménil, Claire; Judd, Gary J R; Bosch, Dolors; Baldessari, Mario; Gemeno, César; Groot, Astrid T

2014-09-26

The codling moth, Cydia pomonella L. (Lepidoptera, Tortricidae), is a major pest of apple, pear and walnut orchards worldwide. This pest is often controlled using the biologically friendly control method known as pheromone-based mating disruption. Mating disruption likely exerts selection on the sexual communication system of codling moth, as male and female moths will persist in their attempt to meet and mate. Surprisingly little is known on the intraspecific variation of sexual communication in this species. We started an investigation to determine the level of individual variation in the female sex pheromone composition of this moth and whether variation among different populations might be correlated with use of mating disruption against those populations. By extracting pheromone glands of individual females from a laboratory population in Canada and from populations from apple orchards in Spain and Italy, we found significant between- and within-population variation. Comparing females that had been exposed to mating disruption, or not, revealed a significant difference in sex pheromone composition for two of the minor components. Overall, the intraspecific variation observed shows the potential for a shift in female sexual signal when selection pressure is high, as is the case with continuous use of mating disruption.

Nymphs of the common bed bug (Cimex lectularius) produce anti-aphrodisiac defence against conspecific males

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Abdominal wounding by traumatic insemination and the lack of a long distance attraction pheromone set the scene for unusual sexual signalling systems. Male bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) mount any large, newly fed individual in an attempt to mate. Last instar nymphs overlap in size with mature females, which make them a potential target for interested males. However, nymphs lack the female's specific mating adaptations and may be severely injured by the abdominal wounding. We, therefore, hypothesized that nymphs emit chemical deterrents that act as an honest status signal, which prevents nymph sexual harassment and indirectly reduces energy costs for males. Results Behavioural mating assays showed that males mount nymphs significantly shorter time compared to females, although initial mounting preference was the same. In support of our hypothesis, nymphs experienced the same percentage of mating with sperm transfer as females if they were unable to emit (E)-2-hexenal, (E)-2-octenal 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal and 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal, from their dorsal abdominal glands. We report that the aldehydes and 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal are detected by olfactory receptor neurons housed in smooth and grooved peg sensilla, respectively, on the adult antennae, at biologically relevant concentrations. Behavioural experiments showed that application of 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal or the two aldehydes at a nymph-emitted ratio, to a male/female pair during mounting initiation, decreased mating frequency to a rate comparable to that of a male/nymph pair. Conclusions By combining behavioural and sensory studies, we show that the nymph-specific alarm pheromone plays an important role in intra-specific communication in the common bed bug. Alarm pheromones are commonly looked upon as a system in predator/prey communication, but here we show that alarm pheromones may be used as multipurpose signals such as decreasing the risk of nymphal mating by males. See commentary: http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7007/8/117 PMID:20828381

Identification of a pheromone regulating caste differentiation in termites.

PubMed

Matsuura, Kenji; Himuro, Chihiro; Yokoi, Tomoyuki; Yamamoto, Yuuka; Vargo, Edward L; Keller, Laurent

2010-07-20

The hallmark of social insects is their caste system: reproduction is primarily monopolized by queens, whereas workers specialize in the other tasks required for colony growth and survival. Pheromones produced by reigning queens have long been believed to be the prime factor inhibiting the differentiation of new reproductive individuals. However, there has been very little progress in the chemical identification of such inhibitory pheromones. Here we report the identification of a volatile inhibitory pheromone produced by female neotenics (secondary queens) that acts directly on target individuals to suppress the differentiation of new female neotenics and identify n-butyl-n-butyrate and 2-methyl-1-butanol as the active components of the inhibitory pheromone. An artificial pheromone blend consisting of these two compounds had a strong inhibitory effect similar to live neotenics. Surprisingly, the same two volatiles are also emitted by eggs, playing a role both as an attractant to workers and an inhibitor of reproductive differentiation. This dual production of an inhibitory pheromone by female reproductives and eggs probably reflects the recruitment of an attractant pheromone as an inhibitory pheromone and may provide a mechanism ensuring honest signaling of reproductive status with a tight coupling between fertility and inhibitory power. Identification of a volatile pheromone regulating caste differentiation in a termite provides insights into the functioning of social insect colonies and opens important avenues for elucidating the developmental pathways leading to reproductive and nonreproductive castes.

Identification of a pheromone regulating caste differentiation in termites

PubMed Central

Matsuura, Kenji; Himuro, Chihiro; Yokoi, Tomoyuki; Yamamoto, Yuuka; Vargo, Edward L.; Keller, Laurent

2010-01-01

The hallmark of social insects is their caste system: reproduction is primarily monopolized by queens, whereas workers specialize in the other tasks required for colony growth and survival. Pheromones produced by reining queens have long been believed to be the prime factor inhibiting the differentiation of new reproductive individuals. However, there has been very little progress in the chemical identification of such inhibitory pheromones. Here we report the identification of a volatile inhibitory pheromone produced by female neotenics (secondary queens) that acts directly on target individuals to suppress the differentiation of new female neotenics and identify n-butyl-n-butyrate and 2-methyl-1-butanol as the active components of the inhibitory pheromone. An artificial pheromone blend consisting of these two compounds had a strong inhibitory effect similar to live neotenics. Surprisingly, the same two volatiles are also emitted by eggs, playing a role both as an attractant to workers and an inhibitor of reproductive differentiation. This dual production of an inhibitory pheromone by female reproductives and eggs probably reflects the recruitment of an attractant pheromone as an inhibitory pheromone and may provide a mechanism ensuring honest signaling of reproductive status with a tight coupling between fertility and inhibitory power. Identification of a volatile pheromone regulating caste differentiation in a termite provides insights into the functioning of social insect colonies and opens important avenues for elucidating the developmental pathways leading to reproductive and nonreproductive castes. PMID:20615972

Phorid fly, Pseudacteon tricuspis, response to alkylpyrazine analogs of a fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, alarm pheromone.

PubMed

Sharma, Kavita; Vander Meer, Robert K; Fadamiro, Henry Y

2011-07-01

The phorid fly, Pseudacteon tricuspis Borgmeier, is a parasitoid of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren. This fly has been reported to use fire ant chemicals, specifically venom alkaloids and possibly alarm pheromone to locate its host. A recent study identified 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethyl pyrazine as a component of the alarm pheromone of S. invicta. To determine the possible involvement of this fire ant alarm pheromone component in mediating fire ant-phorid fly interactions, we tested electroantennogram (EAG) and behavioral responses of P. tricuspis females to the commercially available mixture of 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethyl pyrazine and its 3,5-dimethyl isomer, as well as six structurally related alkylpyrazine analogs at varying doses. Pseudacteon tricuspis females showed significant EAG response to 2-ethyl-3,6(or 5)-dimethyl pyrazine (herein referred to as pheromone-isomer) at all doses, 0.001-10 μg. Among the tested alkylpyrazine analogs, 2,3-diethyl-5-methyl pyrazine showed significant EAG activity at 0.1 and 1 μg. 2,3-dimethyl pyrazine also showed significant EAG activity at 0.1 μg. Results of four-choice olfactometer bioassays demonstrated significant attraction of P. tricuspis females to the pheromone-isomer (2-ethyl-3,6(or 5)-dimethyl pyrazine) at all tested doses (0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10 μg). The analogs, 2,3-diethyl-5-methyl pyrazine and 2,3-dimethyl pyrazine were significantly better than the control at the higher doses (0.1, 1 and 10 μg). The pheromone-isomer was significantly better than both analogs at two doses, 0.1 and 1 μg. These results confirm that the reported fire ant alarm pheromone component plays a role in mediating attraction of phorid flies to host workers. Venom alkaloids were previously shown to attract P. tricuspis; therefore, we propose that fire ant alarm pheromones may act in tandem or synergistically with venom alkaloids to attract phorid fly parasitoids to fire ant workers. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Werner, R.A.

Field tests on the efficacy of various scolytid bark beetle pheromones to attract Ips perturbatus (Eichhoff) were conducted from 1977 through 1992 in stands of white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) in interior Alaska. Several pheromones attracted high numbers of I. perturbatus and species of the predator Thanasimus to baited funnel traps. Test results also indicated that attacks by I. perturbatus may be deferred by certain semiochemicals.

Field capture of Thyanta perditor with pheromone-baited traps and cross-attraction to other pentatomids

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In Brazil, Thyanta perditor is one of the stink bugs attacking soybean and also could be found on others crops such as wheat, sunflower and sorghum. The objective of this work was to test the field attractiveness of traps baited with synthetic T. perditor pheromone. Two-liter transparent plastic sof...

Moths behaving like butterflies. Evolutionary loss of long range attractant pheromones in castniid moths: a Paysandisia archon model.

PubMed

Sarto i Monteys, Víctor; Acín, Patricia; Rosell, Glòria; Quero, Carmen; Jiménez, Miquel A; Guerrero, Angel

2012-01-01

In the course of evolution butterflies and moths developed two different reproductive behaviors. Whereas butterflies rely on visual stimuli for mate location, moths use the 'female calling plus male seduction' system, in which females release long-range sex pheromones to attract conspecific males. There are few exceptions from this pattern but in all cases known female moths possess sex pheromone glands which apparently have been lost in female butterflies. In the day-flying moth family Castniidae ("butterfly-moths"), which includes some important crop pests, no pheromones have been found so far. Using a multidisciplinary approach we described the steps involved in the courtship of P. archon, showing that visual cues are the only ones used for mate location; showed that the morphology and fine structure of the antennae of this moth are strikingly similar to those of butterflies, with male sensilla apparently not suited to detect female-released long range pheromones; showed that its females lack pheromone-producing glands, and identified three compounds as putative male sex pheromone (MSP) components of P. archon, released from the proximal halves of male forewings and hindwings. This study provides evidence for the first time in Lepidoptera that females of a moth do not produce any pheromone to attract males, and that mate location is achieved only visually by patrolling males, which may release a pheromone at short distance, putatively a mixture of Z,E-farnesal, E,E-farnesal, and (E,Z)-2,13-octadecadienol. The outlined behavior, long thought to be unique to butterflies, is likely to be widespread in Castniidae implying a novel, unparalleled butterfly-like reproductive behavior in moths. This will also have practical implications in applied entomology since it signifies that the monitoring/control of castniid pests should not be based on the use of female-produced pheromones, as it is usually done in many moths.

Chemosterilization of male sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) does not affect sex pheromone release

USGS Publications Warehouse

Siefkes, Michael J.; Bergstedt, Roger A.; Twohey, Michael B.; Li, Weiming

2003-01-01

Release of males sterilized by injection with bisazir is an important experimental technique in management of sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus), an invasive, nuisance species in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Sea lampreys are semelparous and sterilization can theoretically eliminate a male's reproductive capacity and, if the ability to obtain mates is not affected, waste the sex products of females spawning with him. It has been demonstrated that spermiating males release a sex pheromone that attracts ovulating females. We demonstrated that sterilized, spermiating males also released the pheromone and attracted ovulating females. In a two-choice maze, ovulating females increased searching behavior and spent more time in the side of the maze containing chemical stimuli from sterilized, spermiating males. This attraction response was also observed in spawning stream experiments. Also, electro-olfactograms showed that female olfactory organs were equally sensitive to chemical stimuli from sterilized and nonsterilized, spermiating males. Finally, fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry showed that extracts from water conditioned with sterilized and nonsterilized, spermiating males contained the same pheromonal molecule at similar levels. We concluded that injection of bisazir did not affect the efficacy of sex pheromone in sterilized males.

Enhanced attraction of Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) to pheromone-baited traps with the addition of green leaf volatiles.

PubMed

Li, Pengyan; Zhu, Junwei; Qin, Yuchuan

2012-08-01

Diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), is one of the most serious pests of Brassicaceae crops worldwide. Electrophysiological and behavioral responses of P. xylostella to green leaf volatiles (GLVs) alone or together with its female sex pheromone were investigated in laboratory and field. GLVs 1-hexanol and (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol elicited strong electroantennographic responses from unmated male and female P. xylostella, whereas (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate only produced a relatively weak response. The behavioral responses of unmated moths to GLVs were further tested in Y-tube olfactometer experiments. (E)-2-Hexenal, (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, and (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate induced attraction of males, reaching up to 50%, significantly higher than the response to the unbaited control arm. In field experiments conducted in 2008 and 2009, significantly more moths were captured in traps baited with synthetic sex pheromone with either (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate alone or a blend of (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, and (E)-2-hexenal compared with sex pheromone alone and other blend mixtures. These results demonstrated that GLVs could be used to enhance the attraction of P. xylostella males to sex pheromone-baited traps.

Chirality determines pheromone activity for flour beetles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levinson, H. Z.; Mori, K.

1983-04-01

Olfactory perception and orientation behaviour of female and male flour beetles ( Tribolium castaneum, T. confusum) to single stereoisomers of their aggregation pheromone revealed maximal receptor potentials and optimal attraction in response to 4R,8R-(-)-dimethyldecanal, whereas its optical antipode 4S,8S-(+)-dimethyldecanal was found to be inactive in this respect. Female flour beetles of both species were ≈ 103 times less attracted to 4R,8S-(+)- and 4S,8R-(-)-dimethyldecanal than to 4R,8R-(-)-dimethyldecanal, while male flour beetles failed to respond to the R,S-(+)- and S,R-(-)-stereoisomers. Pheromone extracts of prothoracic femora from unmated male flour beetles elicited higher receptor potentials in the antennae of females than in those of males. The results suggest that the aggregation pheromone emitted by male T. castaneum as well as male T. confusum has the stereochemical structure of 4R,8R-(-)-dimethyl-decanal, which acts as sex attractant for the females and as aggregant for the males of both species.

Regulatory Role of PBAN in Sex Pheromone Biosynthesis of Heliothine Moths

PubMed Central

Jurenka, Russell; Rafaeli, Ada

2011-01-01

Both males and females of heliothine moths utilize sex-pheromones during the mating process. Females produce and release a sex pheromone for the long–range attraction of males for mating. Production of sex pheromone in females is controlled by the peptide hormone (pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide, PBAN). This review will highlight what is known about the role PBAN plays in controlling pheromone production in female moths. Male moths produce compounds associated with a hairpencil structure associated with the aedaegus that are used as short-range aphrodisiacs during the mating process. We will discuss the role that PBAN plays in regulating male production of hairpencil pheromones. PMID:22654810

European corn borer sex pheromone : Inhibition and elicitation of behavioral response by analogs.

PubMed

Schwarz, M; Klun, J A; Uebel, E C

1990-05-01

The male sexual behavior-stimulating and inhibiting properties of a series of analogs of the European corn borer sex pheromone were determined in a flight tunnel. The structural requirements for inhibition of pheromonal response were far less restrictive than those for elicitation of that response. Analogs that by themselves elicited upwind flight response from males at a low dose were generally less inhibitory to male response than many of the analogs that had no pheromonal activity. These findings suggest that many pheromone analogs bind to pheromone receptors without provoking behavioral response and possibly undergo slower degradation on the antenna than pheromonally active compounds. The disparity of response to analogs by two pheromonal types of the European corn borer indicates that the pheromone receptor and pheromone catabolic systems are biochemically very different in the two types.

Role of nitric oxide in pheromone-mediated intraspecific communication in mice.

PubMed

Agustín-Pavón, Carmen; Martínez-Ricós, Joana; Martínez-García, Fernando; Lanuza, Enrique

2009-12-07

Nitric oxide is known to take part in the control of sexual and agonistic behaviours. This is usually attributed to its role in neural transmission in the hypothalamus and other structures of the limbic system. However, socio-sexual behaviours in rodents are mainly directed by chemical signals detected by the vomeronasal system, and nitric oxide is abundant in key structures along the vomeronasal pathway. Thus, here we check whether pharmacological treatments interfering with nitrergic transmission could affect socio-sexual behaviour by impairing the processing of chemical signals. Treatment with an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis (Nomega-Nitro-l-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride, L-NAME, 100mg/kg) blocks the innate preference displayed by female mice for sexual pheromones contained in male-soiled bedding, with a lower dose of the drug (50mg/kg) having no effect. Animals treated with the high dose of L-NAME show no reduction of olfactory discrimination of male urine in a habituation-dishabituation test, thus suggesting that the effect of the drug on the preference for male pheromones is not due to an inability to detect male urine. Alternatively, it may result from an alteration in processing the reinforcing value of pheromones as sexual signals. These results add a new piece of evidence to our understanding of the neurochemistry of intraspecific chemical communication in rodents, and suggest that the role of nitric oxide in socio-sexual behaviours should be re-evaluated taking into account the involvement of this neuromodulator in the processing of chemical signals.

Aggregation pheromone of the cereal leaf beetle: field evaluation and emission from males in the laboratory.

PubMed

Rao, Sujaya; Cossé, Allard A; Zilkowski, Bruce W; Bartelt, Robert J

2003-09-01

The previously identified, male-specific compound of the cereal leaf beetle (CLB, Chrysomelidae; Oulema melanopus), (E)-8-hydroxy-6-methyl-6-octen-3-one, was studied further with respect to field activity and emission rate from male beetles. In a 5-week field experiment in Oregon, the compound was shown to function as an aggregation pheromone in attracting male and female CLBs migrating from overwintering sites in spring. Traps baited with the synthetic compound (500 microg per rubber septum) caught 3.3 times more CLBs than control traps. Lower doses of the pheromone (50 and 150 microg) were less attractive than the 500 microg dose. One relatively abundant, volatile compound from the host plant (oats), (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, that elicited responses from beetle antennae was not attractive, either by itself or as a synergist of the pheromone. Both sexes were captured about equally for all treatments. We also measured daily pheromone emission by male beetles in the laboratory. Individual males feeding on oat seedlings under greenhouse conditions emitted as much as 6 microg per day, which is about 500 times higher than had been previously observed under incubator conditions. The pheromone emission rate was at least five times higher during the day than at night, and in one male, emission spanned a period of 28 d. The release rate of synthetic pheromone from the 500 microg septa was very similar to the maximum from single males; thus, future experiments should evaluate even higher doses. The field results indicate that the pheromone has potential as a monitoring tool for early detection of CLBs as they move from their overwintering sites into newly planted cereal crops in spring.

Host plant affects the sexual attractiveness of the female white-spotted longicorn beetle, Anoplophora malasiaca.

PubMed

Yasui, Hiroe; Fujiwara-Tsujii, Nao

2016-07-14

Anoplophora malasiaca (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) is a serious pest that destroys various landscape and crop trees in Japan. We evaluated the precopulatory responses of three different A. malasiaca populations collected from mandarin orange, willow and blueberry trees. Most of the males accepted mates from within the same host plant population as well as females from the willow and blueberry populations. However, significant number of males from the blueberry and willow populations rejected females from the mandarin orange population immediately after touching them with their antennae. Because all three of the female populations produced contact sex pheromones on their elytra, the females of the mandarin orange population were predicted to possess extra chemicals that repelled the males of the other two populations. β-Elemene was identified as a key component that was only found in mandarin orange-fed females and induced a rejection response in willow-fed males. Our results represent the first example of a female-acquired repellent against conspecific males of different host plant populations, indicating that the host plant greatly affects the female's sexual attractiveness.

Unusual pheromone chemistry in the navel orangeworm: novel sex attractants and a behavioral antagonist

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leal, W. S.; Parra-Pedrazzoli, A. L.; Kaissling, K.-E.; Morgan, T. I.; Zalom, F. G.; Pesak, D. J.; Dundulis, E. A.; Burks, C. S.; Higbee, B. S.

2005-03-01

Using molecular- and sensory physiology-based approaches, three novel natural products, a simple ester, and a behavioral antagonist have been identified from the pheromone gland of the navel orangeworm, Amyelois transitella Walker (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). In addition to the previously identified (Z,Z)-11,13-hexadecadienal, the pheromone blend is composed of (Z,Z,Z,Z,Z)-3,6,9,12,15-tricosapentaene, (Z,Z,Z,Z,Z)-3,6,9,12,15-pentacosapentaene, ethyl palmitate, ethyl-(Z,Z)-11,13-hexadecadienoate, and (Z,Z)-11,13-hexadecadien-1-yl acetate. The C23 and C25 pentaenes are not only novel sex pheromones, but also new natural products. In field tests, catches of A. transitella males in traps baited with the full mixture of pheromones were as high as those in traps with virgin females, whereas control and traps baited only with the previously known constituent did not capture any moths at all. The navel orangeworm sex pheromone is also an attractant for the meal moth, Pyralis farinalis L. (Pyralidae), but (Z,Z)-11,13-hexadecadien-1-yl acetate is a behavioral antagonist. The new pheromone blend may be highly effective in mating disruption and monitoring programs.

Attraction of the southern pine beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis, to pheromone components of the western pine beetle, Dendroctonus brevicomis (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae), in an allopatric zone

Treesearch

Deepa S. Pureswaran; Richard W. Hofstetter; Brian T. Sullivan

2008-01-01

Subtle differences in pheromone components of sympatric species should be attractive only to the producing species and unattractive or repellent to the nonproducing species, and thereby maintain reproductive isolation and reduce competition between species. Bark beetles Dendroctonus brevicomis and D. frontalis (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) are known to...

Blend chemistry and field attraction of commercial pheromone lures for monitoring grape berry moth, Paralobesia viteana (Clemens) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in vineyards

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Grape berry moth pheromone lures from four manufacturers, Alpha Scents, Inc. (West Linn, OR), ISCA Technologies (Riverside, CA), Suterra (Bend, OR), and Trécé, Inc. (Adair, OK), were evaluated for purity and efficacy of attracting grape berry moth and a non-target torticid moth in vineyards. The pe...

Of pheromones and kairomones: what receptors mediate innate emotional responses?

PubMed

Fortes-Marco, Lluis; Lanuza, Enrique; Martinez-Garcia, Fernando

2013-09-01

Some chemicals elicit innate emotionally laden behavioral responses. Pheromones mediate sexual attraction, parental care or agonistic confrontation, whereas predators' kairomones elicit defensive behaviors in their preys. This essay explores the hypothesis that the detection of these semiochemicals relies on highly specific olfactory and/or vomeronasal receptors. The V1R, V2R, and formyl-peptide vomeronasal receptors bind their ligands in highly specific and sensitive way, thus being good candidates for pheromone- or kairomone-detectors (e.g., secreted and excreted proteins, peptides and lipophilic volatiles). The olfactory epithelium also expresses specific receptors, for example trace amine-associated receptors (TAAR) and guanylyl cyclase receptors (GC-D and other types), some of which bind kairomones and putative pheromones. However, most of the olfactory neurons express canonical olfactory receptors (ORs) that bind many ligands with different affinity, being not suitable for mediating responses to pheromones and kairomones. In this respect, trimethylthiazoline (TMT) is considered a fox-derived kairomone for mice and rats, but it seems to be detected by canonical ORs. Therefore, we have reassessed the kairomonal nature of TMT by analyzing the behavioral responses of outbred (CD1) and inbred mice (C57BL/J6) to TMT. Our results confirm that both mouse strains avoid TMT, which increases immobility in C57BL/J6, but not CD1 mice. However, mice of both strains sniff at TMT throughout the test and show no trace of TMT-induced contextual conditioning (immobility or avoidance). This suggests that TMT is not a kairomone but, similar to a loud noise, in high concentrations it induces aversion and stress as unspecific responses to a strong olfactory stimulation. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Orientation of boll weevil,Anthonomus grandis boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), to pheromone and volatile host compound in the laboratory.

PubMed

Dickens, J C

1986-01-01

Behavioral responses of male and female boll weevils to the aggregation pheromone, grandlure, and the major volatile of cotton, β-bisabolol, were investigated using a new dual-choice olfactometer. Dosage-response experiments revealed both males and females to be attracted by the aggregation pheromone at the 1.0 μg dosage. However, only males were attracted to β-bisabolol (1.0 μg). Both sexes were repelled by the highest dosage ofβ-bisabolol tested (10 μg). In preference experiment, males chose grandlure over β-bisabolol, while both sexes chose the combination of grandlure + β-bisabolol over β-bisabolol alone. There was some evidence for synergism between pheromone and plant odor for the females. The results correlate well with previous electrophysiological and behavioral experiments.

Colour mimicry and sexual deception by Tongue orchids ( Cryptostylis)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaskett, A. C.; Herberstein, M. E.

2010-01-01

Typically, floral colour attracts pollinators by advertising rewards such as nectar, but how does colour function when pollinators are deceived, unrewarded, and may even suffer fitness costs? Sexually deceptive orchids are pollinated only by male insects fooled into mating with orchid flowers and inadvertently transferring orchid pollinia. Over long distances, sexually deceptive orchids lure pollinators with counterfeit insect sex pheromones, but close-range deception with colour mimicry is a tantalising possibility. Here, for the first time, we analyse the colours of four sexually deceptive Cryptostylis orchid species and the female wasp they mimic ( Lissopimpla excelsa, Ichneumonidae), from the perspective of the orchids’ single, shared pollinator, male Lissopimpla excelsa. Despite appearing different to humans, the colours of the orchids and female wasps were effectively identical when mapped into a hymenopteran hexagonal colour space. The orchids and wasps reflected predominantly red-orange wavelengths, but UV was also reflected by raised bumps on two orchid species and by female wasp wings. The orchids’ bright yellow pollinia contrasted significantly with their overall red colour. Orchid deception may therefore involve accurate and species-specific mimicry of wavelengths reflected by female wasps, and potentially, exploitation of insects’ innate attraction to UV and yellow wavelengths. In general, mimicry may be facilitated by exploiting visual vulnerabilities and evolve more readily at the peripheries of sensory perception. Many sexually deceptive orchids are predominantly red, green or white: colours that are all potentially difficult for hymenoptera to detect or distinguish from the background.

Colour mimicry and sexual deception by Tongue orchids (Cryptostylis).

PubMed

Gaskett, A C; Herberstein, M E

2010-01-01

Typically, floral colour attracts pollinators by advertising rewards such as nectar, but how does colour function when pollinators are deceived, unrewarded, and may even suffer fitness costs? Sexually deceptive orchids are pollinated only by male insects fooled into mating with orchid flowers and inadvertently transferring orchid pollinia. Over long distances, sexually deceptive orchids lure pollinators with counterfeit insect sex pheromones, but close-range deception with colour mimicry is a tantalising possibility. Here, for the first time, we analyse the colours of four sexually deceptive Cryptostylis orchid species and the female wasp they mimic (Lissopimpla excelsa, Ichneumonidae), from the perspective of the orchids' single, shared pollinator, male Lissopimpla excelsa. Despite appearing different to humans, the colours of the orchids and female wasps were effectively identical when mapped into a hymenopteran hexagonal colour space. The orchids and wasps reflected predominantly red-orange wavelengths, but UV was also reflected by raised bumps on two orchid species and by female wasp wings. The orchids' bright yellow pollinia contrasted significantly with their overall red colour. Orchid deception may therefore involve accurate and species-specific mimicry of wavelengths reflected by female wasps, and potentially, exploitation of insects' innate attraction to UV and yellow wavelengths. In general, mimicry may be facilitated by exploiting visual vulnerabilities and evolve more readily at the peripheries of sensory perception. Many sexually deceptive orchids are predominantly red, green or white: colours that are all potentially difficult for hymenoptera to detect or distinguish from the background.

Spatial displacement of release point can enhance activity of an attractant pheromone synergist of a bark beetle.

Treesearch

Brian Sullivan; Kenji Mori

2009-01-01

Flight responses of the southern pine beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmermann, to widely-spaced (>130 m) traps baited with pine volatiles (in turpentine) and the female-produced pheromone component frontalin were enhanced when a bait containing the male pheromone component (+)-endo-brevicomin was attached...

Mixtures of Two Bile Alcohol Sulfates Function as a Proximity Pheromone in Sea Lamprey.

PubMed

Brant, Cory O; Huertas, Mar; Li, Ke; Li, Weiming

2016-01-01

Unique mixtures of pheromone components are commonly identified in insects, and have been shown to increase attractiveness towards conspecifics when reconstructed at the natural ratio released by the signaler. In previous field studies of pheromones that attract female sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus, L.), putative components of the male-released mating pheromone included the newly described bile alcohol 3,12-diketo-4,6-petromyzonene-24-sulfate (DkPES) and the well characterized 3-keto petromyzonol sulfate (3kPZS). Here, we show chemical evidence that unequivocally confirms the elucidated structure of DkPES, electrophysiological evidence that each component is independently detected by the olfactory epithelium, and behavioral evidence that mature female sea lamprey prefer artificial nests activated with a mixture that reconstructs the male-released component ratio of 30:1 (3kPZS:DkPES, molar:molar). In addition, we characterize search behavior (sinuosity of swim paths) of females approaching ratio treatment sources. These results suggest unique pheromone ratios may underlie reproductive isolating mechanisms in vertebrates, as well as provide utility in pheromone-integrated control of invasive sea lamprey in the Great Lakes.

An insect with a delta-12 desaturase, the jewel wasp Nasonia vitripennis, benefits from nutritional supply with linoleic acid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandstetter, Birgit; Ruther, Joachim

2016-06-01

The availability of linoleic acid (LA; C18:2∆9,12) is pivotal for animals. While vertebrates depend on a nutritional supply, some invertebrates, including the parasitic wasp Nasonia vitripennis, are able to synthesize LA from oleic acid (OA; C18:1∆9). This raises the question as to whether these animals nevertheless benefit from the additional uptake of LA with the diet. LA plays an important role in the sexual communication of N. vitripennis because males use it as a precursor for the synthesis of an abdominal sex pheromone attracting virgin females. We reared hosts of N. vitripennis that were fed diets enriched in the availability of stearic acid (SA: C18:0), OA or LA. N. vitripennis males developing on the different host types clearly differed in both the fatty acid composition of their body fat and sex pheromone titres. Males from LA-enriched hosts had an almost fourfold higher proportion of LA and produced significantly more sex pheromone than males from SA (2.2-fold) and OA (1.4-fold) enriched hosts, respectively. Our study demonstrates that animals being able to synthesize important nutrients de novo may still benefit from an additional supply with their diet.

Sex pheromone of the saturniid moth, Hemileuca burnsi, from the western Mojave Desert of California.

PubMed

McElfresh, J Steven; Millar, Jocelyn G

2008-09-01

The sex pheromone blend of Hemileuca burnsi (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) from the western Mojave Desert was determined to be a combination of (10E,12Z)-hexadecadien-1-yl acetate (E10,Z12-16:Ac), (10E,12Z)-hexadecadien-1-ol (E10,Z12-16:OH), (10E,12E)-hexadecadien-1-yl acetate (E10,E12-16:Ac), and hexadecyl acetate (16:Ac). (10E,12Z)-Hexadecadienal (E10,Z12-16:Ald) was tentatively identified in pheromone gland extracts based on electroantennographic responses and, when added to the above blend, it enhanced trap captures at low doses. The mean ratio of the compounds in extracts of pheromone glands was 100:23:232:14:0.4 (E10,Z12-16:Ac: E10,E12-16:Ac: 16:Ac: E10,Z12-16:OH: E10,Z12-16:Ald). Field trials indicated that although E10,Z12-16:Ac and E10,Z12-16:OH were essential for attraction, the two-component blend was not attractive by itself. Addition of the three other compounds was necessary for maximum attraction, rendering this the most complicated pheromone blend described for a Hemileuca species to date. Similarities between the sex pheromone of H. burnsi and that of the allopatric Hemileuca electra electra and differences between the blends of H. burnsi and that of the sympatric H. electra mojavensis support a case for reproductive character displacement in the pheromone communication channel of H. electra.

Sexual selection in true fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae): transcriptome and experimental evidences for phytochemicals increasing male competitive ability.

PubMed

Kumaran, Nagalingam; Prentis, Peter J; Mangalam, Kalimuthu P; Schutze, Mark K; Clarke, Anthony R

2014-09-01

In male tephritid fruit flies of the genus Bactrocera, feeding on secondary plant compounds (sensu lato male lures = methyl eugenol, raspberry ketone and zingerone) increases male mating success. Ingested male lures alter the male pheromonal blend, normally making it more attractive to females and this is considered the primary mechanism for the enhanced mating success. However, the male lures raspberry ketone and zingerone are known, across a diverse range of other organisms, to be involved in increasing energy metabolism. If this also occurs in Bactrocera, then this may represent an additional benefit to males as courtship is metabolically expensive and lure feeding may increase a fly's short-term energy. We tested this hypothesis by performing comparative RNA-seq analysis between zingerone-fed and unfed males of Bactrocera tryoni. We also carried out behavioural assays with zingerone- and cuelure-fed males to test whether they became more active. RNA-seq analysis revealed, in zingerone-fed flies, up-regulation of 3183 genes with homologues transcripts to those known to regulate intermale aggression, pheromone synthesis, mating and accessory gland proteins, along with significant enrichment of several energy metabolic pathways and gene ontology terms. Behavioural assays show significant increases in locomotor activity, weight reduction and successful mating after mounting; all direct/indirect measures of increased activity. These results suggest that feeding on lures leads to complex physiological changes, which result in more competitive males. These results do not negate the pheromone effect, but do strongly suggest that the phytochemical-induced sexual selection is governed by both female preference and male competitive mechanisms. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Improved synthesis of (3E,6Z,9Z)-1,3,6,9-nonadecatetraene, attraction inhibitor of bruce spanworm, Operophtera bruceata, to pheromone traps for monitoring winter moth, Operophtera brumata.

PubMed

Khrimian, Ashot; Lance, David R; Mastro, Victor C; Elkinton, Joseph S

2010-02-10

The winter moth, Operophtera brumata (Lepidoptera: Geometridae), is an early-season defoliator that attacks a wide variety of hardwoods and, in some cases, conifers. The insect is native to Europe but has become established in at least three areas of North America including southeastern New England. The female-produced sex attractant pheromone of the winter moth was identified as (3Z,6Z,9Z)-1,3,6,9-nonadecatetraene (1), which also attracts a native congener, the Bruce spanworm, Operophtera bruceata . Dissection, or (for certainty) DNA molecular testing, is required to differentiate between males of the two species. Thus, a trapping method that is selective for winter moth would be desirable. A geometric isomer of the pheromone, (3E,6Z,9Z)-1,3,6,9-nonadecatetraene (2), can reportedly inhibit attraction of Bruce spanworm to traps without affecting winter moth catch, but use of the pheromone and inhibitor together has not been optimized, nor has the synthesis of the inhibitor. This paper presents two new syntheses of the inhibitor (3E,6Z,9Z)-1,3,6,9-nonadecatetraene based on the intermediate (3Z,6Z)-3,6-hexadecadien-1-ol (4), which has also been utilized in the synthesis of the pheromone. The syntheses combine traditional acetylenic chemistry and Wittig olefination reactions. In one approach, 2 was synthesized in 80% purity (20% being pheromone 1), and in the second, tetraene 2 of 96% purity (and free of 1) was produced in 25% overall yield from dienol 4. The last method benefitted from a refined TEMPO-mediated PhI(OAc)(2) oxidation of 4 and a two-carbon homologation of the corresponding aldehyde 7.

Male Sexual Behavior and Pheromone Emission Is Enhanced by Exposure to Guava Fruit Volatiles in Anastrepha fraterculus

PubMed Central

Bachmann, Guillermo E.; Segura, Diego F.; Devescovi, Francisco; Juárez, M. Laura; Ruiz, M. Josefina; Vera, M. Teresa; Cladera, Jorge L.; Fernández, Patricia C.

2015-01-01

Background Plant chemicals can affect reproductive strategies of tephritid fruit flies by influencing sex pheromone communication and increasing male mating competitiveness. Objective and Methodology We explored whether exposure of Anastrepha fraterculus males to guava fruit volatiles and to a synthetic blend of volatile compounds released by this fruit affects the sexual performance of wild and laboratory flies. By means of bioassays and pheromone collection we investigated the mechanism underlying this phenomenon. Results Guava volatile exposure enhanced male mating success and positively affected male calling behavior and pheromone release in laboratory and wild males. Changes in male behavior appear to be particularly important during the initial phase of the sexual activity period, when most of the mating pairs are formed. Exposure of laboratory males to a subset of guava fruit volatiles enhanced mating success, showing that the response to the fruit might be mimicked artificially. Conclusions Volatiles of guava seem to influence male mating success through an enhancement of chemical and physical signals related to the communication between sexes. This finding has important implications for the management of this pest species through the Sterile Insect Technique. We discuss the possibility of using artificial blends to improve the sexual competitiveness of sterile males. PMID:25923584

Attractiveness of harlequin bug, Murgantia histrionica (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), aggregation pheromone: field response to isomers, ratios and dose

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A two-component sesquiterpene pheromone, (3S,6S,7R,10S)- and (3S,6S,7R,10R)-10,11-epoxy-1-bisabolen-3-ol (murgantiol), present in emissions from adult male harlequin bugs Murgantia histrionica, is most attractive in field bioassays to adults and nymphs in the naturally-occurring approximately 1.4:1...

Identification and field evaluation of attractants for the cranberry weevil, Anthonomus musculus Say.

PubMed

Szendrei, Zsofia; Averill, Anne; Alborn, Hans; Rodriguez-Saona, Cesar

2011-04-01

Studies were conducted to develop an attractant for the cranberry weevil, Anthonomus musculus, a pest of blueberry and cranberry flower buds and flowers in the northeastern United States. In previous studies, we showed that cinnamyl alcohol, the most abundant blueberry floral volatile, and the green leaf volatiles (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate and hexyl acetate, emitted from both flowers and flower buds, elicit strong antennal responses from A. musculus. Here, we found that cinnamyl alcohol did not increase capture of A. musculus adults on yellow sticky traps compared with unbaited controls; however, weevils were highly attracted to traps baited with the Anthonomus eugenii Cano aggregation pheromone, indicating that these congeners share common pheromone components. To identify the A. musculus aggregation pheromone, headspace volatiles were collected from adults feeding on blueberry or cranberry flower buds and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Three male-specific compounds were identified: (Z)-2-(3,3-dimethyl-cyclohexylidene) ethanol (Z grandlure II); (Z)-(3,3-dimethylcyclohexylidene) acetaldehyde (grandlure III); and (E)-(3,3- dimethylcyclohexylidene) acetaldehyde (grandlure IV). A fourth component, (E)-3,7-dimethyl-2,6-octadien-1-ol (geraniol), was emitted in similar quantities by males and females. The emission rates of these volatiles were about 2.8, 1.8, 1.3, and 0.9 ng/adult/d, respectively. Field experiments in highbush blueberry (New Jersey) and cranberry (Massachusetts) examined the attraction of A. musculus to traps baited with the male-produced compounds and geraniol presented alone and combined with (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate and hexyl acetate, and to traps baited with the pheromones of A. eugenii and A. grandis. In both states and crops, traps baited with the A. musculus male-produced compounds attracted the highest number of adults. Addition of the green leaf volatiles did not affect A. musculus attraction to its pheromone but skewed the sex ratio of the captured adults towards females. Although the role of plant volatiles in host-plant location by A. musculus is still unclear, our studies provide the first identification of the primary A. musculus aggregation pheromone components that can be used to monitor this pest in blueberry and cranberry pest management programs.

Likely Aggregation-Sex Pheromones of the Invasive Beetle Callidiellum villosulum, and the Related Asian Species Allotraeus asiaticus, Semanotus bifasciatus, and Xylotrechus buqueti (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae).

PubMed

Wickham, Jacob D; Lu, Wen; Zhang, Long-Wa; Chen, Yi; Zou, Yunfan; Hanks, Lawrence M; Millar, Jocelyn G

2016-10-01

During field trials of the two known cerambycid beetle pheromone components 3-hydroxyhexan-2-one and 1-(1H-pyrrol-2-yl)-1,2-propanedione (henceforth "pyrrole") in Guangxi and Anhui provinces in China, four species in the subfamily Cerambycinae were attracted to lures containing one of the two components, or the blend of the two. Thus, the invasive species Callidiellum villosulum (Fairmaire) (tribe Callidiini) and a second species, Xylotrechus buqueti (Castelnau & Gory) (tribe Clytini), were specifically attracted to the blend of 3-hydroxyhexan-2-one and the pyrrole. In contrast, Allotreus asiaticus (Schwarzer) (tribe Phoracanthini) and Semanotus bifasciatus Motschulsky (tribe Callidiini) were specifically attracted to the pyrrole as a single component. In most cases, both males and females were attracted, indicating that the compounds are likely to be aggregation-sex pheromones. The results indicate that the two compounds are conserved as pheromone components among species within at least three tribes within the subfamily Cerambycinae. For practical purposes, the attractants could find immediate use in surveillance programs aimed at detecting incursions of these species into new areas of the world, including the United States. © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Geometric isomers of sex pheromone components do not affect attractancy of Conopomorpha cramerella in cocoa plantations

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sex pheromone of cocoa pod borer (CPB), Conopomorpha cramerella, has previously been identified as a blend of (E,Z,Z)- and (E,E,Z)-4,6,10-hexadecatrienyl acetates and the corresponding alcohols. These pheromone components have been synthesized with modification of the existing method and relative at...

Evidence for a male-produced pheromone in Tetropium fuscum (F.) and Tetropium cinnamopterum (Kirby) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silk, Peter J.; Sweeney, Jon; Wu, Junping; Price, Jessica; Gutowski, Jerzy M.; Kettela, Edward G.

2007-08-01

( E)-6,10-dimethyl-5,9-undecadien-2-ol (geranyl acetol), termed here fuscol, was identified as a male-produced pheromone emitted by Tetropium fuscum (F.) and Tetropium cinnamopterum Kirby. In field experiments, traps baited with synthetic fuscol alone were not significantly attractive, but the combination of fuscol plus host volatiles (a synthetic blend of monoterpenes plus ethanol) attracted significantly more male and female T. fuscum and female T. cinnamopterum than did host volatiles alone. This is the first homoterpenoid alcohol to be described in the Cerambycidae, and the first pheromone reported from the sub-family Spondylidinae.

Genetic Circuits that Govern Bisexual and Unisexual Reproduction in Cryptococcus neoformans

PubMed Central

Feretzaki, Marianna; Heitman, Joseph

2013-01-01

Cryptococcus neoformans is a human fungal pathogen with a defined sexual cycle. Nutrient-limiting conditions and pheromones induce a dimorphic transition from unicellular yeast to multicellular hyphae and the production of infectious spores. Sexual reproduction involves cells of either opposite (bisexual) or one (unisexual) mating type. Bisexual and unisexual reproduction are governed by shared components of the conserved pheromone-sensing Cpk1 MAPK signal transduction cascade and by Mat2, the major transcriptional regulator of the pathway. However, the downstream targets of the pathway are largely unknown, and homology-based approaches have failed to yield downstream transcriptional regulators or other targets. In this study, we applied insertional mutagenesis via Agrobacterium tumefaciens transkingdom DNA delivery to identify mutants with unisexual reproduction defects. In addition to elements known to be involved in sexual development (Crg1, Ste7, Mat2, and Znf2), three key regulators of sexual development were identified by our screen: Znf3, Spo11, and Ubc5. Spo11 and Ubc5 promote sporulation during both bisexual and unisexual reproduction. Genetic and phenotypic analyses provide further evidence implicating both genes in the regulation of meiosis. Phenotypic analysis of sexual development showed that Znf3 is required for hyphal development during unisexual reproduction and also plays a central role during bisexual reproduction. Znf3 promotes cell fusion and pheromone production through a pathway parallel to and independent of the pheromone signaling cascade. Surprisingly, Znf3 participates in transposon silencing during unisexual reproduction and may serve as a link between RNAi silencing and sexual development. Our studies illustrate the power of unbiased genetic screens to reveal both novel and conserved circuits that operate sexual reproduction. PMID:23966871

Genetic circuits that govern bisexual and unisexual reproduction in Cryptococcus neoformans.

PubMed

Feretzaki, Marianna; Heitman, Joseph

2013-01-01

Cryptococcus neoformans is a human fungal pathogen with a defined sexual cycle. Nutrient-limiting conditions and pheromones induce a dimorphic transition from unicellular yeast to multicellular hyphae and the production of infectious spores. Sexual reproduction involves cells of either opposite (bisexual) or one (unisexual) mating type. Bisexual and unisexual reproduction are governed by shared components of the conserved pheromone-sensing Cpk1 MAPK signal transduction cascade and by Mat2, the major transcriptional regulator of the pathway. However, the downstream targets of the pathway are largely unknown, and homology-based approaches have failed to yield downstream transcriptional regulators or other targets. In this study, we applied insertional mutagenesis via Agrobacterium tumefaciens transkingdom DNA delivery to identify mutants with unisexual reproduction defects. In addition to elements known to be involved in sexual development (Crg1, Ste7, Mat2, and Znf2), three key regulators of sexual development were identified by our screen: Znf3, Spo11, and Ubc5. Spo11 and Ubc5 promote sporulation during both bisexual and unisexual reproduction. Genetic and phenotypic analyses provide further evidence implicating both genes in the regulation of meiosis. Phenotypic analysis of sexual development showed that Znf3 is required for hyphal development during unisexual reproduction and also plays a central role during bisexual reproduction. Znf3 promotes cell fusion and pheromone production through a pathway parallel to and independent of the pheromone signaling cascade. Surprisingly, Znf3 participates in transposon silencing during unisexual reproduction and may serve as a link between RNAi silencing and sexual development. Our studies illustrate the power of unbiased genetic screens to reveal both novel and conserved circuits that operate sexual reproduction.

Proteinaceous Pheromone Homologs Identified from the Cloacal Gland Transcriptome of a Male Axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum.

PubMed

Hall, Kevin W; Eisthen, Heather L; Williams, Barry L

2016-01-01

Pheromones play an important role in modifying vertebrate behavior, especially during courtship and mating. Courtship behavior in urodele amphibians often includes female exposure to secretions from the cloacal gland, as well as other scent glands. The first vertebrate proteinaceous pheromone discovered, the decapeptide sodefrin, is a female attracting pheromone secreted by the cloacal gland of male Cynops pyrrhogaster. Other proteinaceous pheromones in salamanders have been shown to elicit responses from females towards conspecific males. The presence and levels of expression of proteinaceous pheromones have not been identified in the family Ambystomatidae, which includes several important research models. The objective of this research was therefore to identify putative proteinaceous pheromones from male axolotls, Ambystoma mexicanum, as well as their relative expression levels. The results indicate that axolotls possess two different forms of sodefrin precursor-like factor (alpha and beta), as well as a putative ortholog of plethodontid modulating factor. The beta form of sodefrin precursor-like factor was amongst the most highly expressed transcripts within the cloacal gland. The ortholog of plethodontid modulating factor was expressed at a level equivalent to the beta sodefrin precursor-like factor. The results are from a single male axolotl; therefore, we are unable to assess how representative our results may be. Nevertheless, the presence of these highly expressed proteinaceous pheromones suggests that male axolotls use multiple chemical cues to attract female conspecifics. Behavioral assays would indicate whether the putative protein pheromones elicit courtship activity from female axolotls.

Proteinaceous Pheromone Homologs Identified from the Cloacal Gland Transcriptome of a Male Axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum

PubMed Central

Hall, Kevin W.; Eisthen, Heather L.; Williams, Barry L.

2016-01-01

Pheromones play an important role in modifying vertebrate behavior, especially during courtship and mating. Courtship behavior in urodele amphibians often includes female exposure to secretions from the cloacal gland, as well as other scent glands. The first vertebrate proteinaceous pheromone discovered, the decapeptide sodefrin, is a female attracting pheromone secreted by the cloacal gland of male Cynops pyrrhogaster. Other proteinaceous pheromones in salamanders have been shown to elicit responses from females towards conspecific males. The presence and levels of expression of proteinaceous pheromones have not been identified in the family Ambystomatidae, which includes several important research models. The objective of this research was therefore to identify putative proteinaceous pheromones from male axolotls, Ambystoma mexicanum, as well as their relative expression levels. The results indicate that axolotls possess two different forms of sodefrin precursor-like factor (alpha and beta), as well as a putative ortholog of plethodontid modulating factor. The beta form of sodefrin precursor-like factor was amongst the most highly expressed transcripts within the cloacal gland. The ortholog of plethodontid modulating factor was expressed at a level equivalent to the beta sodefrin precursor-like factor. The results are from a single male axolotl; therefore, we are unable to assess how representative our results may be. Nevertheless, the presence of these highly expressed proteinaceous pheromones suggests that male axolotls use multiple chemical cues to attract female conspecifics. Behavioral assays would indicate whether the putative protein pheromones elicit courtship activity from female axolotls. PMID:26885665

Chemoreception to aggregation pheromones in the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius.

PubMed

Liu, Feng; Xiong, Caixing; Liu, Nannan

2017-03-01

The common bed bug, Cimex lectularius, is an obligate blood-feeding insect that is resurgent worldwide, posing a threat to human beings through its biting nuisance and disease transmission. Bed bug aggregation pheromone is considered a very promising attractant for use in the monitoring and management of bed bugs, but as yet little is known regarding the sensory physiology of bed bugs related to this pheromone. This study examined how the individual components of aggregation pheromone are perceived by the olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) housed in different types of olfactory sensilla in bed bugs and the molecular basis for the ORNs' responses to the aggregation pheromone. We found that the ORNs in the D olfactory sensilla played a predominant role in detecting all the components of aggregation pheromone except for histamine, which was only recognized by the C sensilla. Bed bugs' E sensilla, which include four functionally distinct groups, showed only a very weak but variant sensitivity (both excitatory and inhibitory) to the components of aggregation pheromone. Functional tests of 15 odorant receptors (ORs) in response to the components of aggregation pheromone revealed that most of these components were encoded by multiple ORs with various tuning properties. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of how bed bug aggregation pheromone is perceived and recognized in the peripheral olfactory system and will contribute useful information to support the development of synthetic attractants for bed bug monitoring and control. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Factors Influencing Male Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) Capture Rates in Sex Pheromone-Baited Traps on Canola in Western Canada.

PubMed

Miluch, C E; Dosdall, L M; Evenden, M L

2014-12-01

Optimization of male moth trapping rates in sex pheromone-baited traps plays a key role in managing Plutella xylostella (L.). We investigated various ways to increase the attractiveness of pheromone-baited traps to P. xylostella in canola agroecosystems in AB, Canada. Factors tested included pheromone blend and dose, addition of a green leaf volatile to the pheromone at different times during the season, lure type, trap color, and height. The industry standard dose of 100 μg of pheromone (four-component blend) per lure (ConTech Enterprises Inc., Delta, British Columbia [BC], Canada) captured the most moths in the two lure types tested. Traps baited with pheromone released from gray rubber septa captured more males than those baited with red rubber septa. Traps baited with lures in which Z11-16: Ac is the main component attracted significantly more moths than those in which Z11-16: Ald is the main component. The addition of the green leaf volatile, (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, to pheromone at a range of doses, did not increase moth capture at any point during the canola growing season. Unpainted white traps captured significantly more male moths than pheromone-baited traps that were painted yellow. Trap height had no significant effect on moth capture. Recommendations for monitoring P. xylostella in canola agroecosystems of western Canada include using a pheromone blend with Z11-16: Ac as the main component released from gray rubber septa at a dose of 100 μg. © 2014 Entomological Society of America.

Receptor chirality and behavioral specificity of the boll weevil,Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), for its pheromone, (+)-grandisol.

PubMed

Dickens, J C; Mori, K

1989-02-01

Electrophysiological recordings from antennal olfactory receptors and field behavioral experiments showed both male and female boll weevils,Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), to respond specifically to (+)-grandisol, an enantiomer of compound I of the boll weevil aggregation pheromone. Single-cell recordings revealed antennal olfactory neurons in both male and female weevils keyed to (+)-grandisol. Electroantennograms in response to serial dilutions of the grandisol enaniiomers showed a threshold 100 to 1000 times lower for (+)-grandisol relative to its antipode. In field behavioral experiments, both sexes were significantly more attracted to (+)-grandisol in combination with the three other pheromone components than the combination with (-)-grandisol. When (-)-grandisol was placed with the (+)-enantiomer at equal dosages, a slight although statistically insignificant inhibition occurred. Subsequent field tests showed that the low level of attraction exhibited by (-)-grandisol in combination with the other three pheromone components could be attributed to the other three components alone. These results are in contrast with an earlier study, which found (-)-grandisol to be as attractive as the (+)-enantiomer.

A juvenile mouse pheromone inhibits sexual behaviour through the vomeronasal system.

PubMed

Ferrero, David M; Moeller, Lisa M; Osakada, Takuya; Horio, Nao; Li, Qian; Roy, Dheeraj S; Cichy, Annika; Spehr, Marc; Touhara, Kazushige; Liberles, Stephen D

2013-10-17

Animals display a repertoire of different social behaviours. Appropriate behavioural responses depend on sensory input received during social interactions. In mice, social behaviour is driven by pheromones, chemical signals that encode information related to age, sex and physiological state. However, although mice show different social behaviours towards adults, juveniles and neonates, sensory cues that enable specific recognition of juvenile mice are unknown. Here we describe a juvenile pheromone produced by young mice before puberty, termed exocrine-gland secreting peptide 22 (ESP22). ESP22 is secreted from the lacrimal gland and released into tears of 2- to 3-week-old mice. Upon detection, ESP22 activates high-affinity sensory neurons in the vomeronasal organ, and downstream limbic neurons in the medial amygdala. Recombinant ESP22, painted on mice, exerts a powerful inhibitory effect on adult male mating behaviour, which is abolished in knockout mice lacking TRPC2, a key signalling component of the vomeronasal organ. Furthermore, knockout of TRPC2 or loss of ESP22 production results in increased sexual behaviour of adult males towards juveniles, and sexual responses towards ESP22-deficient juveniles are suppressed by ESP22 painting. Thus, we describe a pheromone of sexually immature mice that controls an innate social behaviour, a response pathway through the accessory olfactory system and a new role for vomeronasal organ signalling in inhibiting sexual behaviour towards young. These findings provide a molecular framework for understanding how a sensory system can regulate behaviour.

Exposure to female fertility pheromones influences men's drinking.

PubMed

Tan, Robin; Goldman, Mark S

2015-06-01

Research has shown that humans consciously use alcohol to encourage sexual activity. In the current study, we investigated whether decision making about alcohol use and sex can be cued outside of awareness by recently revealed sexual signaling mechanisms. Specifically, we examined if males exposed without their knowledge to pheromones emitted by fertile females would increase their alcohol consumption, presumably via neurobehavioral information pathways that link alcohol to sex and mating. We found that men who smelled a T-shirt worn by a fertile female drank significantly more (nonalcoholic) beer, and exhibited significantly greater approach behavior toward female cues, than those who smelled a T-shirt worn by a nonfertile female. These findings reveal previously unknown influences on human alcohol consumption, augment the research base for pheromone cuing of sexual behavior in humans, and raise the possibility that other, as yet unknown, pathways of behavioral influence may be operating hidden from view. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Exposure to Female Fertility Pheromones Influences Men’s Drinking

PubMed Central

Tan, Robin; Goldman, Mark S.

2015-01-01

Research shows that humans consciously use alcohol to encourage sexual activity. The current study investigated whether decision-making about alcohol use and sex can be cued outside of awareness by recently revealed sexual signaling mechanisms. Specifically, we examined if males exposed without their knowledge to pheromones emitted by fertile females would increase their alcohol consumption, presumably via neurobehavioral information pathways that link alcohol to sex and mating. We found that men who smelled a T-shirt worn by a fertile female drank significantly more (non-alcoholic) beer, and exhibited significantly greater approach behavior toward female cues, than those who smelled a T-shirt worn by a non-fertile female. These findings reveal previously unknown influences on human alcohol consumption, augment the research base for pheromone cuing of sexual behavior in humans, and raise the possibility that other, as yet unknown, pathways of behavioral influence may be operating hidden from view. PMID:26053321

Sex stimulant and attractant in the Indian meal moth and in the almond moth.

PubMed

Brady, U E; Tumlinson, J H; Brownlee, R G; Silverstein, R M

1971-02-26

cis-9, trans-12-Tetradecadien-1-yl acetate was isolated from the female Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella (Hübner), and the female almond moth, Cadra cautella (Walker). It is the major if not the sole component of the sex stimulatory and attractant pheromone of female Plodia. It is present in the pheromone of the female Cadra along with at least one synergist.

Cloning of the Lentinula edodes B mating-type locus and identification of the genetic structure controlling B mating.

PubMed

Wu, Lin; van Peer, Arend; Song, Wenhua; Wang, Hong; Chen, Mingjie; Tan, Qi; Song, Chunyan; Zhang, Meiyan; Bao, Dapeng

2013-12-01

During the life cycle of heterothallic tetrapolar Agaricomycetes such as Lentinula edodes (Berk.) Pegler, the mating type system, composed of unlinked A and B loci, plays a vital role in controlling sexual development and resulting formation of the fruit body. L. edodes is produced worldwide for consumption and medicinal purposes, and understanding its sexual development is therefore of great importance. A considerable amount of mating type factors has been indicated over the past decades but few genes have actually been identified, and no complete genetic structures of L. edodes B mating-type loci are available. In this study, we cloned the matB regions from two mating compatible L. edodes strains, 939P26 and 939P42. Four pheromone receptors were identified on each new matB region, together with three and four pheromone precursor genes in the respective strains. Gene polymorphism, phylogenetic analysis and distribution of pheromone receptors and pheromone precursors clearly indicate a bipartite matB locus, each sublocus containing a pheromone receptor and one or two pheromone precursors. Detailed sequence comparisons of genetic structures between the matB regions of strains 939P42, 939P26 and a previously reported strain SUP2 further supported this model and allowed identification of the B mating type subloci borders. Mating studies confirmed the control of B mating by the identified pheromone receptors and pheromones in L. edodes. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Do pheromones reveal male immunocompetence?

PubMed Central

Rantala, Markus J; Jokinen, Ilmari; Kortet, Raine; Vainikka, Anssi; Suhonen, Jukka

2002-01-01

Pheromones function not only as mate attractors, but they may also relay important information to prospective mates. It has been shown that vertebrates can distinguish, via olfactory mechanisms, major histocompatibility complex types in their prospective mates. However, whether pheromones can transmit information about immunocompetence is unknown. Here, we show that female mealworm beetles (Tenebrio molitor) prefer pheromones from males with better immunocompetence, indicated by a faster encapsulation rate against a novel antigen, and higher levels of phenoloxidase in haemolymph. Thus, the present study indicates that pheromones could transmit information about males' parasite resistance ability and may work as a reliable sexual ornament for female choice. PMID:12204128

The chemistry of gamete attraction: chemical structures, biosynthesis, and (a)biotic degradation of algal pheromones.

PubMed Central

Boland, W

1995-01-01

Female gametes of marine brown algae release and/or attract their conspecific males by chemical signals. The majority of these compounds are unsaturated, nonfunctionalized acyclic, and/or alicyclic C11 hydrocarbons. Threshold concentrations for release and attraction are generally observed in the range of 1-1000 pmol. The blends may contain various configurational isomers of the genuine pheromones as well as mixtures of enantiomers. Higher plants produce the C11 hydrocarbons from dodeca-3,6,9-trienoic acid; brown algae exploit the family of icosanoids for biosynthesis of the same compounds. The biosynthetic routes comprise several spontaneously occurring pericyclic reactions such as [3.3]-sigmatropic rearrangements, [1.7]-hydrogen shifts, and electrocyclic ring closures. All pheromones are (a)biotically degraded by ubiquitous oxidative pathways involving singlet oxygen or hydroxyl radicals, which may be produced through the agency of heavy metals, huminic acids, or light. PMID:7816845

The Pheromone of the Cave Cricket, Hadenoecus cumberlandicus, Causes Cricket Aggregation but Does Not Attract the Co-Distributed Predatory Spider, Meta ovalis

PubMed Central

Yoder, Jay A.; Christensen, Brady S.; Croxall, Travis J.; Tank, Justin L.; Hobbs, Horton H.

2010-01-01

Food input by the cave cricket, Hadenoecus cumberlandicus Hubble & Norton (Orthoptera: Rhaphidophoridae), is vital to the cave community, making this cricket a true keystone species. Bioassays conducted on cave walls and in the laboratory show that clustering in H. cumberlandicus is guided by a pheromone, presumably excreta. This aggregation pheromone was demonstrated by using filter paper discs that had previous adult H. cumberlandicus exposure, resulting in > 70% response by either nymphs or adults, prompting attraction (thus, active component is a volatile), followed by reduced mobility (arrestment) on treated surfaces. Adults were similarly responsive to pheromone from nymphs, agreeing with mixed stage composition of clusters in the cave. Effects of [0.001M – 0.1M] uric acid (insect excreta's principle component) on H. cumberlandicus behavior were inconsistent. This pheromone is not a host cue (kairomone) and is not used as a repellent (allomone) as noted through lack of responses to natural H. cumberlandicus pheromone and uric acid concentrations by a co-occurring predatory cave orb weaver spider, Meta ovalis Gertsch (Araneae: Tetragnathidae). This pheromone is not serving as a sex pheromone because nymphs were affected by it and because this population of H. cumberlandicus is parthenogenic. The conclusion of this study is that the biological value of the aggregation pheromone is to concentrate H. cumberlandicus in sheltered sites in the cave conducive for minimizing water stress. Rather than signaling H. cumberlandicus presence and quality, the reduced mobility expressed as a result of contacting this pheromone conceivably may act as a defense tactic (antipredator behavior) against M. ovalis, which shares this favored habitat site. PMID:20572786

Effect of Male House Mouse Pheromone Components on Behavioral Responses of Mice in Laboratory and Field Experiments.

PubMed

Musso, Antonia E; Gries, Regine; Zhai, Huimin; Takács, Stephen; Gries, Gerhard

2017-03-01

Urine of male house mice, Mus musculus, is known to have primer pheromone effects on the reproductive physiology of female mice. Urine-mediated releaser pheromone effects that trigger certain behavioral responses are much less understood, and no field studies have investigated whether urine deposits by male or female mice, or synthetic mouse pheromone, increase trap captures of mice. In field experiments, we baited traps with bedding soiled with urine and feces of caged female or male mice, and recorded captures of mice in these and in control traps containing clean bedding. Traps baited with female bedding preferentially captured adult males, whereas traps baited with male bedding preferentially captured juvenile and adult females, indicating the presence of male- and female-specific sex pheromones in soiled bedding. Analyses of headspace volatiles emanating from soiled bedding by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry revealed that 3,4-dehydro-exo-brevicomin (DEB) was seven times more prevalent in male bedding and that 2-sec-butyl-4,5-dihydrothiazole (DHT) was male-specific. In a follow-up field experiment, traps baited with DEB and DHT captured 4 times more female mice than corresponding control traps, thus indicating that DEB and DHT are sex attractant pheromone components of house mouse males. Our study provides impetus to identify the sex attractant pheromone of female mice, and to develop synthetic mouse pheromone as a lure to enhance the efficacy of trapping programs for mouse control.

Lesions of the dopaminergic innervation of the nucleus accumbens medial shell delay the generation of preference for sucrose, but not of sexual pheromones.

PubMed

Martínez-Hernández, José; Lanuza, Enrique; Martínez-García, Fernando

2012-01-15

Male sexual pheromones are rewarding stimuli for female mice, able to induce conditioned place preference. To test whether processing these natural reinforcing stimuli depends on the dopaminergic innervation of the nucleus accumbens, as for other natural rewards, we compare the effects of specific lesions of the dopaminergic innervation of the medial shell of the nucleus accumbens on two different appetitive behaviours, 'pheromone seeking' and sucrose preferential intake. Female mice, with no previous experience with either adult male chemical stimuli or with sucrose, received injections of 6-hydroxydopamine (or vehicle) in the medial shell of the accumbens. Then, we analyzed their preference for male soiled-bedding and their preferential intake of a sucrose solution, with particular emphasis on the dynamics of acquisition of both natural rewards. The results indicate that both lesioned and sham animals showed similar preference for male sexual pheromones, which was constant along the test (linear dynamics). In contrast, lesioned animals differed from sham operated mice in the dynamics of sucrose consumption in their first test of sucrose preference. Sham animals showed an initial sucrose preference followed by preference for water, which can be interpreted as sucrose neophobia. Lesioned animals showed no preference at the beginning of the test, and a delayed sucrose preference appeared followed by a delayed neophobia. The next day, during a second sucrose-preference test, both groups displayed comparable and sustained preferential sucrose intake. Therefore, dopamine in the medial shell of the nucleus accumbens has a different role on the reward of sexual pheromones and sucrose. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Aggregation pheromones for monitoring the coconut rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros) in Jerukwangi Village, Jepara, Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Indriyanti, D. R.; Lutfiana, J. E.; Widiyaningrum, P.; Susilowati, E.; Slamet, M.

2018-03-01

Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) is the most serious pest of coconut plantations in Indonesia. Jerukwangi Village is O. rhinoceros attacked one of the coconuts producing villages with more than 75% of the coconut plant population O. rhinoceros. The study aimed to monitor the population and analyze the sex ratio of O. rhinoceros that were attracted to aggregation pheromones in the field. Aggregation pheromones is a chemical compound containing Ethyl 4-methyl octanoate. The pheromone compounds were placed in traps (buckets), hung 2 meters above the ground. The traps were observed, and the beetles trapped were counted every week. In 12 weeks of monitoring, the traps captured 101 insects consist of 90.1% O. rhinoceros and 9.9% other insect species (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Xylotrupes gideon). This result indicates the high population of O. rhinoceros in the field. Aggregation pheromone is useful for attracting females. Rhinoceros by 61% and the males by 39%. The advantage of research is it can be used in integrated pest management (IPM) packages for monitoring of beetle population, and removal of beetles.

Can chemical communication be cryptic? Adaptations by herbivores to natural enemies exploiting prey semiochemistry.

PubMed

Raffa, Kenneth F; Hobson, Kenneth R; Lafontaine, Sara; Aukema, Brian H

2007-10-01

Predators and parasites commonly use chemical cues associated with herbivore feeding and reproduction to locate prey. However, we currently know little about mechanisms by which herbivores may avoid such natural enemies. Pheromones are crucial to many aspects of herbivore life history, so radical alterations of these compounds could be disadvantageous despite their exploitation by predators. Instead, minor modifications in pheromone chemistry may facilitate partial escape while maintaining intraspecific functionality. We tested this hypothesis using Ips pini, an endophytic beetle that develops in the phloem tissue of pine trees. Its predominant predators in the Great Lakes region of North America are Thanasimus dubius and Platysoma cylindrica, both of which are highly attracted to I. pini's pheromones. However, there are significant disparities between prey and predator behaviors that relate to nuances of pheromone chemistry. Thanasimus dubius is most attracted to the (+) stereoisomer of ipsdienol, and P. cylindrica is most attracted to the (-) form; Ips pini prefers racemic mixtures intermediate between each predator's preferences. Further, a component that is inactive by itself, lanierone, greatly synergizes the attraction of I. pini to ipsdienol, but has a weak or no effect on its predators. A temporal component adds to this behavioral disparity: lanierone is most important in the communication of I. pini during periods when its predators are most abundant. The difficulties involved in tracking prey are further compounded by spatial and temporal variation in prey signaling on a local scale. For example, the preferences of I. pini vary significantly among sites only 50 km apart. This chemical crypsis is analogous to morphological forms of camouflage, such as color and mimicry, that are widely recognized as evasive adaptations against visually searching predators. Presumably these relationships are dynamic, with predators and prey shifting responses in microevolutionary time. However, several factors may delay predator counter adaptations. The most important appears to be the availability of alternate prey, specifically I. grandicollis, whose pheromone ipsenol is highly attractive to the above predators but not cross-attractive with I. pini. Consistent with this view, the specialist parasitoid, Tomicobia tibialis, has behavioral preferences for pheromone components that closely correspond with those of I. pini. These results are discussed in terms of population dynamics and coevolutionary theory.

Allelic exchange of pheromones and their receptors reprograms sexual identity in Cryptococcus neoformans.

PubMed

Stanton, Brynne C; Giles, Steven S; Staudt, Mark W; Kruzel, Emilia K; Hull, Christina M

2010-02-26

Cell type specification is a fundamental process that all cells must carry out to ensure appropriate behaviors in response to environmental stimuli. In fungi, cell identity is critical for defining "sexes" known as mating types and is controlled by components of mating type (MAT) loci. MAT-encoded genes function to define sexes via two distinct paradigms: 1) by controlling transcription of components common to both sexes, or 2) by expressing specially encoded factors (pheromones and their receptors) that differ between mating types. The human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans has two mating types (a and alpha) that are specified by an extremely unusual MAT locus. The complex architecture of this locus makes it impossible to predict which paradigm governs mating type. To identify the mechanism by which the C. neoformans sexes are determined, we created strains in which the pheromone and pheromone receptor from one mating type (a) replaced the pheromone and pheromone receptor of the other (alpha). We discovered that these "alpha(a)" cells effectively adopt a new mating type (that of a cells); they sense and respond to alpha factor, they elicit a mating response from alpha cells, and they fuse with alpha cells. In addition, alpha(a) cells lose the alpha cell type-specific response to pheromone and do not form germ tubes, instead remaining spherical like a cells. Finally, we discovered that exogenous expression of the diploid/dikaryon-specific transcription factor Sxi2a could then promote complete sexual development in crosses between alpha and alpha(a) strains. These data reveal that cell identity in C. neoformans is controlled fully by three kinds of MAT-encoded proteins: pheromones, pheromone receptors, and homeodomain proteins. Our findings establish the mechanisms for maintenance of distinct cell types and subsequent developmental behaviors in this unusual human fungal pathogen.

Separating the attractant from the toxicant improves attract-and-kill of codling moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae).

PubMed

Huang, Juan; Gut, Larry J; Miller, James R

2013-10-01

The behavior of codling moth, Cydia pomonella (L.), responding to three attract-and-kill devices was compared in flight tunnel experiments measuring attraction and duration of target contact. Placing a 7.6 by 12.6 cm card immediately upwind of a rubber septum releasing pheromone, dramatically increased the duration on the target to > 60 s. In this setting, nearly all the males flew upwind, landed on the card first, and spent the majority of time searching the card. In contrast, male codling moths spent < 15 s at the source if given the lure only. In a forced contact bioassay, knockdown rate or mortality of male codling moths increased in direct proportion to duration of contact on a lambda-cyhalothrin-loaded filter paper. When this insecticide-treated paper was placed immediately upwind of the lure in the flight tunnel, > 90% of males contacting the paper were knocked down 2 h after voluntary exposure. These findings suggest that past attempts to combine insecticide directly with sex pheromones into a small paste, gel, or other forms of dollops are ill-advised because moths are likely over-exposed to pheromone and vacate the target before obtaining a lethal dose of insecticide. It is better to minimize direct contact with the concentrated pheromone while enticing males to extensively search insecticide-treated surface nearby the lure.

How to make a sexy snake: estrogen activation of female sex pheromone in male red-sided garter snakes.

PubMed

Parker, M Rockwell; Mason, Robert T

2012-03-01

Vertebrates indicate their genetic sex to conspecifics using secondary sexual signals, and signal expression is often activated by sex hormones. Among vertebrate signaling modalities, the least is known about how hormones influence chemical signaling. Our study species, the red-sided garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis), is a model vertebrate for studying hormonal control of chemical signals because males completely rely on the female sex pheromone to identify potential mates among thousands of individuals. How sex hormones can influence the expression of this crucial sexual signal is largely unknown. We created two groups of experimental males for the first experiment: Sham (blank implants) and E2 (17β-estradiol implants). E2 males were vigorously courted by wild males in outdoor bioassays, and in a Y-maze E2 pheromone trails were chosen by wild males over those of small females and were indistinguishable from large female trails. Biochemically, the E2 pheromone blend was similar to that of large females, and it differed significantly from Shams. For the second experiment, we implanted males with 17β-estradiol in 2007 but removed the implants the following year (2008; Removal). That same year, we implanted a new group of males with estrogen implants (Implant). Removal males were courted by wild males in 2008 (implant intact) but not in 2009 (removed). Total pheromone quantity and quality increased following estrogen treatment, and estrogen removal re-established male-typical pheromone blends. Thus, we have shown that estrogen activates the production of female pheromone in adult red-sided garter snakes. This is the first known study to quantify both behavioral and biochemical responses in chemical signaling following sex steroid treatment of reptiles in the activation/organization context. We propose that the homogametic sex (ZZ, male) may possess the same targets for activation of sexual signal production, and the absence of the activator (17β-estradiol in this case) underlies expression of the male phenotype.

Pheromones of three ambrosia beetles in the Euwallacea fornicatus species complex: ratios and preferences

PubMed Central

Cossé, Allard A.; Jones, Tappey H.; Carrillo, Daniel; Cleary, Kaitlin; Canlas, Isaiah; Stouthamer, Richard

2017-01-01

Three cryptic species in the Euwallacea fornicatus species complex were reared in laboratory colonies and investigated for the presence of pheromones. Collections of volatiles from combinations of diet, fungus, beetles, and galleries from polyphagous shot hole borer (Euwallacea sp. #1) revealed the presence of 2-heneicosanone and 2-tricosanone only in the presence of beetles, regardless of sex. Subsequent examination of volatiles from the other two species, tea shot hole borer (Euwallacea sp. #2) and Kuroshio shot hole borer (Euwallacea sp. #5), revealed these two ketones were present in all three species but in different ratios. In dual choice olfactometer behavioral bioassays, mature mated females were strongly attracted to a synthetic binary blend of ketones matching their own natural ratios. However, females in each species were repelled by ketone blends in ratios corresponding to the other two species. Males of each species responded similarly to females when presented with ratios matching their own or the other two species. The presence of these compounds in the three beetle species, in ratios unique to each species, and their strong species-specific attraction and repellency, suggests they are pheromones. The ecological function of these pheromones is discussed. In addition to the pheromones, the previously known attractant (1S,4R)-p-menth-2-en-1-ol (also known as quercivorol) was discovered in the presence of the fungal symbionts, but not in association with the beetles. Quercivorol was tested in a dual-choice olfactometer and was strongly attractive to all three species. This evidence suggests quercivorol functions as a kairomone for members of the E. fornicatus species complex, likely produced by the symbiotic fungi. PMID:29085754

Pheromonal Cues Deposited by Mated Females Convey Social Information about Egg-Laying Sites in Drosophila Melanogaster.

PubMed

Duménil, Claire; Woud, David; Pinto, Francesco; Alkema, Jeroen T; Jansen, Ilse; Van Der Geest, Anne M; Roessingh, Sanne; Billeter, Jean-Christophe

2016-03-01

Individuals can make choices based on information learned from others, a phenomenon called social learning. How observers differentiate between which individual they should or should not learn from is, however, poorly understood. Here, we showed that Drosophila melanogaster females can influence the choice of egg-laying site of other females through pheromonal marking. Mated females mark territories of high quality food by ejecting surplus male sperm containing the aggregation pheromone cis-11-vaccenyl acetate (cVA) and, in addition, deposit several sex- and species-specific cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) pheromones. These pheromonal cues affect the choices of other females, which respond by preferentially laying eggs on the marked food. This system benefits both senders and responders, as communal egg laying increases offspring survival. Virgin females, however, do not elicit a change in the egg-laying decision of mated females, even when food has been supplemented with ejected sperm from mated females, thus indicating the necessity for additional cues. Genetic ablation of either a female's CHC pheromones or those of their mate results in loss of ability of mated females to attract other females. We conclude that mated females use a pheromonal marking system, comprising cVA acquired from male ejaculate with sex- and species-specific CHCs produced by both mates, to indicate egg-laying sites. This system ensures information reliability because mated, but not virgin, females have both the ability to generate the pheromone blend that attracts other flies to those sites and a direct interest in egg-laying site quality.

Disruption of Darna pallivitta (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae) by Conventional and Mobile Pheromone Deployment

PubMed Central

Siderhurst, Matthew S.; Jang, Eric B.; Carvalho, Lori A. F. N.; Nagata, Janice T.; Derstine, Nathan T.

2015-01-01

Identification of the Darna pallivitta (Moore) pheromone component n-butyl (E)-7,9-decadienoate (E7,9-10:COOn-Bu) has made it possible to investigate communication disruption to control this lepidopteran pest. Conventional communication disruption trials showed marked decreases in the mean number of male moths captured in E7,9-10:COOnBu-treated fields compared with control fields. For traps baited with E7,9-10:COOnBu, percent disruptions were 94.4% and 92.1% for septa (1 g pheromone/ha, 1-wk trial duration) and spirals (6 g pheromone/ha, 8-wk trial duration) respectively. For traps baited with virgin female moths, percent disruption was 73.3% using septa disruptors (1 g pheromone/ha, 1-wk trial duration). Mobile communication disruption using Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett) as carriers for E7,9-10:COOn-Bu was evaluated in the following three areas: fly survivorship, attraction of male moths to treated flies, and moth disruption in a small-scale field trial. Topical application of E7,9-10:COOnBu showed no significant decrease in survivorship at 50 and 80 µg/fly. However, decreased survivorship was observed at 100 µg/fly and linear regression showed E7,9-10:COOnBu dose was significantly correlated with B. cucurbitae survivorship. Traps containing honey–pheromone-fed flies attracted and caught D. pallivitta over a 1-wk period, demonstrating the attractiveness of the carrier. Releasing E7,9-10:COOnBu-fed B. cucurbitae (∼2 g pheromone/ha, 1-wk trial duration) resulted in significantly reduced trap catches in treatment fields compared with control fields on the first 2 d of the field trial. Percent disruptions were 84.7% (day 1) and 56.0% (day 2). These results suggest that both conventional communication disruption and mobile communication disruption have potential to control D. pallivitta. PMID:26078301

Disruption of Darna pallivitta (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae) by Conventional and Mobile Pheromone Deployment.

PubMed

Siderhurst, Matthew S; Jang, Eric B; Carvalho, Lori A F N; Nagata, Janice T; Derstine, Nathan T

2015-01-01

Identification of the Darna pallivitta (Moore) pheromone component n-butyl (E)-7,9-decadienoate (E7,9-10:COOn-Bu) has made it possible to investigate communication disruption to control this lepidopteran pest. Conventional communication disruption trials showed marked decreases in the mean number of male moths captured in E7,9-10:COOnBu-treated fields compared with control fields. For traps baited with E7,9-10:COOnBu, percent disruptions were 94.4% and 92.1% for septa (1 g pheromone/ha, 1-wk trial duration) and spirals (6 g pheromone/ha, 8-wk trial duration) respectively. For traps baited with virgin female moths, percent disruption was 73.3% using septa disruptors (1 g pheromone/ha, 1-wk trial duration). Mobile communication disruption using Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett) as carriers for E7,9-10:COOn-Bu was evaluated in the following three areas: fly survivorship, attraction of male moths to treated flies, and moth disruption in a small-scale field trial. Topical application of E7,9-10:COOnBu showed no significant decrease in survivorship at 50 and 80 µg/fly. However, decreased survivorship was observed at 100 µg/fly and linear regression showed E7,9-10:COOnBu dose was significantly correlated with B. cucurbitae survivorship. Traps containing honey-pheromone-fed flies attracted and caught D. pallivitta over a 1-wk period, demonstrating the attractiveness of the carrier. Releasing E7,9-10:COOnBu-fed B. cucurbitae (∼2 g pheromone/ha, 1-wk trial duration) resulted in significantly reduced trap catches in treatment fields compared with control fields on the first 2 d of the field trial. Percent disruptions were 84.7% (day 1) and 56.0% (day 2). These results suggest that both conventional communication disruption and mobile communication disruption have potential to control D. pallivitta. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Entomological Society of America.

Isolation of a pyrazine alarm pheromone component from the fire ant, Solenopsis invicta.

PubMed

Vander Meer, Robert K; Preston, Catherine A; Choi, Man-Yeon

2010-02-01

Alarm pheromones in social insects are an essential part of a complex of pheromone interactions that contribute to the maintenance of colony integrity and sociality. The alarm pheromones of ants were among the first examples of animal pheromones identified, primarily because of the large amount of chemical produced and the distinctive responses of ants to the pheromone. However, the alarm pheromone of the fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, eluded identification for over four decades. We identified 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine as an alarm pheromone component of S. invicta. Worker fire ants detect the pyrazine alarm pheromone at 30 pg/ml, which is comparable to alarm pheromone sensitivities reported for other ant species. The source of this alarm pheromone are the mandibular glands, which, in fire ants, are not well developed and contain only about 300 pg of the compound, much less than the microgram quantities of alarm pheromones reported for several other ant species. Female and male sexuals and workers produce the pyrazine, which suggests that it may be involved in fire ant mating flight initiation, as well as the typical worker alarm response. This is the first report of 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine from a Solenopsis species and the first example of this alkaloid functioning as an alarm pheromone.

Amino Acid Change in an Orchid Desaturase Enables Mimicry of the Pollinator’s Sex Pheromone

DOE PAGES

Sedeek, Khalid E. M.; Whittle, Edward; Guthörl, Daniela; ...

2016-05-19

Here, we show that mimicry illustrates the power of selection to produce phenotypic convergence in biology. A striking example is the imitation of female insects by plants that are pollinated by sexual deception of males of the same insect species. This involves mimicry of visual, tactile, and chemical signals of females, especially their sex pheromones. The Mediterranean orchid Ophrys exaltata employs chemical mimicry of cuticular hydrocarbons, particularly the 7-alkenes, in an insect sex pheromone to attract and elicit mating behavior in its pollinators, males of the cellophane bee Colletes cunicularius. A difference in alkene double-bond positions is responsible for reproductivemore » isolation between O. exaltata and closely related species, such as O. sphegodes. We show that these 7-alkenes are likely determined by the action of the stearoyl-acyl-carrier-protein desaturase (SAD) homolog SAD5. After gene duplication, changes in subcellular localization relative to the ancestral housekeeping desaturase may have allowed proto-SAD5’s reaction products to undergo further biosynthesis to both 7- and 9-alkenes. Such ancestral coproduction of two alkene classes may have led to pollinator-mediated deleterious pleiotropy. Despite possible evolutionary intermediates with reduced activity, amino acid changes at the bottom of the substrate-binding cavity have conferred enzyme specificity for 7-alkene biosynthesis by preventing the binding of longer-chained fatty acid (FA) precursors by the enzyme. In conclusion, this change in desaturase function enabled the orchid to perfect its chemical mimicry of pollinator sex pheromones by escape from deleterious pleiotropy, supporting a role of pleiotropy in determining the possible trajectories of adaptive evolution.« less

Amino Acid Change in an Orchid Desaturase Enables Mimicry of the Pollinator's Sex Pheromone.

PubMed

Sedeek, Khalid E M; Whittle, Edward; Guthörl, Daniela; Grossniklaus, Ueli; Shanklin, John; Schlüter, Philipp M

2016-06-06

Mimicry illustrates the power of selection to produce phenotypic convergence in biology [1]. A striking example is the imitation of female insects by plants that are pollinated by sexual deception of males of the same insect species [2-4]. This involves mimicry of visual, tactile, and chemical signals of females [2-7], especially their sex pheromones [8-11]. The Mediterranean orchid Ophrys exaltata employs chemical mimicry of cuticular hydrocarbons, particularly the 7-alkenes, in an insect sex pheromone to attract and elicit mating behavior in its pollinators, males of the cellophane bee Colletes cunicularius [11-13]. A difference in alkene double-bond positions is responsible for reproductive isolation between O. exaltata and closely related species, such as O. sphegodes [13-16]. We show that these 7-alkenes are likely determined by the action of the stearoyl-acyl-carrier-protein desaturase (SAD) homolog SAD5. After gene duplication, changes in subcellular localization relative to the ancestral housekeeping desaturase may have allowed proto-SAD5's reaction products to undergo further biosynthesis to both 7- and 9-alkenes. Such ancestral coproduction of two alkene classes may have led to pollinator-mediated deleterious pleiotropy. Despite possible evolutionary intermediates with reduced activity, amino acid changes at the bottom of the substrate-binding cavity have conferred enzyme specificity for 7-alkene biosynthesis by preventing the binding of longer-chained fatty acid (FA) precursors by the enzyme. This change in desaturase function enabled the orchid to perfect its chemical mimicry of pollinator sex pheromones by escape from deleterious pleiotropy, supporting a role of pleiotropy in determining the possible trajectories of adaptive evolution. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Amino Acid Change in an Orchid Desaturase Enables Mimicry of the Pollinator’s Sex Pheromone

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sedeek, Khalid E. M.; Whittle, Edward; Guthörl, Daniela

Here, we show that mimicry illustrates the power of selection to produce phenotypic convergence in biology. A striking example is the imitation of female insects by plants that are pollinated by sexual deception of males of the same insect species. This involves mimicry of visual, tactile, and chemical signals of females, especially their sex pheromones. The Mediterranean orchid Ophrys exaltata employs chemical mimicry of cuticular hydrocarbons, particularly the 7-alkenes, in an insect sex pheromone to attract and elicit mating behavior in its pollinators, males of the cellophane bee Colletes cunicularius. A difference in alkene double-bond positions is responsible for reproductivemore » isolation between O. exaltata and closely related species, such as O. sphegodes. We show that these 7-alkenes are likely determined by the action of the stearoyl-acyl-carrier-protein desaturase (SAD) homolog SAD5. After gene duplication, changes in subcellular localization relative to the ancestral housekeeping desaturase may have allowed proto-SAD5’s reaction products to undergo further biosynthesis to both 7- and 9-alkenes. Such ancestral coproduction of two alkene classes may have led to pollinator-mediated deleterious pleiotropy. Despite possible evolutionary intermediates with reduced activity, amino acid changes at the bottom of the substrate-binding cavity have conferred enzyme specificity for 7-alkene biosynthesis by preventing the binding of longer-chained fatty acid (FA) precursors by the enzyme. In conclusion, this change in desaturase function enabled the orchid to perfect its chemical mimicry of pollinator sex pheromones by escape from deleterious pleiotropy, supporting a role of pleiotropy in determining the possible trajectories of adaptive evolution.« less

Nectar Attracts Foraging Honey Bees with Components of Their Queen Pheromones.

PubMed

Liu, Fanglin; Gao, Jie; Di, Nayan; Adler, Lynn S

2015-11-01

Floral nectar often contains chemicals that are deterrent to pollinators, presenting potential challenges to outcrossing plant species. Plants may be able to co-opt pollinator chemical signals to mitigate the negative effects of nectar deterrent compounds on pollination services. We found that buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) and Mexican sunflower (Tithonia diversifolia) produce nectar with abundant phenolics, including three components of the Apis honeybee queen mandibular pheromone (QMP). In addition, these nectars contain a non-pheromonal phenolic, chlorogenic acid (CA), which was toxic to honeybees, and T. diversifolia nectar also contained isochlorogenic acid (IA). Fresh nectar or solutions containing nectar phenolics reduced Apis individual feeding compared to sucrose solutions. However, freely foraging bees preferred solutions with QMP components to control solutions, and QMP components over-rode or reversed avoidance of CA and IA. Furthermore, prior exposure to the presence or just the odor of QMP components removed the deterrent effects of CA and IA. By mimicking the honey bee pheromone blend, nectar may maintain pollinator attraction in spite of deterrent nectar compounds.

Gender-typical olfactory regulation of sexual behavior in goldfish

PubMed Central

Kawaguchi, Yutaro; Nagaoka, Akira; Kitami, Asana; Mitsuhashi, Tomomi; Hayakawa, Youichi; Kobayashi, Makito

2014-01-01

It is known that olfaction is essential for the occurrence of sexual behavior in male goldfish. Sex pheromones from ovulatory females elicit male sexual behavior, chasing, and sperm releasing act. In female goldfish, ovarian prostaglandin F2α (PGF) elicits female sexual behavior, egg releasing act. It has been considered that olfaction does not affect sexual behavior in female goldfish. In the present study, we re-examined the involvement of olfaction in sexual behavior of female goldfish. Olfaction was blocked in male and female goldfish by two methods: nasal occlusion (NO) which blocks the reception of olfactants, and olfactory tract section (OTX) which blocks transmission of olfactory information from the olfactory bulb to the telencephalon. Sexual behavior of goldfish was induced by administration of PGF to females, an established method for inducing goldfish sexual behavior in both sexes. Sexual behavior in males was suppressed by NO and OTX as previously reported because of lack of pheromone stimulation. In females, NO suppressed sexual behavior but OTX did not affect the occurrence of sexual behavior. Females treated with both NO and OTX performed sexual behavior normally. These results indicate that olfaction is essential in female goldfish to perform sexual behavior as in males but in a different manner. The lack of olfaction in males causes lack of pheromonal stimulation, resulting in no behavior elicited. Whereas the results of female experiments suggest that lack of olfaction in females causes strong inhibition of sexual behavior mediated by the olfactory pathway. Olfactory tract section is considered to block the pathway and remove this inhibition, resulting in the resumption of the behavior. By subtract sectioning of the olfactory tract, it was found that this inhibition was mediated by the medial olfactory tracts, not the lateral olfactory tracts. Thus, it is concluded that goldfish has gender-typical olfactory regulation for sexual behavior. PMID:24817840

A dual physiological character for sexual function: libido and sexual pheromones.

PubMed

Motofei, Ion G

2009-12-01

Human sexual response is a complex function involving many cerebral, spinal and peripheral aspects; the last are relatively known and benefit from good pharmacological control, as in the case of erectile dysfunction. Spinal cord sexual reflexes also have a good theoretical and experimental description. There is minimal understanding of the cerebral sexual processes (libido, sexual arousal, orgasm). The initial perspective was that the cerebral areas implied in sexuality exert descending stimulatory and inhibitory influences on spinal cord sexual centres/reflexes. This was a wrong supposition, which inhibited progress in this subject, with a considerable impact on a subject's individual and social life. A new approach to sexual function arises from the idea that simple neurological structures can support only simple functions, while a more complex function requires correspondingly complex anatomical structures. For this reason the spinal cord would not be able to realise the integration of multiple (spinal and psychosensorial) stimuli into a unique and coherent ejaculation response. Consequently, all mechanisms implied in human sexuality would be cerebral processes, ejaculation reflexes ascending in evolution to the cerebral level. This new evolutionary concept was developed after 2001 in five distinct articles on the cerebral duality of sexual arousal, sexual hormones, ejaculation and serotonergic receptors. During this period other published results suggested a possible cerebral duality for sexual pheromones and libido in humans. All these dual physiological aspects are integrated in this review into one neurophysiological model, thus trying to further develop the new concepts of sexual function and perhaps relational behaviour. In conclusion, ejaculation is a dual cerebral process with arousal sensation (hormonally modulated) and libido perception (pheromonally modulated) as the afferent part. Two neurophysiological axes could exist in both men and women. In this assumption the mechanisms for libido and sexual arousal are not the only ones invoked, their correlations and implications are also suggested, perhaps critical aspects for further developments in the field.

Advances in Attract-and-Kill for Agricultural Pests: Beyond Pheromones.

PubMed

Gregg, Peter C; Del Socorro, Alice P; Landolt, Peter J

2018-01-07

Attract-and-kill has considerable potential as a tactic in integrated management of pests of agricultural crops, but the use of sex pheromones as attractants is limited by male multiple mating and immigration of mated females into treated areas. Attractants for both sexes, and particularly females, would minimize these difficulties. Volatile compounds derived from plants or fermentation of plant products can attract females and have been used in traps for monitoring and control, and in sprayable attract-and-kill formulations or bait stations. Recent advances in fundamental understanding of insect responses to plant volatiles should contribute to the development of products that can help manage a wide range of pests with few impacts on nontarget organisms, but theory must be tempered with pragmatism in the selection of volatiles and toxicants and in defining their roles in formulations. Market requirements and regulatory factors must be considered in parallel with scientific constraints if successful products are to be developed.

Sustained production of the labile pheromone component, (Z,Z)-6,9-heneicosadien-11-one, from a stable precursor for monitoring the whitemarked tussock moth.

PubMed

Grant, Gary G; Liu, Wei; Slessor, Keith N; Abou-Zaid, Mamdouh M

2006-08-01

The principal sex pheromone component of the whitemarked tussock moth (WMTM), Orgyia leucostigma, was recently identified as (Z,Z)-6,9-heneicosadien-11-one (Z6Z9-11-one-21Hy). However, it is thermally unstable and quickly degrades under field conditions so that baited traps are effective for only one night. We have developed a solution to this problem that combines two techniques: (1) the use of a stable pheromone precursor, (Z,Z)-6,9-heneicosadien-11-one ethylene ketal, which is hydrolyzed to the dienone by an acidic aqueous solution (2% p-toluenesulfonic acid in 35% aqueous sorbitol), and (2) use of a small, off-the-shelf, autonomous pump (the Med-e-Cell Infu-disktrade mark) to deliver the precursor continuously to a suitable substrate where it is converted rapidly into the attractive dienone pheromone component. The pump and hydrolysis substrate fit inside sticky traps and because generation and release of pheromone is continuous, the instability of the pheromone is not an issue. In electroantennogram bioassays, dose-dependent responses were obtained with 1 to 1000 ng of hydrolyzed ketal on filter paper, but no response was obtained to 1000 ng of the ketal itself. In wind tunnel bioassays, males were attracted to lures emitting the dienone pheromone component generated from 0.1 to 100 ng of the hydrolyzed ketal. Field tests in 2004 and 2005 showed that sticky traps fitted with the pump delivering the ketal (0.1-1 microg/microL in heptane) at 10 microL/hr to a cotton pad soaked with the hydrolyzing solution were attractive to male WMTM. No moths were caught in controls or traps baited with (Z)-6-heneicosen-11-one. An average of 0.51 moths per trap night was caught over an 18-night period in 2005. The results represent a first step toward developing a sensitive and practical monitoring tool for the WMTM by using a ketal precursor of its unstable dienone pheromone component.

Sex Attractant Pheromones of Virgin Queens of Sympatric Slave-Making Ant Species in the Genus Polyergus, and their Possible Roles in Reproductive Isolation.

PubMed

Greenberg, Les; Johnson, Christine A; Trager, James C; McElfresh, J Steven; Rodstein, Joshua; Millar, Jocelyn G

2018-06-01

Species of the ant genus Polyergus are social parasites that steal brood from colonies of their hosts in the closely related genus Formica. Upon emergence as adults in a mixed population, host Formica workers carry out all the normal worker functions within the Polyergus colony, including foraging, feeding, grooming, and rearing brood of the parasitic Polyergus ants. Some unmated Polyergus gynes (queens) run in the raiding columns of their colonies and attract males by releasing a pheromone from their mandibular glands. There are two Polyergus species groups in North America: an eastern P. lucidus group and a western P. breviceps group. One species of each of these groups, P. lucidus Mayr and P. mexicanus Emery, are sympatric in Missouri. In this study, we characterized the sex pheromones of virgin queens of two species of the P. lucidus group (P. lucidus sensu stricto and P. sanwaldi) and one species of the P. breviceps group (P. mexicanus), and compared these with the previously identified sex pheromone of P. topoffi of the P. breviceps group. We then used sex pheromone blends reconstructed from synthesized components of the two groups to test their efficacy at reproductively isolating these species. We found that methyl 6-methylsalicylate is conserved as the major component of the pheromone blends for both Polyergus species groups; however, methyl (R)-3-ethyl-4-methylpentanoate is the species-specific minor component produced by P. lucidus group queens, and (R)-3-ethyl-4-methylpentan-1-ol is the crucial minor component for P. breviceps group queens. The optimal ratio of the major and minor components for P. lucidus group queens was about 100:1 salicylate to ester. In concurrent field trials in Missouri, males of P. lucidus sensu stricto and P. mexicanus (a member of the P. breviceps group) were attracted almost exclusively to their particular blends of sex pheromone components. To our knowledge, this is the first example of a possible sex-pheromone-based reproductive isolating mechanism in ants.

Electroantennogram and behavioral responses of the imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, to an alarm pheromone component and its analogues.

PubMed

Guan, Di; Lu, Yong-Yue; Liao, Xiao-Lan; Wang, Lei; Chen, Li

2014-12-10

A characteristic behavior in ants is to move rapidly to emission sources of alarm pheromones. The addition of ant alarm pheromones to bait is expected to enhance its attractiveness. To search for candidate compounds for bait enhancement in fire ant control, 13 related alkylpyrazine analogues in addition to synthetic alarm pheromone component were evaluated for electroantennogram (EAG) and behavioral activities in Solenopsis invicta. Most compounds elicited dose-dependent EAG and behavioral responses. There exists a correlation between the EAG and behavioral responses. Among the 14 tested alkylpyrazines, three compounds, 2-ethyl-3,6(5)-dimethyl pyrazine (1), 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (7), and 2,3-diethyl-5-methylpyrazine (12), elicited significant alarm responses at a dose range of 0.1-1000 ng. Further bait discovery bioassay with the three most active alkylpyrazines demonstrated that food bait accompanied by sample-treated filter paper disk attracted significantly more fire ant workers in the first 15 min period. EAG and behavioral bioassays with pure pheromone isomers accumulated by semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography demonstrated that 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine was significantly more active than 2-ethyl-3,5-dimethylpyrazine.

Use of Mixture Designs to Investigate Contribution of Minor Sex Pheromone Components to Trap Catch of the Carpenterworm Moth, Chilecomadia valdiviana.

PubMed

Lapointe, Stephen L; Barros-Parada, Wilson; Fuentes-Contreras, Eduardo; Herrera, Heidy; Kinsho, Takeshi; Miyake, Yuki; Niedz, Randall P; Bergmann, Jan

2017-12-01

Field experiments were carried out to study responses of male moths of the carpenterworm, Chilecomadia valdiviana (Lepidoptera: Cossidae), a pest of tree and fruit crops in Chile, to five compounds previously identified from the pheromone glands of females. Previously, attraction of males to the major component, (7Z,10Z)-7,10-hexadecadienal, was clearly demonstrated while the role of the minor components was uncertain due to the use of an experimental design that left large portions of the design space unexplored. We used mixture designs to study the potential contributions to trap catch of the four minor pheromone components produced by C. valdiviana. After systematically exploring the design space described by the five pheromone components, we concluded that the major pheromone component alone is responsible for attraction of male moths in this species. The need for appropriate experimental designs to address the problem of assessing responses to mixtures of semiochemicals in chemical ecology is described. We present an analysis of mixture designs and response surface modeling and an explanation of why this approach is superior to commonly used, but statistically inappropriate, designs.

Male sexual behavior and pheromone emission is enhanced by exposure to guava fruit volatiles in Anastrepha fraterculus

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Host plant chemicals can influence sex pheromone communication of tephritid fruit flies, and affect strategies optimizing mating and reproduction. Previous studies suggest that females of the South American fruit fly, Anastrepha fraterculus, prefer to mate with laboratory males previously exposed to...

Hitch-hiking parasitic wasp learns to exploit butterfly antiaphrodisiac

PubMed Central

Huigens, Martinus E.; Pashalidou, Foteini G.; Qian, Ming-Hui; Bukovinszky, Tibor; Smid, Hans M.; van Loon, Joop J. A.; Dicke, Marcel; Fatouros, Nina E.

2009-01-01

Many insects possess a sexual communication system that is vulnerable to chemical espionage by parasitic wasps. We recently discovered that a hitch-hiking (H) egg parasitoid exploits the antiaphrodisiac pheromone benzyl cyanide (BC) of the Large Cabbage White butterfly Pieris brassicae. This pheromone is passed from male butterflies to females during mating to render them less attractive to conspecific males. When the tiny parasitic wasp Trichogramma brassicae detects the antiaphrodisiac, it rides on a mated female butterfly to a host plant and then parasitizes her freshly laid eggs. The present study demonstrates that a closely related generalist wasp, Trichogramma evanescens, exploits BC in a similar way, but only after learning. Interestingly, the wasp learns to associate an H response to the odors of a mated female P. brassicae butterfly with reinforcement by parasitizing freshly laid butterfly eggs. Behavioral assays, before which we specifically inhibited long-term memory (LTM) formation with a translation inhibitor, reveal that the wasp has formed protein synthesis-dependent LTM at 24 h after learning. To our knowledge, the combination of associatively learning to exploit the sexual communication system of a host and the formation of protein synthesis-dependent LTM after a single learning event has not been documented before. We expect it to be widespread in nature, because it is highly adaptive in many species of egg parasitoids. Our finding of the exploitation of an antiaphrodisiac by multiple species of parasitic wasps suggests its use by Pieris butterflies to be under strong selective pressure. PMID:19139416

Hitch-hiking parasitic wasp learns to exploit butterfly antiaphrodisiac.

PubMed

Huigens, Martinus E; Pashalidou, Foteini G; Qian, Ming-Hui; Bukovinszky, Tibor; Smid, Hans M; van Loon, Joop J A; Dicke, Marcel; Fatouros, Nina E

2009-01-20

Many insects possess a sexual communication system that is vulnerable to chemical espionage by parasitic wasps. We recently discovered that a hitch-hiking (H) egg parasitoid exploits the antiaphrodisiac pheromone benzyl cyanide (BC) of the Large Cabbage White butterfly Pieris brassicae. This pheromone is passed from male butterflies to females during mating to render them less attractive to conspecific males. When the tiny parasitic wasp Trichogramma brassicae detects the antiaphrodisiac, it rides on a mated female butterfly to a host plant and then parasitizes her freshly laid eggs. The present study demonstrates that a closely related generalist wasp, Trichogramma evanescens, exploits BC in a similar way, but only after learning. Interestingly, the wasp learns to associate an H response to the odors of a mated female P. brassicae butterfly with reinforcement by parasitizing freshly laid butterfly eggs. Behavioral assays, before which we specifically inhibited long-term memory (LTM) formation with a translation inhibitor, reveal that the wasp has formed protein synthesis-dependent LTM at 24 h after learning. To our knowledge, the combination of associatively learning to exploit the sexual communication system of a host and the formation of protein synthesis-dependent LTM after a single learning event has not been documented before. We expect it to be widespread in nature, because it is highly adaptive in many species of egg parasitoids. Our finding of the exploitation of an antiaphrodisiac by multiple species of parasitic wasps suggests its use by Pieris butterflies to be under strong selective pressure.

Disruption Of Secondary Attraction Of The Spruce Beetle, Dendroctonus rufipennis, By Pheromones Of Two Sympatric Spcies

Treesearch

Therese M. Poland; J. H. Borden

1998-01-01

Capture of spruce beetles, Dendroctonus rufipennis, in multiple-funnel traps baited with frontalin and -pinene was reduced by up to 42% in the presence of synthetic (+)-exo- and (+)-endo-brevicomin, aggregation pheromones of the sympatric species Dryocoetes affaber. (+)-endo-...

Turning workers into false queens- the role of exogenous pheromones in regulating reproduction in worker honey bees.

PubMed

Yusuf, Abdullahi A; Crewe, Robin M; Pirk, Christian W W

2018-05-18

One of the responses that honey bee workers can make in the event of queen loss is to develop into false queens. False queens are workers that exhibit both behavioural and physiological traits similar to those of a true queen. However, the presence of more than one false queen in a colony distorts the established hierarchies. As transformation into a false queen occurs after emergence as an adult, we tested the effect of worker mobile pheromone carriers (PCs) treated with exogenously supplied pheromones on their nestmates. The PCs carried either synthetic mandibular gland pheromones or pheromones extracted from capensis parasitic workers . Only PCs attracted retinues of workers, increased pheromone production, and activated their ovaries becoming false queens. Pheromones from capensis workers were more effective than extracts of commercially available synthetic queen pheromones in eliciting these effects. Using this simple mobile pheromone delivery system, we have shown that, carrying amounts of exogenous pheromone can induce pheromone production in the carrier resulting in the production of false queens within experimental groups. Possible implications of using this technique to modify and regulate worker reproduction in colonies are discussed. © 2018. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Efficacy of aggregation pheromone in trapping red palm weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier) and rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros Linn.) from infested coconut palms.

PubMed

Chakravarthy, A K; Chandrashekharaiah, M; Kandakoor, Subhash B; Nagaraj, D N

2014-05-01

Red palm weevil and Rhinoceros beetle are the major pests inflicting severe damage to coconut palms. Due to ineffectiveness of the current management practices to control the two important pests on coconut, a study was conducted to know the attractiveness of red palm weevil and rhinoceros beetle to aggregation pheromone. Olfactometer studies indicated that the aggregation pheromone of red palm weevil and rhinoceros beetle attracted significantly more number of weevils (13.4 females and 7.6 male weevils) and beetles (6.5 male and 12.3 female beetles), respectively than control. Similarly, field studies found that both 750 and 1000 mg pheromone dosage lures of red palm weevil and rhinoceros beetle trapped significantly higher numbers of weevils (695.80 and 789 weevils, respectively) and beetles (98 and 108 beetles, respectively) in traps (P < 0.05), respectively. On an average (n = 6 field trials) 80-85% red palm weevil and 72-78% rhinoceros beetle population got trapped. Observations indicated activity of red palm weevil throughout the year and of rhinoceros beetle from September to March around Bangalore, South India. Pheromone traps for red palm weevil can be placed in fields from June to August and October to December and September to February for rhinoceros beetle. Population reductions of the two coleopteran pests by pheromone traps are compatible with mechanical and cultural management tools with cumulative effects.

Factors influencing capture of invasive sea lamprey in traps baited with a synthesized sex pheromone component

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, Nicholas; Siefkes, Michael J.; Wagner, C. Michael; Bravener, Gale; Steeves, Todd; Twohey, Michael; Li, Weiming

2015-01-01

The sea lamprey, Petromyzon marinus, is emerging as a model organism for understanding how pheromones can be used for manipulating vertebrate behavior in an integrated pest management program. In a previous study, a synthetic sex pheromone component 7α,12α, 24-trihydroxy-5α-cholan-3-one 24-sulfate (3kPZS) was applied to sea lamprey traps in eight streams at a final in-stream concentration of 10−12 M. Application of 3kPZS increased sea lamprey catch, but where and when 3kPZS had the greatest impact was not determined. Here, by applying 3kPZS to additional streams, we determined that overall increases in yearly exploitation rate (proportion of sea lampreys that were marked, released, and subsequently recaptured) were highest (20–40 %) in wide streams (~40 m) with low adult sea lamprey abundance (<1000). Wide streams with low adult abundance may be representative of low-attraction systems for adult sea lamprey and, in the absence of other attractants (larval odor, sex pheromone), sea lamprey may have been more responsive to a partial sex pheromone blend emitted from traps. Furthermore, we found that the largest and most consistent responses to 3kPZS were during nights early in the trapping season, when water temperatures were increasing. This may have occurred because, during periods of increasing water temperatures, sea lamprey become more active and males at large may not have begun to release sex pheromone. In general, our results are consistent with those for pheromones of invertebrates, which are most effective when pest density is low and when pheromone competition is low.

Electrophysiological response and attraction of emerald ash borer to green leaf volatiles (GLVs) emitted by host foliage.

PubMed

de Groot, Peter; Grant, Gary G; Poland, Therese M; Scharbach, Roger; Buchan, Linda; Nott, Reginald W; Macdonald, Linda; Pitt, Doug

2008-09-01

Green leaf volatiles (GLVs) function as host attractants, pheromone synergists, or sexual kairomones for a number of coleopteran folivores. Hence, we focused on host GLVs to determine if they were attractive to adults of the emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), which feeds on ash (Fraxinus) foliage. Eight GLVs were identified by chromatography-electroantennogram (GC) and GC-mass spectrometry in foliar headspace volatiles collected in traps containing Super-Q from white ash, Fraxinus americana, and green ash, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, trees. GLVs in the aeration extracts elicited antennal responses from both male and female adults in gas chromatography-electroantennogram detection bioassays. Male antennae were more responsive than female antennae and showed the strongest response to (Z)-3-hexenol. Six field experiments were conducted in Canada and the USA from 2004 to 2006 to evaluate the attractiveness of candidate GLVs, in various lure combinations and dosages. Field experiments demonstrated that lures containing (Z)-3-hexenol were the most effective in increasing trap catch when placed on purple traps in open areas or along the edges of woodlots containing ash. Lures with (Z)-3-hexenol were more attractive to males than females, and dosage may be a factor determining its effectiveness.

Beyond 9-ODA: sex pheromone communication in the European honey bee Apis mellifera L.

PubMed

Brockmann, Axel; Dietz, Daniel; Spaethe, Johannes; Tautz, Jürgen

2006-03-01

The major component of the mandibular gland secretion of queen honeybees (Apis mellifera L.), 9-ODA ((2E)-9-oxodecenoic acid), has been known for more than 40 yr to function as a long-range sex pheromone, attracting drones at congregation areas and drone flyways. Tests of other mandibular gland components failed to demonstrate attraction. It remained unclear whether these components served any function in mating behavior. We performed dual-choice experiments, using a rotating drone carousel, to test the attractiveness of 9-ODA compared to mixtures of 9-ODA with three other most abundant components in virgin queen mandibular gland secretions: (2E)-9-hydroxydecenoic acid (9-HDA), (2E)-10-hydroxydecenoic acid (10-HDA), and p-hydroxybenzoate (HOB). We found no differences in the number of drones attracted to 9-ODA or the respective mixtures over a distance. However, adding 9-HDA and 10-HDA, or 9-HDA, 10-HDA, and HOB to 9-ODA increased the number of drones making contact with the baited dummy. On the basis of these results, we suggest that at least 9-HDA and 10-HDA are additional components of the sex pheromone blend of A. mellifera.

Bark beetles, pityogenes bidentatus, orienting to aggregation pheromone avoid conifer monoterpene odors when flying but not when walking

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Previous studies have provided evidence that monoterpene odors from healthy host Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris) and non-host Norway spruce (Picea abies) significantly reduce the attraction of flying bark beetles, Pityogenes bidentatus, to their aggregation pheromone components (grandisol and cis-ver...

Pheromones in White Pine Cone Beetle, Conophthorus coniperdu (Schwarz) (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

Goran Birgersson; Gary L. DeBarr; Peter de Groot; Mark J. Dalusky; Harold D. Pierce; John H. Borden; Holger Meyer; Wittko Francke; Karl E. Espelie; C. Wayne Berisford

1995-01-01

Female white pine cone beetles, Conophrhorus coniperda, attacking second-year cones of eastern white pine, Pinus strobus L., produced a sex-specific pheromone that attracted conspecific males in laboratory bioassays and to field traps. Beetle response was enhanced by host monoterpenes. The female-produced compound was identified in...

Attraction of dispersing boll weevils from surrounding habitats relative to simulated pheromone diffusion from traps

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The ability to detect populations of boll weevils, Anthonomus grandis (Boheman), with pheromone traps has contributed significantly in progress toward eradication of the boll weevil. However, new information is needed to aid in the interpretation of trap captures, such as identification of habitats...

Attraction of stink bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) nymphs to Euschistus aggregation pheromone in the field

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Phytophagous stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are primary pests in most fruit, vegetable, grain, and row crops worldwide. Pheromones have been identified and synthesized for several species of economically important stink bug pests. When yellow pyramid traps are baited with lures containing thes...

Glycerol-3-phosphate O-acyltransferase is required for PBAN-induced sex pheromone biosynthesis in Bombyx mori

PubMed Central

Du, Mengfang; Liu, Xiaoguang; Liu, Xiaoming; Yin, Xinming; Han, Shuangyin; Song, Qisheng; An, Shiheng

2015-01-01

Female moths employ their own pheromone blends as a communicational medium in mating behavior. The biosynthesis and release of sex pheromone in female moths are regulated by pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) and the corresponding action of PBAN has been well elucidated in Bombyx mori. However, very little is known about the molecular mechanism regarding the biosynthesis of sex pheromone precursor. In this study, quantitative proteomics was utilized to comprehensively elucidate the expression dynamics of pheromone glands (PGs) during development. Proteomic analysis revealed a serial of differentially expressed sex pheromone biosynthesis-associated proteins at the different time points of B. mori development. Most interestingly B. mori glycerol-3-phosphate O-acyltransferase (BmGPAT) was found to be expressed during the key periods of sex pheromone biosynthesis. RNAi knockdown of BmGPAT confirmed the important function of this protein in the biosynthesis of sex pheromone precursor, triacylglcerol (TAG), and subsequently PBAN-induced production of sex pheromone, bombykol. Behavioral analysis showed that RNAi knockdown of GPAT significantly impaired the ability of females to attract males. Our findings indicate that GPAT acts to regulate the biosynthesis of sex pheromone precursor, TAG, thus influencing PBAN-induced sex pheromone production and subsequent mating behavior. PMID:25630665

Laboratory demonstrations of pheromone-mediated scent-marking, orientation, and mounting behavior in Polistes exclamans Vienick (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A combination of arena, Y-tube olfactometer, and flight tunnel assays were used to determine responses of male and reproductive female Polistes exclamans Vierick to odors and extracts of conspecific males and females, as potential pheromone-mediated sexual behaviors. Males rubbed the sternites of th...

Fitness cost of pheromone production in signaling female moths.

PubMed

Harari, Ally R; Zahavi, Tirtza; Thiéry, Denis

2011-06-01

A secondary sexual character may act as an honest signal of the quality of the individual if the trait bears a cost and if its expression is phenotypically condition dependent. The cost of increasing the trait should be tolerable for individuals in good condition but not for those in a poor condition. The trait thus provides an honest signal of quality that enables the receiver to choose higher quality mates. Evidence for sex pheromones, which play a major role in shaping sexual evolution, inflicting a signaling cost is scarce. Here, we demonstrate that the amount of the major component of the pheromone in glands of Lobesia botrana (Lepidoptera) females at signaling time was significantly greater in large than in small females, that male moths preferred larger females as mates when responding to volatile signals, and small virgin females, but not large ones, exposed to conspecific pheromone, produced, when mated, significantly fewer eggs than nonexposed females. The latter indicates a condition-dependent cost of signaling. These results are in accordance with the predictions of condition-dependent honest signals. We therefore suggest that female signaling for males using sex pheromones bears a cost and thus calling may serve as honest advertisement for female quality. © 2011 The Author(s). Evolution© 2011 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

Mating and male pheromone kill Caenorhabditis males through distinct mechanisms.

PubMed

Shi, Cheng; Runnels, Alexi M; Murphy, Coleen T

2017-03-14

Differences in longevity between sexes is a mysterious yet general phenomenon across great evolutionary distances. To test the roles of responses to environmental cues and sexual behaviors in longevity regulation, we examined Caenorhabditis male lifespan under solitary, grouped, and mated conditions. We find that neurons and the germline are required for male pheromone-dependent male death. Hermaphrodites with a masculinized nervous system secrete male pheromone and are susceptible to male pheromone killing. Male pheromone-mediated killing is unique to androdioecious Caenorhabditis , and may reduce the number of males in hermaphroditic populations; neither males nor females of gonochoristic species are susceptible to male pheromone killing. By contrast, mating-induced death, which is characterized by germline-dependent shrinking, glycogen loss, and ectopic vitellogenin expression, utilizes distinct molecular pathways and is shared between the sexes and across species. The study of sex- and species-specific regulation of aging reveals deeply conserved mechanisms of longevity and population structure regulation.

Female pheromones modulate flight muscle activation patterns during preflight warm-up.

PubMed

Crespo, José G; Vickers, Neil J; Goller, Franz

2013-08-01

At low ambient temperature Helicoverpa zea male moths engage in warm-up behavior prior to taking flight in response to an attractive female pheromone blend. Male H. zea warm up at a faster rate when sensing the attractive pheromone blend compared with unattractive blends or blank controls (Crespo et al. 2012), but the mechanisms involved in this olfactory modulation of the heating rate during preflight warm-up are unknown. Here, we test three possible mechanisms for increasing heat production: 1) increased rate of muscle contraction; 2) reduction in mechanical movement by increased overlap in activation of the antagonistic flight muscles; and 3) increased activation of motor units. To test which mechanisms play a role, we simultaneously recorded electrical activation patterns of the main flight muscles (dorsolongitudinal and dorsoventral muscles), wing movement, and thoracic temperature in moths exposed to both the attractive pheromone blend and a blank control. Results indicate that the main mechanism responsible for the observed increase in thoracic heating rate with pheromone stimulation is the differential activation of motor units during each muscle contraction cycle in both antagonistic flight muscles. This additional activation lengthens the contracted state within each cycle and thus accounts for the greater heat production. Interestingly, the rate of activation (frequency of contraction cycles) of motor units, which is temperature dependent, did not vary between treatments. This result suggests that the activation rate is determined by a temperature-dependent oscillator, which is not affected by the olfactory stimulus, but activation of motor units is modulated during each cycle.

Female pheromones modulate flight muscle activation patterns during preflight warm-up

PubMed Central

Vickers, Neil J.; Goller, Franz

2013-01-01

At low ambient temperature Helicoverpa zea male moths engage in warm-up behavior prior to taking flight in response to an attractive female pheromone blend. Male H. zea warm up at a faster rate when sensing the attractive pheromone blend compared with unattractive blends or blank controls (Crespo et al. 2012), but the mechanisms involved in this olfactory modulation of the heating rate during preflight warm-up are unknown. Here, we test three possible mechanisms for increasing heat production: 1) increased rate of muscle contraction; 2) reduction in mechanical movement by increased overlap in activation of the antagonistic flight muscles; and 3) increased activation of motor units. To test which mechanisms play a role, we simultaneously recorded electrical activation patterns of the main flight muscles (dorsolongitudinal and dorsoventral muscles), wing movement, and thoracic temperature in moths exposed to both the attractive pheromone blend and a blank control. Results indicate that the main mechanism responsible for the observed increase in thoracic heating rate with pheromone stimulation is the differential activation of motor units during each muscle contraction cycle in both antagonistic flight muscles. This additional activation lengthens the contracted state within each cycle and thus accounts for the greater heat production. Interestingly, the rate of activation (frequency of contraction cycles) of motor units, which is temperature dependent, did not vary between treatments. This result suggests that the activation rate is determined by a temperature-dependent oscillator, which is not affected by the olfactory stimulus, but activation of motor units is modulated during each cycle. PMID:23699056

Seasonal phenology of the cerambycid beetles of east-central Illinois

PubMed Central

Hanks, Lawrence M.; Reagel, Peter F.; Mitchell, Robert F.; Wong, Joseph C. H.; Meier, Linnea R.; Silliman, Christina A.; Graham, Elizabeth E.; Striman, Becca L.; Robinson, Kenneth P.; Mongold-Diers, Judith A.; Millar, Jocelyn G.

2014-01-01

We summarize field data on the species composition and seasonal phenology of the community of cerambycid beetles of east-central Illinois. Data were drawn from field bioassays conducted during 2009 – 2012 that tested attraction of adult beetles of diverse species to a variety of synthetic pheromones and host plant volatiles. A total of 34,086 beetles of 114 species were captured, including 48 species in the subfamily Cerambycinae, 41 species in the Lamiinae, 19 species in the Lepturinae, two species in the Spondylidinae, and one species each in the Necydalinae, Parandrinae, Prioninae, and the Disteniidae. Most of the best-represented species were attracted to pheromones that were included in field experiments, particularly species that use (R)-3-hydroxyhexan-2-one as a pheromone component. The species captured, and their patterns of abundance and seasonal phenology were similar to those in an earlier study conducted in Pennsylvania. The most abundant species identified in both studies included the cerambycines Elaphidion mucronatum (Say), Neoclytus a. acuminatus (F.), Neoclytus m. mucronatus (F.), and Xylotrechus colonus (F.). Cerambycine species became active in an orderly progression from early spring through late fall, whereas most lamiine species were active in summer and fall, and lepturine species were limited to summer. Potential cross attraction between some cerambycine species that shared pheromone components may have been averted by differences in seasonal activity period, and by minor pheromone components that acted as synergists for conspecifics and/or antagonists for heterospecifics. These results provide quantitative data on the abundance and seasonal phenology of a large number of species. PMID:24683267

A contact sex pheromone component of the emerald ash borer Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silk, Peter J.; Ryall, Krista; Barry Lyons, D.; Sweeney, Jon; Wu, Junping

2009-05-01

Analyses of the elytral hydrocarbons from male and female emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire, that were freshly emerged vs. sexually mature (>10 days old) revealed a female-specific compound, 9-methyl-pentacosane (9-Me-C25), only present in sexually mature females. This material was synthesized by the Wittig reaction of 2-decanone with ( n-hexadecyl)-triphenylphosphonium bromide followed by catalytic reduction to yield racemic 9-Me C25, which matched the natural compound by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (retention time and EI mass spectrum). In field bioassays with freeze-killed sexually mature A. planipennis females, feral males spent significantly more time in contact and attempting copulation with unwashed females than with females that had been washed in n-hexane to remove the cuticular lipids. Hexane-washed females to which 9-Me-C25 had been reapplied elicited similar contact time and percentage of time attempting copulation as unwashed females, indicating that 9-methyl-pentacosane is a contact sex pheromone component of A. planipennis. This is the first contact sex pheromone identified in the Buprestidae.

Brain response to putative pheromones in lesbian women

PubMed Central

Berglund, Hans; Lindström, Per; Savic, Ivanka

2006-01-01

The progesterone derivative 4,16-androstadien-3-one (AND) and the estrogen-like steroid estra-1,3,5(10),16-tetraen-3-ol (EST) are candidate compounds for human pheromones. In previous positron emission tomography studies, we found that smelling AND and EST activated regions primarily incorporating the sexually dimorphic nuclei of the anterior hypothalamus, that this activation was differentiated with respect to sex and compound, and that homosexual men processed AND congruently with heterosexual women rather than heterosexual men. These observations indicate involvement of the anterior hypothalamus in physiological processes related to sexual orientation in humans. We expand the information on this issue in the present study by performing identical positron emission tomography experiments on 12 lesbian women. In contrast to heterosexual women, lesbian women processed AND stimuli by the olfactory networks and not the anterior hypothalamus. Furthermore, when smelling EST, they partly shared activation of the anterior hypothalamus with heterosexual men. These data support our previous results about differentiated processing of pheromone-like stimuli in humans and further strengthen the notion of a coupling between hypothalamic neuronal circuits and sexual preferences. PMID:16705035

Loss of Drosophila pheromone reverses its role in sexual communication in Drosophila suzukii

PubMed Central

Dekker, Teun; Revadi, Santosh; Mansourian, Suzan; Ramasamy, Sukanya; Lebreton, Sebastien; Becher, Paul G.; Angeli, Sergio; Rota-Stabelli, Omar; Anfora, Gianfranco

2015-01-01

The Drosophila pheromone cis-11-octadecenyl acetate (cVA) is used as pheromone throughout the melanogaster group and fulfils a primary role in sexual and social behaviours. Here, we found that Drosophila suzukii, an invasive pest that oviposits in undamaged ripe fruit, does not produce cVA. In fact, its production site, the ejaculatory bulb, is atrophied. Despite loss of cVA production, its receptor, Or67d, and cognate sensillum, T1, which are essential in cVA-mediated behaviours, were fully functional. However, T1 expression was dramatically reduced in D. suzukii, and the corresponding antennal lobe glomerulus, DA1, minute. Behavioural responses to cVA depend on the input balance of Or67d neurons (driving cVA-mediated behaviours) and Or65a neurons (inhibiting cVA-mediated behaviours). Accordingly, the shifted input balance in D. suzukii has reversed cVA's role in sexual behaviour: perfuming D. suzukii males with Drosophila melanogaster equivalents of cVA strongly reduced mating rates. cVA has thus evolved from a generic sex pheromone to a heterospecific signal that disrupts mating in D. suzukii, a saltational shift, mediated through offsetting the input balance that is highly conserved in congeneric species. This study underlines that dramatic changes in a species' sensory preference can result from rather ‘simple’ numerical shifts in underlying neural circuits. PMID:25716789

Rapid Evolution of Sex Pheromone-Producing Enzyme Expression in Drosophila

PubMed Central

Williams, Thomas M.; Carroll, Sean B.

2009-01-01

A wide range of organisms use sex pheromones to communicate with each other and to identify appropriate mating partners. While the evolution of chemical communication has been suggested to cause sexual isolation and speciation, the mechanisms that govern evolutionary transitions in sex pheromone production are poorly understood. Here, we decipher the molecular mechanisms underlying the rapid evolution in the expression of a gene involved in sex pheromone production in Drosophilid flies. Long-chain cuticular hydrocarbons (e.g., dienes) are produced female-specifically, notably via the activity of the desaturase DESAT-F, and are potent pheromones for male courtship behavior in Drosophila melanogaster. We show that across the genus Drosophila, the expression of this enzyme is correlated with long-chain diene production and has undergone an extraordinary number of evolutionary transitions, including six independent gene inactivations, three losses of expression without gene loss, and two transitions in sex-specificity. Furthermore, we show that evolutionary transitions from monomorphism to dimorphism (and its reversion) in desatF expression involved the gain (and the inactivation) of a binding-site for the sex-determination transcription factor, DOUBLESEX. In addition, we documented a surprising example of the gain of particular cis-regulatory motifs of the desatF locus via a set of small deletions. Together, our results suggest that frequent changes in the expression of pheromone-producing enzymes underlie evolutionary transitions in chemical communication, and reflect changing regimes of sexual selection, which may have contributed to speciation among Drosophila. PMID:19652700

Age-specific olfactory attraction between Western honey bee drones (Apis mellifera) and its chemical basis.

PubMed

Bastin, Florian; Savarit, Fabrice; Lafon, Grégory; Sandoz, Jean-Christophe

2017-01-01

During the mating season, drones (males) of the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) form congregations numbering thousands high in the air. Virgin queens arrive at these congregations after they have formed and mate on the fly with 15-20 drones. To explain the formation of drone congregations, a drone-produced aggregation pheromone has been proposed many years ago but due to the low accessibility of natural mating sites in bees, its study has progressed slowly. Recently, we used a walking simulator in controlled laboratory conditions to show that drones are indeed attracted by groups of other drones. Since these previous experiments were carried out with drones captured when flying out of the hive, it is currently unclear if this olfactory attraction behaviour is related to the drones' sexual maturity (usually reached between 9 and 12 days) and may thus be indicative of a possible role in congregation formation, or if it is observed at any age and may represent in-hive aggregation. We thus assessed here the dependency of drone olfactory attraction on their age. First, we performed behavioural experiments in the walking simulator to measure olfactory preferences of drones in three age groups from 2-3 to 12-15 days. Then, we performed chemical analyses in the same age groups to evaluate whether chemical substances produced by the drones may explain age differences in olfactory attraction. We show that honey bee drones are attracted by conspecifics of the same age when they are sexually mature (12-15 days old) but not when they are younger (2-3 and 7-8 days old). In parallel, our data show that drones' chemical profile changes with age, including its most volatile fraction. These results are discussed in the context of drone mutual attraction both within the hive and at drone congregations.

Age-specific olfactory attraction between Western honey bee drones (Apis mellifera) and its chemical basis

PubMed Central

Bastin, Florian; Savarit, Fabrice; Lafon, Grégory

2017-01-01

During the mating season, drones (males) of the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) form congregations numbering thousands high in the air. Virgin queens arrive at these congregations after they have formed and mate on the fly with 15-20 drones. To explain the formation of drone congregations, a drone-produced aggregation pheromone has been proposed many years ago but due to the low accessibility of natural mating sites in bees, its study has progressed slowly. Recently, we used a walking simulator in controlled laboratory conditions to show that drones are indeed attracted by groups of other drones. Since these previous experiments were carried out with drones captured when flying out of the hive, it is currently unclear if this olfactory attraction behaviour is related to the drones’ sexual maturity (usually reached between 9 and 12 days) and may thus be indicative of a possible role in congregation formation, or if it is observed at any age and may represent in-hive aggregation. We thus assessed here the dependency of drone olfactory attraction on their age. First, we performed behavioural experiments in the walking simulator to measure olfactory preferences of drones in three age groups from 2-3 to 12-15 days. Then, we performed chemical analyses in the same age groups to evaluate whether chemical substances produced by the drones may explain age differences in olfactory attraction. We show that honey bee drones are attracted by conspecifics of the same age when they are sexually mature (12-15 days old) but not when they are younger (2-3 and 7-8 days old). In parallel, our data show that drones’ chemical profile changes with age, including its most volatile fraction. These results are discussed in the context of drone mutual attraction both within the hive and at drone congregations. PMID:28977020

Listening in Pheromone Plumes: Disruption of Olfactory-Guided Mate Attraction in a Moth by a Bat-Like Ultrasound

PubMed Central

Svenssona, Glenn P.; Löfstedt, Christer; Skals, Niels

2007-01-01

Nocturnal moths often use sex pheromones to find mates and ultrasonic hearing to evade echolocating bat predators. Male moths, when confronted with both pheromones and sound, thus have to trade off reproduction and predator avoidance depending on the relative strengths of the perceived conflicting stimuli. The ultrasonic hearing of Plodia interpunctella was investigated. A threshold curve for evasive reaction to ultrasound of tethered moths was established, and the frequency of best hearing was found to be between 40 and 70 kHz. Flight tunnel experiments were performed where males orienting in a sex pheromone plume were stimulated with 50 kHz pulses of different intensities. Pheromone-stimulated males showed increased defensive response with increased intensity of the sound stimulus, and the acoustic cue had long-lasting effects on their pheromone-mediated flight, revealing a cost associated with vital evasive behaviours. PMID:20331396

Mimicking Insect Communication: Release and Detection of Pheromone, Biosynthesized by an Alcohol Acetyl Transferase Immobilized in a Microreactor

PubMed Central

Muñoz, Lourdes; Dimov, Nikolay; Carot-Sans, Gerard; Bula, Wojciech P.; Guerrero, Angel; Gardeniers, Han J. G. E.

2012-01-01

Infochemical production, release and detection of (Z,E)-9,11-tetradecadienyl acetate, the major component of the pheromone of the moth Spodoptera littoralis, is achieved in a novel microfluidic system designed to mimic the final step of the pheromone biosynthesis by immobilized recombinant alcohol acetyl transferase. The microfluidic system is part of an “artificial gland”, i.e., a chemoemitter that comprises a microreactor connected to a microevaporator and is able to produce and release a pre-defined amount of the major component of the pheromone from the corresponding (Z,E)-9,11-tetradecadienol. Performance of the entire chemoemitter has been assessed in electrophysiological and behavioral experiments. Electroantennographic depolarizations of the pheromone produced by the chemoemitter were ca. 40% relative to that evoked by the synthetic pheromone. In a wind tunnel, the pheromone released from the evaporator elicited on males a similar attraction behavior as 3 virgin females in most of the parameters considered. PMID:23155372

Aphid Alarm Pheromone as a Cue for Ants to Locate Aphid Partners

PubMed Central

Verheggen, François J.; Diez, Lise; Sablon, Ludovic; Fischer, Christophe; Bartram, Stefan; Haubruge, Eric; Detrain, Claire

2012-01-01

The mutualistic relationships that occur between myrmecophilous aphids and ants are based on the rich food supply that honeydew represents for ants and on the protection they provide against aphid natural enemies. While aphid predators and parasitoids actively forage for oviposition sites by using aphid semiochemicals, scouts of aphid-tending ant species would also benefit from locating honeydew resources by orienting toward aphid pheromone sources. The present study aims to provide additional information on the use of Aphis fabae alarm pheromone, i.e. (E)-β-farnesene (EβF), by ant scouts. The perception and behavioral impact of EβF on Lasius niger were investigated using electroantennography and two bio-assays measuring their attraction and orientation towards aphid semiochemicals. Pronounced electrical depolarizations were observed from L. niger scout antennae to stimulations of A. fabae alarm pheromone, while other sesquiterpenes elicited weak or no responses. L. niger scouts were significantly attracted toward EβF in a four-arm olfactometer, as well as in an two-choice bioassay. These laboratory results suggest for the first time that low amounts of aphid alarm pheromone can be used by L. niger scouts as a cue indicating the presence of aphid colonies and could therefore mediate the aphid-ant partnership in the field. PMID:22870255

Evidence that (+)-endo-Brevicomin is a male-produced component of the Southern Pine Beetle aggregation pheromone

Treesearch

Brian T. Sullivan; William P. Shepherd; Deepa S. Pureswarana; Takuya Tashiro; Kenji Mori

2007-01-01

Previous research indicated that the aggregation pheromone of the southern pine beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis, is produced only by females, the sex that initiates attacks. We provide evidence indicating that secondarily arriving males augment mass aggregation by releasing the attractive synergist (+)-endo-brevicomin. Healthy pines artificially...

Reinvestigation of Cactoblastis Captorum (LEPIDOPTERA: PYRALIDAE) sex pheromone for improved attractiveness and greater specificity

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cactoblastis cactorum (Berg.) is recognized as an invasive species in the Caribbean, United States, and Mexico with potential to adversely impact native cactus population. Prior work using hexane extracts of sex glands showed that the sex pheromone of this species has 54% of (Z, E) -9.12 tetradecadi...

(S)-(+)-Ipsdienol: Interspecific Inhibition of Ips latidens (LeConte) by Ips pini (Say) (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; John H. Borden

1992-01-01

In south-central British Columbia, the attraction of Ips latidens (LeConte) to its pheromone, ipsenol, was inhibited by (S)-(+)-ipsdienol, a pheromone for I. pini (Say). (R)-(-)-Ipsdienol had no effect on I. latidens. (S)-(+)-lpsdienol probably plays a role in interspecific communication between the two species...

Public Participation in Insect Research through the Use of Pheromones

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvey, Deborah; Hedenström, Erik; Finch, Paul

2017-01-01

In a project to determine the UK distribution of a conservation-status beetle "Elater ferrugineus", 300 volunteers were recruited and supplied with traps containing a female pheromone that is an effective attractant for adult males. The occurrence and distribution of the insect were extended from previously estimated values and shown to…

Multimodal Chemosensory Circuits Controlling Male Courtship in Drosophila.

PubMed

Clowney, E Josephine; Iguchi, Shinya; Bussell, Jennifer J; Scheer, Elias; Ruta, Vanessa

2015-09-02

Throughout the animal kingdom, internal states generate long-lasting and self-perpetuating chains of behavior. In Drosophila, males instinctively pursue females with a lengthy and elaborate courtship ritual triggered by activation of sexually dimorphic P1 interneurons. Gustatory pheromones are thought to activate P1 neurons but the circuit mechanisms that dictate their sensory responses to gate entry into courtship remain unknown. Here, we use circuit mapping and in vivo functional imaging techniques to trace gustatory and olfactory pheromone circuits to their point of convergence onto P1 neurons and reveal how their combined input underlies selective tuning to appropriate sexual partners. We identify inhibition, even in response to courtship-promoting pheromones, as a key circuit element that tunes and tempers P1 neuron activity. Our results suggest a circuit mechanism in which balanced excitation and inhibition underlie discrimination of prospective mates and stringently regulate the transition to courtship in Drosophila. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Multimodal chemosensory circuits controlling male courtship in Drosophila

PubMed Central

Clowney, E. Josephine; Iguchi, Shinya; Bussell, Jennifer J.; Scheer, Elias; Ruta, Vanessa

2015-01-01

Summary Throughout the animal kingdom, internal states generate long-lasting and self-perpetuating chains of behavior. In Drosophila, males instinctively pursue females with a lengthy and elaborate courtship ritual triggered by activation of sexually dimorphic P1 interneurons. Gustatory pheromones are thought to activate P1 neurons but the circuit mechanisms that dictate their sensory responses to gate entry into courtship remain unknown. Here, we use circuit mapping and in vivo functional imaging techniques to trace gustatory and olfactory pheromone circuits to their point of convergence onto P1 neurons and reveal how their combined input underlies selective tuning to appropriate sexual partners. We identify inhibition, even in response to courtship-promoting pheromones, as a key circuit element that tunes and tempers P1 neuron activity. Our results suggest a circuit mechanism in which balanced excitation and inhibition underlie discrimination of prospective mates and stringently regulate the transition to courtship in Drosophila. PMID:26279475

A pear-derived kairomone with pheromonal potency that attracts male and female codling moth, Cydia pomonella (L.)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Light, Douglas M.; Knight, Alan L.; Henrick, Clive A.; Rajapaska, Dayananda; Lingren, Bill; Dickens, Joseph C.; Reynolds, Katherine M.; Buttery, Ronald G.; Merrill, Gloria; Roitman, James; Campbell, Bruce C.

2001-08-01

Ethyl (2 E, 4 Z)-2,4-decadienoate, a pear-derived volatile, is a species-specific, durable, and highly potent attractant to the codling moth (CM), Cydia pomonella (L.), a serious pest of walnuts, apples, and pears worldwide. This kairomone attracts both CM males and virgin and mated females. It is highly attractive to CM in both walnut and apple orchard contexts, but has shown limited effectiveness in a pear orchard context. Rubber septa lures loaded with ethyl (2 E, 4 Z)-2,4-decadienoate remained attractive for several months under field conditions. At the same low microgram load rates on septa, the combined gender capture of CM in kairomone-baited traps was similar to the capture rate of males in traps baited with codlemone, the major sex pheromone component. The particular attribute of attracting CM females renders this kairomone a novel tool for monitoring population flight and mating-ovipositional status, and potentially a major new weapon for directly controlling CM populations.

Differential field responses of the little fire ant, Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger), to alarm pheromone enantiomers.

PubMed

Yu, Yang; Jang, Eric B; Siderhurst, Matthew S

2014-12-01

The little fire ant, Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), is an invasive ant with negative impacts on both biodiversity and agriculture throughout the tropics and subtropics. Field experiments were conducted in order to elucidate the relative attractiveness of the enantiomers of the alarm pheromones, 2,5-dimethyl-3-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazine and 3-methyl-2-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazine. The enantiomers tested were synthesized from commercially available (S)-2-methylbutan-1-ol or kinetically resolved (R)-2-methylbutan-1-ol, prepared using Pseudomonas cepacia lipase (PCL). Bioassays conducted in a macadamia orchard on the island of Hawaii demonstrated that W. auropunctata were preferentially attracted to the (S)-enantiomers of both alkyl pyrazines over the racemic mixtures in all experiments. To our knowledge, this is the first instance of differential attraction of ants to the enantiomers of chiral pyrazine pheromones despite many examples of these compounds in the literature. In addition, using a chiral column it was determined that (S)-2,5-dimethyl-3-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazine and (S)-3-methyl-2-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazine are the only enantiomers produced by W. auropunctata.

The joy of sex pheromones

PubMed Central

Gomez-Diaz, Carolina; Benton, Richard

2013-01-01

Sex pheromones provide an important means of communication to unite individuals for successful reproduction. Although sex pheromones are highly diverse across animals, these signals fulfil common fundamental roles in enabling identification of a mating partner of the opposite sex, the appropriate species and of optimal fecundity. In this review, we synthesize both classic and recent investigations on sex pheromones in a range of species, spanning nematode worms, insects and mammals. These studies reveal comparable strategies in how these chemical signals are produced, detected and processed in the brain to regulate sexual behaviours. Elucidation of sex pheromone communication mechanisms both defines outstanding models to understand the molecular and neuronal basis of chemosensory behaviours, and reveals how similar evolutionary selection pressures yield convergent solutions in distinct animal nervous systems. EMBO reports advance online publication 13 September 2013; doi:10.1038/embor.2013.140 PMID:24030282

An Insecticide Further Enhances Experience-Dependent Increased Behavioural Responses to Sex Pheromone in a Pest Insect

PubMed Central

Abrieux, Antoine; Mhamdi, Amel; Rabhi, Kaouther K.; Egon, Julie; Debernard, Stéphane; Duportets, Line; Tricoire-Leignel, Hélène; Anton, Sylvia; Gadenne, Christophe

2016-01-01

Neonicotinoid insecticides are widely used to protect plants against pest insects, and insecticide residues remaining in the environment affect both target and non-target organisms. Whereas low doses of neonicotinoids have been shown to disturb the behaviour of pollinating insects, recent studies have revealed that a low dose of the neonicotinoid clothianidin can improve behavioural and neuronal sex pheromone responses in a pest insect, the male moth Agrotis ipsilon, and thus potentially improve reproduction. As male moth behaviour depends also on its physiological state and previous experience with sensory signals, we wondered if insecticide effects would be dependent on plasticity of olfactory-guided behaviour. We investigated, using wind tunnel experiments, whether a brief pre-exposure to the sex pheromone could enhance the behavioural response to this important signal in the moth A. ipsilon at different ages (sexually immature and mature males) and after different delays (2 h and 24 h), and if the insecticide clothianidin would interfere with age effects or the potential pre-exposure-effects. Brief pre-exposure to the pheromone induced an age-independent significant increase of sex pheromone responses 24 h later, whereas sex pheromone responses did not increase significantly 2 h after exposure. However, response delays were significantly shorter compared to naïve males already two hours after exposure. Oral treatment with clothianidin increased sex pheromone responses in sexually mature males, confirming previous results, but did not influence responses in young immature males. Males treated with clothianidin after pre-exposure at day 4 responded significantly more to the sex pheromone at day 5 than males treated with clothianidin only and than males pre-exposed only, revealing an additive effect of experience and the insecticide. Plasticity of sensory systems has thus to be taken into account when investigating the effects of sublethal doses of insecticides on behaviour. PMID:27902778

Behavioral responses of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, to green leaf volatiles of Brassica oleracea subsp. capitata.

PubMed

Reddy, G V; Guerrero, A

2000-12-01

Green leaf volatiles (GLVs) from Brassica oleracea subsp. capitata L. have been identified as 1-hexanol, (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, 1-hexen-3-ol, hexanal, (E)-2-hexenal, hexyl acetate, and (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, by their mass spectra and retention times in comparison with authentic samples. No isothiocyanates were found in the extract. The activity of these chemicals has been determined on mated and unmated males and females of the diamondback moth (DBM) Plutella xylostella in the laboratory (wind tunnel) and in the field. On unmated males, mixtures of (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, (E)-2-hexenal, and (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol with the pheromone induced attractant/arresting behavior in 80-100% of the males tested, significantly higher than the effect induced by the pheromone alone. On mated males and unmated females the effect of the GLVs alone or in combination with the pheromone was poor, while on mated females these compounds elicited upwind flight and arresting behavior in 40-60% of the females assayed. There was no synergism when these chemicals were mixed with the pheromone. In the field, (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, the most active GLV in laboratory tests, when mixed with the pheromone in 1:1 ratio, enhanced 6-7-fold the number of females and 20-30% the number of males caught by traps over those baited with the pheromone alone. Our results indicate that the enhancement of the attraction of both males and females of the DBM to traps baited with pheromone blended with the relatively inexpensive and environmentally safe (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate may be important for future control strategies of the pest.

Attraction of bark beetle predator, Thanasimus undatulus (Coleoptera: Cleridae), to pheromones of the spruce beetle and two secondary bark beetles (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

Therese M. Poland; John H. Borden

1997-01-01

The bark beetle predator Thanasimus undatulus Say was captured in statistically significant numbers (total catch = 470, 713, and 137) in three field experiments using multiple-funnel traps baited with various combinations of pheromones for the spruce beetle, Dendroctonus rufipennis Kirby, and the secondary bark beetles ...

Use of mixture designs to investigate contribution of minor sex pheromone components to trap catch of the carpenterworm moth, Chilecomadia valdiviana

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Five compounds previously identified from the female pheromone gland of the carpenterworm Chilecomadia valdiviana, a pest of tree and fruit crops in Chile, South America, were studied in field experiments. Previously, attraction of males by the major component was readily demonstrated while the role...

Combined approaches using sex pheromone and pear ester for behavioral disruption of codling moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Studies utilized the attractive properties of pear ester, ethyl (E,Z)-2,4-decadienoate, and codlemone, (E,E)-8,10-dodecadien-1-ol, the sex pheromone of codling moth, Cydia pomonella (L)., for behavioural disruption. Standard dispensers loaded with codlemone alone or in combination with pear ester (c...

Acetophenone superior to verbenone for reducing attraction of western pine beetle Dendroctonus brevicomis to its aggregation pheromone

Treesearch

Nadir Erbilgin; Nancy E. Gillette; Donald R. Owen; Sylvia R. Mori; Andrew S. Nelson; Fabian C.C. Uzoh; David L. Wood

2008-01-01

The western pine beetle Dendroctonus brevicomis LeConte (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) is one of the most damaging insect pests of ponderosa pines Pinus ponderosa Douglas ex P. & C. Lawson in Western U.S.A. We compared the effect of verbenone, a well known bark beetle anti-aggregation pheromone, with that...

Diminished pheromone-induced sexual behavior in neurokinin-1 receptor deficient (TACR1(-/-)) mice.

PubMed

Berger, A; Tran, A H; Dida, J; Minkin, S; Gerard, N P; Yeomans, J; Paige, C J

2012-07-01

Studies in mice with targeted deletions of tachykinin genes suggest that tachykinins and their receptors influence emotional behaviors such as aggression, depression and anxiety. Here, we investigated whether TAC1- and TAC4-encoded peptides (substance P and hemokinin-1, respectively) and the neurokinin-1 receptor (NK-1R) are involved in the modulation of sexual behaviors. Male mice deficient for the NK-1R (TACR1 (-/-)) exhibited decreased exploration of female urine in contrast to C57BL/6 control mice and mice deficient for NK-1R ligands such as TAC1 (-/-), TAC4 (-/-) and the newly generated TAC1 (-/-) /TAC4 (-/-) mice. In comparison to C57BL/6 mice, mounting frequency and duration were decreased in male TACR1 (-/-) mice, while mounting latency was increased. Decreased preference for sexual pheromones was also seen in female TACR1 (-/-) mice. Furthermore, administration of the NK-1R-antagonist L-703,606 decreased investigation of female urine by male C57BL/6 mice, suggesting an involvement of NK-1R in urine sniffing behavior. Our results provide evidence for the NK-1R in facilitating sexual approach behavior, as male TACR1 (-/-) mice exhibited blunted approach behavior toward females following the initial interaction compared with C57BL/6 mice. NK-1R signaling may therefore play an important role in pheromone-induced sexual behavior. © 2012 The Authors. Genes, Brain and Behavior © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society.

Effects on eastern larch beetle of its natural attractant and synthetic pheromones in Alaska.

Treesearch

Richard A. Werner; Malcom M. Furniss; Thomas. Ward

1981-01-01

Traps baited with Seudenol + a-pinene caught 87 percent more eastern larch beetles, Dendroctonus simplex LeConte, than did tamarack logs infested with females. Male beetles responded to the synthetic attractant in greater numbers than females. Male beetles were not attracted to frontalin, a principal attractant of the closely related Douglas-fir...

Physarum attraction: Why slime mold behaves as cats do?

PubMed

Adamatzky, Andrew; Costello, Ben De Lacy

2012-05-01

We discuss potential chemical substances responsible for attracting acellular slime mold Physarun polycephalum to valerian root. The contributes toward fundamental research into pheromones and chemo-attracts of primitive organisms such as slime molds. The results show that significant information could be gained about the action of compounds on higher organisms.

Identification of cuticular lipids eliciting interspecific courtship in the German cockroach, Blattella germanica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eliyahu, Dorit; Nojima, Satoshi; Capracotta, Sonja S.; Comins, Daniel L.; Schal, Coby

2008-05-01

The cuticular surface of sexually mature females of the German cockroach contains a sex pheromone that, upon contact with the male’s antennae, elicits a characteristic species-specific courtship behavior. This female-specific pheromone is a blend of several long-chain methyl ketones, alcohols and aldehydes, all derived from prominent cuticular hydrocarbons found in all life stages of this cockroach. We found that contact with the antennae of 5 out of 20 assayed cockroach species elicited courtship behavior in German cockroach males. The heterospecific courtship-eliciting compounds were isolated by behaviorally guided fractionation of the active crude extracts and compared to the native sex pheromone components. We identified two active compounds from the cuticular extract of the Oriental cockroach, Blatta orientalis—11-methylheptacosan-2-one and 27-oxo-11-methylheptacosan-2-one; the former compound was confirmed by synthesis and proved to independently stimulate courtship in German cockroach males. These compounds share common features with, but are distinct from, any of the known contact sex pheromone components. This suggests that sex pheromone reception in the male German cockroach is unusually promiscuous, accepting a wide range of compounds that share certain features with its native pheromone, thus resulting in a broad spectrum of behavioral response to other species. We propose that several characteristics of their mating system—chiefly, absence of closely related species in the anthropogenic environment, resulting in relaxation of selection on sexual communication, and a highly male-biased operational sex ratio—have driven males to respond with extremely low thresholds to a wide spectrum of related compounds.

The neuropeptide tachykinin is essential for pheromone detection in a gustatory neural circuit

PubMed Central

Shankar, Shruti; Chua, Jia Yi; Tan, Kah Junn; Calvert, Meredith EK; Weng, Ruifen; Ng, Wan Chin; Mori, Kenji; Yew, Joanne Y

2015-01-01

Gustatory pheromones play an essential role in shaping the behavior of many organisms. However, little is known about the processing of taste pheromones in higher order brain centers. Here, we describe a male-specific gustatory circuit in Drosophila that underlies the detection of the anti-aphrodisiac pheromone (3R,11Z,19Z)-3-acetoxy-11,19-octacosadien-1-ol (CH503). Using behavioral analysis, genetic manipulation, and live calcium imaging, we show that Gr68a-expressing neurons on the forelegs of male flies exhibit a sexually dimorphic physiological response to the pheromone and relay information to the central brain via peptidergic neurons. The release of tachykinin from 8 to 10 cells within the subesophageal zone is required for the pheromone-triggered courtship suppression. Taken together, this work describes a neuropeptide-modulated central brain circuit that underlies the programmed behavioral response to a gustatory sex pheromone. These results will allow further examination of the molecular basis by which innate behaviors are modulated by gustatory cues and physiological state. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.06914.001 PMID:26083710

Mating and male pheromone kill Caenorhabditis males through distinct mechanisms

PubMed Central

Shi, Cheng; Runnels, Alexi M; Murphy, Coleen T

2017-01-01

Differences in longevity between sexes is a mysterious yet general phenomenon across great evolutionary distances. To test the roles of responses to environmental cues and sexual behaviors in longevity regulation, we examined Caenorhabditis male lifespan under solitary, grouped, and mated conditions. We find that neurons and the germline are required for male pheromone-dependent male death. Hermaphrodites with a masculinized nervous system secrete male pheromone and are susceptible to male pheromone killing. Male pheromone-mediated killing is unique to androdioecious Caenorhabditis, and may reduce the number of males in hermaphroditic populations; neither males nor females of gonochoristic species are susceptible to male pheromone killing. By contrast, mating-induced death, which is characterized by germline-dependent shrinking, glycogen loss, and ectopic vitellogenin expression, utilizes distinct molecular pathways and is shared between the sexes and across species. The study of sex- and species-specific regulation of aging reveals deeply conserved mechanisms of longevity and population structure regulation. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.23493.001 PMID:28290982

Olfactory Response of the Predatory Bug Orius laevigatus (Hemiptera:Anthocoridae) to the Aggregation Pheromone of Its Prey, Frankliniella occidentalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae).

PubMed

Vaello, Teresa; Casas, José L; Pineda, Ana; de Alfonso, Ignacio; Marcos-García, M Ángeles

2017-10-01

Herbivore natural enemies base their foraging decision on information cues from different trophic levels but mainly from plant odors. However, the second trophic level (i.e., the herbivorous prey) may also provide reliable infochemical cues for their natural enemies. We have evaluated the role of the aggregation pheromone from Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) as a potential kairomone for its natural enemy, the predatory bug Orius laevigatus (Fieber). For this purpose, we have analyzed the response of O. laevigatus to (R)-lavandulyl acetate and neryl (S)-2-methylbutanoate, the two major components of the thrips aggregation pheromone. These compounds have been offered to O. laevigatus adult females and nymphs of the predatory bugs both in separate and as specific (1:1 or 1:2.3) blends, in experiments involving a dual choice Y-tube olfactometer. None of the compounds attracted adults or nymphs when they were individually supplied. Conversely, they were significantly attracted to both adults and nymphs when offered as a blend. A 1:2.3 (R)-lavandulyl acetate:neryl (S)-2-methylbutanoate blend was attractive to both nymphs and adults, while a 1:1 blend elicited response only in nymphs. These results suggest that specific blends of these compounds from the aggregation pheromone may be used as an attractant to O. laevigatus. The results of this work highlight the importance of studying olfactory responses of natural enemies for a better understanding of their foraging behavior. Potential uses of these results in future studies are discussed. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Synthesis and field screening of chiral monounsaturated epoxides as lepidopteran sex attractants and sex pheromone components.

PubMed

Millar, J G; Giblin, M; Barton, D; Underhill, E W

1991-05-01

Enantiomerically enriched forms of (Z)-6-cis-9,10-epoxymonoenes and (Z)-9-cis-6,7-epoxymonoenes of chain lengths C17-20 were synthesized by Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation of allylic alcohol intermediates, followed by tosylation or halogenation and chain extension. The resulting monounsaturated epoxides were field tested as sex attractants for lepidopteran species.Euchlaena madusaria Walker males were attracted to blends of the enantiomers of (Z)-6- cis- 9,10-epoxynonadecene 6Z-cis-9,10-epoxy-19:H; IUPAC name [2α,3α(Z)]-2-pentyl-3-(2-dodecenyI)oxirane in combination with 6Z,9Z-19: H. The response was antagonized by 9Z-cis-6,7-epoxy-19: H. 6Z,9Z-19: H was tentatively identified in pheromone gland extracts.Xanthotype sospeta Drury male moths were attracted to lures containing 6Z-9S,10R-epoxy-19: H; the response was antagonized by the opposite enantiomer.Pal-this angulalis Hübner males were attracted to 9Z-6S,7R-epoxy-19:H; the opposite enantiomer was antagonistic. 6Z,9Z-19:H and 9Z-cis-6,7-epoxy-19:H and 9Z-cis-6,7-epoxy-19:H were tentatively identified in pheromone gland extracts fromAnacamptodes humaria Guenée females. In field trails, 9Z-6R,7S-epoxy-19:H proved to be the attractive enantiomer, and the response was potentiated by 6Z,9Z-19:H. Mechanisms by which unique chemical communication channels are maintained by each species are discussed.

Female sex pheromone secreted by Carmenta mimosa (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae), a biological control agent for an invasive weed in Vietnam.

PubMed

Vang, Le Van; Khanh, Chau Nguyen Quoc; Shibasaki, Hiroshi; Ando, Tetsu

2012-01-01

Larvae of the clearwing moth, Carmenta mimosa (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae), bore into the trunk of Mimosa pigra L., which is one of the most invasive weeds in Vietnam. GC-EAD and GC-MS analyses of a pheromone gland extract revealed that the female moths produced (3Z,13Z)-3,13-octadecadienyl acetate. A lure baited with the synthetic acetate alone successfully attracted C. mimosa males in a field test. While the addition of a small amount of the corresponding alcohol did not strongly diminish the number of captured males, a trace of the aldehyde derivative or the (3E,13Z)-isomer markedly inhibited the attractiveness of the acetate. The diurnal males were mainly attracted from 6:00 am to 12:00 am.

Sound-Triggered Production of Antiaggregation Pheromone Limits Overcrowding of Dendroctonus valens Attacking Pine Trees.

PubMed

Liu, Zhudong; Xin, Yucui; Xu, Bingbing; Raffa, Kenneth F; Sun, Jianghua

2017-01-01

For insects that aggregate on host plants, both attraction and antiaggregation among conspecifics can be important mechanisms for overcoming host resistance and avoiding overcrowding, respectively. These mechanisms can involve multiple sensory modalities, such as sound and pheromones. We explored how acoustic and chemical signals are integrated by the bark beetle Dendroctonus valens to limit aggregation in China. In its native North American range, this insect conducts nonlethal attacks on weakened trees at very low densities, but in its introduced zone in China, it uses mixtures of host tree compounds and the pheromone component frontalin to mass attack healthy trees. We found that exo-brevicomin was produced by both female and male D. valens, and that this pheromone functioned as an antiaggregating signal. Moreover, beetles feeding in pairs or in masses were more likely than were beetles feeding alone to produce exo-brevicomin, suggesting a potential role of sound by neighboring beetles in stimulating exo-brevicomin production. Sound playback showed that an agreement sound was produced by both sexes when exposed to the aggregation pheromone frontalin and attracts males, and an aggressive sound was produced only by males behaving territorially. These signals triggered the release of exo-brevicomin by both females and males, indicating an interplay of chemical and sonic communication. This study demonstrates that the bark beetle D. valens uses sounds to regulate the production of an antiaggregation pheromone, which may provide new approaches to pest management of this invasive species. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Sex-pairing pheromone of Ancistrotermes dimorphus (Isoptera: Macrotermitinae).

PubMed

Wen, Ping; Mo, Jianchu; Lu, Chunwen; Tan, Ken; Šobotník, Jan; Sillam-Dussès, David

2015-12-01

Ancistrotermes dimorphus is a common Macrotermitinae representative, facultative inquiline by its life-style, occurring in South-East China. Sex pheromone is used for couple formation and maintenance, and it is produced by and released from the female sternal gland and is highly attractive to males. Based on our combined behavioral, chemical and electrophysiological analyses, we identified (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol as the female sex pheromone of A. dimorphus as it evoked the tandem behavior at short distance, and the active quantities ranged from 0.01ng to 10ng. Interestingly, GC-MS analyses of SPME extracts showed another compound specific to the female sternal gland, (3Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol, which showed a clear GC-EAD response. However, this compound has no behavioral function in natural concentrations (0.1ng), while higher amounts (1ng) inhibit the attraction achieved by (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol. The function of (3Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol is not fully understood, but might be linked to recognition from sympatric species using the same major compound, enhancing the long-distance attraction, or informing about presence of other colonies using the compound as a trail-following pheromone. The sternal gland secretion of Ancistrotermes females contains additional candidate compounds, namely (3E,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol and (6Z)-dodec-6-en-1-ol, which are not perceived by males' antennae in biologically relevant amounts. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Seasonal pheromone response by Ips pini in northern Arizona and western Montana, U.S.A.

Treesearch

Brytten E. Steed; Michael R. Wagner

2008-01-01

Populations of Ips pini (Say) in northern Arizona and western Montana, U.S.A., were studied to determine regional pheromone response and to evaluate seasonal shifts in that response. A range of enantiomeric blends of the attractant ipsdienol, alone and in the presence of the synergist lanierone, were tested during spring and summer seasons over...

Evaluation of the antiaggregation pheromone, 3-methylcyclohex-2-en-1-one (MCH), to protect live spruce from spruce beetle (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) infestation in sourthern Utah.

Treesearch

Darrell W. Ross; Gary E. Daterman; A. Steven Munson

2004-01-01

The spruce beetle, Dendroctonus rufipennis (Kirby), produces the antiaggregation pheromone 3-methylcyclohex-2-en- 1-one (MCH) (Rudinsky et al. 1974). MCH has reduced the numbers of spruce beetles attracted to infested logs and synthetic semiochemical lures or reduced colonization rates throughout the beetles range (Kline

Attractants for longhorn beetles in the southeastern U.S. - pine volatiles and engraver pheromones

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; Chris Asaro; Christopher M. Crowe; James R. Meeker; Donald A. Duerr

2011-01-01

Our objective was to determine the effect of adding the binary combination of pine engraver pheromones, ipsenol and ipsdienol, to the binary combination of pine volatiles, ethanol and (–)-α-pinene, on catches of some common pine longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae) in the southeastern U.S. Six trapping experiments were conducted in stands of mature pine in...

Study on bi-directional pedestrian movement using ant algorithms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sibel, Gokce; Ozhan, Kayacan

2016-01-01

A cellular automata model is proposed to simulate bi-directional pedestrian flow. Pedestrian movement is investigated by using ant algorithms. Ants communicate with each other by dropping a chemical, called a pheromone, on the substrate while crawling forward. Similarly, it is considered that oppositely moving pedestrians drop ‘visual pheromones’ on their way and the visual pheromones might cause attractive or repulsive interactions. This pheromenon is introduced into modelling the pedestrians’ walking preference. In this way, the decision-making process of pedestrians will be based on ‘the instinct of following’. At some densities, the relationships of velocity-density and flux-density are analyzed for different evaporation rates of visual pheromones. Lane formation and phase transition are observed for certain evaporation rates of visual pheromones.

Sex pheromone of orange wheat blossom midge, Sitodiplosis mosellana

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gries, Regine; Gries, G.; Khaskin, Grigori; King, Skip; Olfert, Owen; Kaminski, Lori-Ann; Lamb, Robert; Bennett, Robb

Pheromone extract of the female orange wheat blossom midge, Sitodiplosis mosellana (Géhin) (SM) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), was analyzed by coupled gas chromatographic-electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) and GC-mass spectrometry (MS), employing fused silica columns coated with DB-5, DB-210, DB-23 or SP-1000. These analyses revealed a single, EAD-active candidate pheromone which was identified as 2,7-nonanediyl dibutyrate. In experiments in wheat fields in Saskatchewan, traps baited with (2S,7S)-2,7-nonanediyl dibutyrate attracted significant numbers of male SM. The presence of other stereoisomers did not adversely affect trap captures. Facile synthesis of stereoisomeric 2,7-nonanediyl dibutyrate will facilitate the development of pheromone-based monitoring or even control of SM populations.

Avoiding unwanted vicinity effects with attract-and-kill tactics for harlequin bug, Murgantia histrionica (Hahn)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In the development of an attract-and-kill approach for the management of harlequin bug (HB), Murgantia histrionica (Hahn), we evaluated attraction and retention of HB by pheromone-baited traps in the field. In release-recapture and on-farm experiments, traps combining collard plants with commercial ...

Physarum attraction: Why slime mold behaves as cats do?

PubMed Central

Adamatzky, Andrew; Costello, Ben De Lacy

2012-01-01

We discuss potential chemical substances responsible for attracting acellular slime mold Physarun polycephalum to valerian root. The contributes toward fundamental research into pheromones and chemo-attracts of primitive organisms such as slime molds. The results show that significant information could be gained about the action of compounds on higher organisms. PMID:22896798

Avoidance of nonhost plants by a bark beetle, Pityogenes bidentatus, in a forest of odors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byers, John A.; Zhang, Qing-He; Birgersson, Göran

The bark beetle, Pityogenes bidentatus (Coleoptera: Scolytidae), searches in mixed conifer and deciduous forests of northern Europe for suitable branches of its host, Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). We tested whether odors from several diverse nonhost trees and plants common in the habitat (e.g., mountain ash, Sorbus aucuparia; oak, Quercus robur; alder buckthorn, Frangula alnus; blueberry, Vaccinium myrtillus; raspberry, Rubus idaeus; and grass, Deschampsia flexuosa) would reduce the attraction of the bark beetle to traps releasing its aggregation pheromone components in the field. Volatiles from the leaves or bark of each of these plants significantly reduced the attraction of the beetles to their pheromone. Odors collected from these nonhosts and analyzed by GC/MS contained monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and ``green-leaf'' alcohols, several of which (e.g., 1-octene-3-ol and β-caryophyllene) reduced the attraction to pheromone in the field and elicited electroantennographic responses. In the laboratory, reproduction by the beetle was marginal in nonhost Norway spruce, Picea abies, and was absent in the other nonhost trees. Olfactory avoidance of unsuitable nonhosts may have evolved due to advantages in avoiding mistakes during host selection.

Bed bug aggregation pheromone finally identified.

PubMed

Gries, Regine; Britton, Robert; Holmes, Michael; Zhai, Huimin; Draper, Jason; Gries, Gerhard

2015-01-19

Bed bugs have become a global epidemic and current detection tools are poorly suited for routine surveillance. Despite intense research on bed bug aggregation behavior and the aggregation pheromone, which could be used as a chemical lure, the complete composition of this pheromone has thus far proven elusive. Here, we report that the bed bug aggregation pheromone comprises five volatile components (dimethyl disulfide, dimethyl trisulfide, (E)-2-hexenal, (E)-2-octenal, 2-hexanone), which attract bed bugs to safe shelters, and one less-volatile component (histamine), which causes their arrestment upon contact. In infested premises, a blend of all six components is highly effective at luring bed bugs into traps. The trapping of juvenile and adult bed bugs, with or without recent blood meals, provides strong evidence that this unique pheromone bait could become an effective and inexpensive tool for bed bug detection and potentially their control. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Semiochemicals from herbivory induced cotton plants enhance the foraging behavior of the cotton boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis.

PubMed

Magalhães, D M; Borges, M; Laumann, R A; Sujii, E R; Mayon, P; Caulfield, J C; Midega, C A O; Khan, Z R; Pickett, J A; Birkett, M A; Blassioli-Moraes, M C

2012-12-01

The boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis, has been monitored through deployment of traps baited with aggregation pheromone components. However, field studies have shown that the number of insects caught in these traps is significantly reduced during cotton squaring, suggesting that volatiles produced by plants at this phenological stage may be involved in attraction. Here, we evaluated the chemical profile of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by undamaged or damaged cotton plants at different phenological stages, under different infestation conditions, and determined the attractiveness of these VOCs to adults of A. grandis. In addition, we investigated whether or not VOCs released by cotton plants enhanced the attractiveness of the aggregation pheromone emitted by male boll weevils. Behavioral responses of A. grandis to VOCs from conspecific-damaged, heterospecific-damaged (Spodoptera frugiperda and Euschistus heros) and undamaged cotton plants, at different phenological stages, were assessed in Y-tube olfactometers. The results showed that volatiles emitted from reproductive cotton plants damaged by conspecifics were attractive to adults boll weevils, whereas volatiles induced by heterospecific herbivores were not as attractive. Additionally, addition of boll weevil-induced volatiles from reproductive cotton plants to aggregation pheromone gave increased attraction, relative to the pheromone alone. The VOC profiles of undamaged and mechanically damaged cotton plants, in both phenological stages, were not different. Chemical analysis showed that cotton plants produced qualitatively similar volatile profiles regardless of damage type, but the quantities produced differed according to the plant's phenological stage and the herbivore species. Notably, vegetative cotton plants released higher amounts of VOCs compared to reproductive plants. At both stages, the highest rate of VOC release was observed in A. grandis-damaged plants. Results show that A. grandis uses conspecific herbivore-induced volatiles in host location, and that homoterpene compounds, such as (E)-4,8-dimethylnona-1,3,7-triene and (E,E)-4,8,12-trimethyltrideca-1,3,7,11-tetraene and the monoterpene (E)-ocimene, may be involved in preference for host plants at the reproductive stage.

Behavior of the Chinchs of Shield Bug under the Effect of Pheromones,

DTIC Science & Technology

1977-06-14

ADV O CAT EDOR IMPLIEDA RE THOSE OF THE SOURCE AND DO NOT NECESSARIL Y REFLECT THE POSITION TRANSLATION DIVIS ION OR OPINION OF THE FOREIGN TECHNOLOGY...sex o~ ph eromones which secrete the males. The ii ~crat i on / ox cr et ion of ~loor/s(’x of pheromone and the attraction of f~ - r r i l c~; ar...mi r i . Al l cases of the h-1~ yedapproa ch occurred into I half of la y ( f r o m 10 to 14 hr.). The irawino ; action/effect of pheromon e of sales

Putative pathway of sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation by expression patterns of genes identified from female pheromone gland and adult antenna of Sesamia inferens (Walker).

PubMed

Zhang, Ya-Nan; Xia, Yi-Han; Zhu, Jia-Yao; Li, Sheng-Yun; Dong, Shuang-Lin

2014-05-01

The general pathway of biosynthesis and degradation for Type-I sex pheromones in moths is well established, but some genes involved in this pathway remain to be characterized. The purple stem borer, Sesamia inferens, employs a pheromone blend containing components with three different terminal functional groups (Z11-16:OAc, Z11-16:OH, and Z11-16:Ald) of Type-I sex pheromones. Thus, it provides a good model to study the diversity of genes involved in pheromone biosynthesis and degradation pathways. By analyzing previously obtained transcriptomic data of the sex pheromone glands and antennae, we identified 73 novel genes that are possibly related to pheromone biosynthesis (46 genes) or degradation (27 genes). Gene expression patterns and phylogenetic analysis revealed that one desaturase (SinfDes4), one fatty acid reductase (SinfFAR2), and one fatty acid xtransport protein (SinfFATP1) genes were predominantly expressed in pheromone glands, and clustered with genes involved in pheromone synthesis in other moth species. Ten genes including five carboxylesterases (SinfCXE10, 13, 14, 18, and 20), three aldehyde oxidases (SinfAOX1, 2 and 3), and two alcohol dehydrogenases (SinfAD1 and 3) were expressed specifically or predominantly in antennae, and could be candidate genes involved in pheromone degradation. SinfAD1 and 3 are the first reported alcohol dehydrogenase genes with antennae-biased expression. Based on these results we propose a pathway involving these potential enzyme-encoding gene candidates in sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation in S. inferens. This study provides robust background information for further elucidation of the genetic basis of sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation, and ultimately provides potential targets to disrupt sexual communication in S. inferens for control purposes.

Pheromone binding proteins enhance the sensitivity of olfactory receptors to sex pheromones in Chilo suppressalis

PubMed Central

Chang, Hetan; Liu, Yang; Yang, Ting; Pelosi, Paolo; Dong, Shuanglin; Wang, Guirong

2015-01-01

Sexual communication in moths offers a simplified scenario to model and investigate insect sensory perception. Both PBPs (pheromone-binding proteins) and PRs (pheromone receptors) are involved in the detection of sex pheromones, but the interplay between them still remains largely unknown. In this study, we have measured the binding affinities of the four recombinant PBPs of Chilo suppressalis (CsupPBPs) to pheromone components and analogs and characterized the six PRs using the Xenopus oocytes expression system. Interestingly, when the responses of PRs were recorded in the presence of PBPs, we measured in several combinations a dramatic increase in signals as well as in sensitivity of such combined systems. Furthermore, the discrimination ability of appropriate combinations of PRs and PBPs was improved compared with the performance of PBPs or PRs alone. Besides further supporting a role of PBPs in the pheromone detection and discrimination, our data shows for the first time that appropriate combinations of PRs and PBPs improved the discrimination ability of PBPs or PRs alone. The variety of responses measured with different pairing of PBPs and PRs indicates the complexity of the olfaction system, which, even for the relatively simple task of detecting sex pheromones, utilises a highly sophisticated combinatorial approach. PMID:26310773

Sex-specific trail pheromone mediates complex mate finding behavior in Anoplophora glabripennis.

PubMed

Hoover, Kelli; Keena, Melody; Nehme, Maya; Wang, Shifa; Meng, Peter; Zhang, Aijun

2014-02-01

Anoplophora glabripennis (Motsch.) is a polyphagous member of the Cerambycidae, and is considered, worldwide, to be one of the most serious quarantine pests of deciduous trees. We isolated four chemicals from the trail of A. glabripennis virgin and mated females that were not present in trails of mature males. These compounds were identified as 2-methyldocosane and (Z)-9-tricosene (major components), as well as (Z)-9-pentacosene and (Z)-7-pentacosene (minor components); every trail wash sample contained all four chemical components, although the amounts and ratios changed with age of the female. Males responded to the full pheromone blend, regardless of mating status, but virgin females chose the control over the pheromone, suggesting that they may use it as a spacing pheromone to avoid intraspecific competition and maximize resources. Virgin, but not mated, males also chose the major pheromone components in the absence of the minor components, over the control. Taken together, these results indicate that all four chemicals are components of the trail pheromone. The timing of production of the ratios of the pheromone blend components that produced positive responses from males coincided with the timing of sexual maturation of the female.

Pheromone-sensitive glomeruli in the primary olfactory centre of ants.

PubMed

Yamagata, Nobuhiro; Nishino, Hiroshi; Mizunami, Makoto

2006-09-07

Tremendous evolutional success and the ecological dominance of social insects, including ants, termites and social bees, are due to their efficient social organizations and their underlying communication systems. Functional division into reproductive and sterile castes, cooperation in defending the nest, rearing the young and gathering food are all regulated by communication by means of various kinds of pheromones. No brain structures specifically involved in the processing of non-sexual pheromone have been physiologically identified in any social insects. By use of intracellular recording and staining techniques, we studied responses of projection neurons of the antennal lobe (primary olfactory centre) of ants to alarm pheromone, which plays predominant roles in colony defence. Among 23 alarm pheromone-sensitive projection neurons recorded and stained in this study, eight were uniglomerular projection neurons with dendrites in one glomerulus, a structural unit of the antennal lobe, and the remaining 15 were multiglomerular projection neurons with dendrites in multiple glomeruli. Notably, all alarm pheromone-sensitive uniglomerular projection neurons had dendrites in one of five 'alarm pheromone-sensitive (AS)' glomeruli that form a cluster in the dorsalmost part of the antennal lobe. All alarm pheromone-sensitive multiglomerular projection neurons had dendrites in some of the AS glomeruli as well as in glomeruli in the anterodorsal area of the antennal lobe. The results suggest that components of alarm pheromone are processed in a specific cluster of glomeruli in the antennal lobe of ants.

Identification and Expression Profiles of Sex Pheromone Biosynthesis and Transport Related Genes in Spodoptera litura

PubMed Central

Zhang, Ya-Nan; Zhu, Xiu-Yun; Fang, Li-Ping; He, Peng; Wang, Zhi-Qiang; Chen, Geng; Sun, Liang; Ye, Zhan-Feng; Deng, Dao-Gui; Li, Jin-Bu

2015-01-01

Although the general pathway of sex pheromone synthesis in moth species has been established, the molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. The common cutworm Spodoptera litura is an important agricultural pest worldwide and causes huge economic losses annually. The female sex pheromone of S. litura comprises Z9,E11-14:OAc, Z9,E12-14:OAc, Z9-14:OAc, and E11-14:OAc. By sequencing and analyzing the transcriptomic data of the sex pheromone glands, we identified 94 candidate genes related to pheromone biosynthesis (55 genes) or chemoreception (39 genes). Gene expression patterns and phylogenetic analysis revealed that two desaturase genes (SlitDes5 and SlitDes11) and one fatty acyl reductase gene (SlitFAR3) showed pheromone gland (PG) biased or specific expression, and clustered with genes known to be involved in pheromone synthesis in other moth species. Furthermore, 4 chemoreception related genes (SlitOBP6, SlitOBP11, SlitCSP3, and SlitCSP14) also showed higher expression in the PG, and could be additional candidate genes involved in sex pheromone transport. This study provides the first solid background information that should facilitate further elucidation of sex pheromone biosynthesis and transport, and indicates potential targets to disrupt sexual communication in S. litura for a novel pest management strategy. PMID:26445454

Can spruce beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis Kirky) pheromone trap catches or stand conditions predict Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm.) tree mortality in Colorado?

Treesearch

Jose F. Negron; John B. Popp

2017-01-01

1) Bark beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) can cause extensive tree mortality in forests dominated by their hosts. Among these, the spruce beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis) is one of the most important beetles in western North America causing Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii) tree mortality. 2) Although pheromone traps with attractants are commonly used...

Dose-Dependent and Species-Specific Responses of Pine Bark Beetles (Coeoptera: Scolytidae) to Monoterpenes in Association with Phermones

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; John H. Borden

2000-01-01

Monoterpenes affected the attraction of three sympatric species of bark beetles (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) to pheromone-baited multiple-funnel traps in stands of lodgepole pine. Catches of Ips pini(Say) in traps baited with its pheromone, ipsdienol, were directly related to the release rates of 3-carene, ß-pphellandrene, and ß-pinene. Catches of

Novel function of lipids as a pheromone from the Harderian gland of golden hamster

PubMed Central

Seyama, Yousuke; Uchijima, Yasunobu

2007-01-01

Sexual diversity of ADG in Harderian gland of golden hamster was demonstrated on TLC. Female ADG contained iso- and anteiso-branched acyl and alkyl components, but male ADG contained only straight chain ones, which suggested the hormonal control of the expression of acyl-CoA dehydrogenases in the catabolism of BCAA. Acyl-CoA dehydrogenases were not expressed in the absence of testosterone, and then isovaleryl-CoA, 2-methylbutyryl-CoA, and isobutyryl-CoA accumulated, and acted as primers for the synthesis of iso- and anteiso-branched fatty acids. The incorporation of [U-14C] leucine into lipids was monitored by TLC. The cholesterol fraction was labeled in males but not in female, which means that cholesterol was not produced from BCAA in female gland due to the lack of expression of acyl-CoA dehydrogenases. We monitored the behavior of male hamsters toward female gland lipids, and found slightly greater attractiveness in female ones than that in male ones although the difference was not significant. Considering the lifestyle of golden hamster in nature, we propose a hypothesis that the lipids from the Harderian gland of golden hamster serve as a pheromone to declare their territory and to seek the mate with good congeniality. PMID:24019586

Sex Attraction in Pear Psylla

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Pear psylla, Cacopsylla pyricola (Förster) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae), a major economic pest of pears, have been shown to use a female-produced sex attractant pheromone. We compared the chemical profiles obtained from solvent extracts of diapausing and post-diapause winterform males and females, with g...

Structural differences in the drone olfactory system of two phylogenetically distant Apis species, A. florea and A. mellifera

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brockmann, Axel; Brückner, Dorothea

2001-01-01

Male insects that are attracted by sex pheromones to find their female mates over long distances have specialized olfactory subsystems. Morphologically, these subsystems are characterized by a large number of receptor neurons sensitive to components of the female's pheromones and hypertrophied glomerular subunits ('macroglomeruli' or 'macroglomerular complexes') in the antennal lobes, in which the axons of the receptor neurons converge. The olfactory subsystems are adapted for an increased sensitivity to perceive minute amounts of pheromones. In Apis mellifera, drones have 18,600 olfactory poreplate sensilla per antenna, each equipped with receptor neurons sensitive to the queen's sex pheromone, and four voluminous macroglomeruli (MG1-MG4) in the antennal lobes. In contrast, we show that drones of the phylogenetically distant species, Apis florea, have only 1,200 poreplate sensilla per antenna and only two macroglomeruli in their antennal lobes. These macroglomeruli are homologous in anatomical position to the two most prominent macroglomeruli in A. mellifera, the MG1 and MG2, but they are much smaller in size. The morphological and anatomical differences described here suggest major modifications in the sex-pheromone processing subsystem of both species: (1) less pheromone sensitivity in A. florea and (2) a more complex sex-pheromone processing and thus a more complex sex-pheromone communication in A. mellifera.

Current knowledge of the species complex Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera, Tephritidae) in Brazil

PubMed Central

Vaníčková, Lucie; Hernández-Ortiz, Vicente; Bravo, Iara Sordi Joachim; Dias, Vanessa; Roriz, Alzira Kelly Passos; Laumann, Raul Alberto; Mendonça, Adriana de Lima; Paranhos, Beatriz Aguiar Jordão; do Nascimento, Ruth Rufino

2015-01-01

Abstract The study of the species complex Anastrepha fraterculus (Af complex) in Brazil is especially important in a taxonomical, evolutionary and pest management context, because there are evidences that some of them may occur in sympatry. In this review, we analyzed the main results supporting evidences that three cryptic species occur in Brazil. The taxonomical and phylogenetic relationships based on eggshell morphology, adult morphometrics, as well as cytotaxonomy and genetic differentiations are discussed. We also review available information on sexual behavior including acoustic communication of males during courtship and sexual incompatibility; and chemical signals involved in the communication between sexes, with a special focus on sex pheromones. We examined the role of long- and short-range pheromones (male-produced volatiles and cuticular hydrocarbons, respectively), their implications in sexual isolation, and their possible use for chemotaxonomic differentiation of the putative species of the Af complex. PMID:26798261

Activity of male pheromone of Melanesian rhinoceros beetle Scapanes australis.

PubMed

Rochat, Didier; Morin, Jean-Paul; Kakul, Titus; Beaudoin-Ollivier, Laurence; Prior, Robert; Renou, Michel; Malosse, Isabelle; Stathers, Tanya; Embupa, Sebastian; Laup, Samson

2002-03-01

Laboratory and field investigations were carried out to investigate the nature and role of the male pheromone emitted by the Dynast beetle Scapanes australis and to develop a mass trapping technique against this major coconut pest in Papua New Guinea. We report the biological data obtained from natural and synthetic pheromone, previously described as an 84:12:4 (w/w) mixture of 2-butanol (1), 3-hydoxy-2-butanone (2), and 2,3-butanediol (3). EAG recordings from natural and synthetic pheromone and a pitfall olfactometer were poorly informative. In contrast, extensive field trapping trials with various synthetic pheromone mixtures and doses showed that 1 and 2 (formulated in polyethylene sachets in 90:5 v/v ratio) were necessary and sufficient for optimum long-range attraction. Beetles were captured in traps baited with racemic 1 plus 2, with or without a stereoisomer mixture of 3 (2.5- to 2500-mg/day doses). Plant pieces, either sugarcane or coconut, enhanced captures by the synthetic pheromone, which was active alone. Traps with the pheromone caught both sexes in a 3:2 female-male ratio. A pheromone-based mass trapping led to the capture of 2173 beetles in 14 traps surrounding 40 ha of a cocoa-coconut plantation. The captures followed a log-linear decrease during the 125-week trapping program. The role of the male pheromone and its potential for crop protection are discussed.

Male behaviors reveal multiple pherotypes within vine mealybug Planococcus ficus (Signoret) (Hemiptera; Pseudococcidae) populations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kol-Maimon, Hofit; Levi-Zada, Anat; Franco, José Carlos; Dunkelblum, Ezra; Protasov, Alex; Eliyaho, Miriam; Mendel, Zvi

2010-12-01

The vine mealybug (VM) females collected in Israel produce two sex pheromone compounds: lavandulyl senecioate (LS) and ( S)-lavandulyl isovalerate (LI). The males display ambiguous behavior to LI: repulsion in the vineyard and attraction of laboratory-reared males. We addressed the question of individual male behavior, i.e., do males respond to both LS and LI, or might they display a distinct response to each of the two pheromone compounds. We compared male pherotype frequencies between wild-caught and laboratory-reared populations. Then, we examined the relationship between pherotype composition and male capture rates in pheromone traps. Finally, we addressed the heredity of the pherotypes. The Israeli VM populations contain nine different male pherotypes, as defined according to the male behavior to pheromone compounds. The studied Portuguese populations included five of the nine pherotypes; none of the Portuguese males were attracted to LI. It seems that the high frequency of males that were attracted to LI is related to dense VM populations. It is hypothesized that selection for the male pherotypes, I males, those that respond to LI, occur under high-density rearing conditions. This may result from shorter development times of males and females that produce more I male pherotypes. The lower relative frequency of trapping of males in LI-baited traps than expected from the percentage determined in a Petri dish arena suggests that males that respond solely to LS (S males) are better fliers. The results also suggest that the pherotype trait is inherited by both sexes of the VM.

An Overview of the Function and Maintenance of Sexual Reproduction in Dikaryotic Fungi

PubMed Central

Wallen, R. M.; Perlin, Michael H.

2018-01-01

Sexual reproduction likely evolved as protection from environmental stresses, specifically, to repair DNA damage, often via homologous recombination. In higher eukaryotes, meiosis and the production of gametes with allelic combinations different from parental type provides the side effect of increased genetic variation. In fungi it appears that while the maintenance of meiosis is paramount for success, outcrossing is not a driving force. In the subkingdom Dikarya, fungal members are characterized by existence of a dikaryon for extended stages within the life cycle. Such fungi possess functional or, in some cases, relictual, loci that govern sexual reproduction between members of their own species. All mating systems identified so far in the Dikarya employ a pheromone/receptor system for haploid organisms to recognize a compatible mating partner, although the paradigm in the Ascomycota, e.g., Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is that genes for the pheromone precursor and receptor are not found in the mating-type locus but rather are regulated by its products. Similarly, the mating systems in the Ascomycota are bipolar, with two non-allelic idiomorphs expressed in cells of opposite mating type. In contrast, for the Basidiomycota, both bipolar and tetrapolar mating systems have been well characterized; further, at least one locus directly encodes the pheromone precursor and the receptor for the pheromone of a different mating type, while a separate locus encodes proteins that may regulate the first locus and/or additional genes required for downstream events. Heterozygosity at both of two unlinked loci is required for cells to productively mate in tetrapolar systems, whereas in bipolar systems the two loci are tightly linked. Finally, a trade-off exists in wild fungal populations between sexual reproduction and the associated costs, with adverse conditions leading to mating. For fungal mammal pathogens, the products of sexual reproduction can be targets for the host immune system. The opposite appears true for phytopathogenic fungi, where mating and pathogenicity are inextricably linked. Here, we explore, compare, and contrast different strategies used among the Dikarya, both saprophytic and pathogenic fungi, and highlight differences between pathogens of mammals and pathogens of plants, providing context for selective pressures acting on this interesting group of fungi. PMID:29619017

Disulfide connectivity and reduction in pheromone-binding proteins of the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Honson, Nicolette S.; Plettner, Erika

2006-06-01

Males of the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, are attracted by a pheromone released by females. Pheromones are detected by olfactory neurons housed in specialized sensory hairs located on the antennae of the male moth. Once pheromone molecules enter the sensilla lymph, a highly abundant pheromone-binding protein (PBP) transports the molecule to the sensory neuron. The PBPs are members of the insect odorant-binding protein family, with six conserved cysteine residues. In this study, the disulfide bond connectivities of the pheromone-binding proteins PBP1 and PBP2 from the gypsy moth were found to be cysteines 19-54, 50-109, and 97-118 for PBP1, and cysteines 19-54, 50-110, and 97-119 for PBP2, as determined by cyanylation reactions and cyanogen bromide chemical cleavage. We have discovered that the second disulfide linkage is the most easily reduced of the three, and this same linkage is missing among four cysteine-containing insect odorant-binding proteins (OBPs). We are the first to identify the unique steric and electronic properties of this second disulfide linkage.

Cryptococcus neoformans sexual reproduction is controlled by a quorum sensing peptide.

PubMed

Tian, Xiuyun; He, Guang-Jun; Hu, Pengjie; Chen, Lei; Tao, Changyu; Cui, Ying-Lu; Shen, Lan; Ke, Weixin; Xu, Haijiao; Zhao, Youbao; Xu, Qijiang; Bai, Fengyan; Wu, Bian; Yang, Ence; Lin, Xiaorong; Wang, Linqi

2018-06-01

Bacterial quorum sensing is a well-characterized communication system that governs a large variety of collective behaviours. By comparison, quorum sensing regulation in eukaryotic microbes remains poorly understood, especially its functional role in eukaryote-specific behaviours, such as sexual reproduction. Cryptococcus neoformans is a prevalent fungal pathogen that has two defined sexual cycles (bisexual and unisexual) and is a model organism for studying sexual reproduction in fungi. Here, we show that the quorum sensing peptide Qsp1 serves as an important signalling molecule for both forms of sexual reproduction. Qsp1 orchestrates various differentiation and molecular processes, including meiosis, the hallmark of sexual reproduction. It activates bisexual mating, at least in part through the control of pheromone, a signal necessary for bisexual activation. Notably, Qsp1 also plays a major role in the intercellular regulation of unisexual initiation and coordination, in which pheromone is not strictly required. Through a multi-layered genetic screening approach, we identified the atypical zinc finger regulator Cqs2 as an important component of the Qsp1 signalling cascade during both bisexual and unisexual reproduction. The absence of Cqs2 eliminates the Qsp1-stimulated mating response. Together, these findings extend the range of behaviours governed by quorum sensing to sexual development and meiosis.

Behavioral and electroantennographic responses of the tea mosquito, Helopeltis theivora, to female sex pheromones.

PubMed

Sachin, James P; Selvasundaram, R; Babu, A; Muraleedharan, N

2008-12-01

Responses of the tea mosquito, Helopeltis theivora (Waterhouse) (Hemiptera: Miridae), a major pest of tea, to female sex pheromone compounds were measured using wind tunnel and electroantennogram (EAG) bioassays. In the wind tunnel, male tea mosquitoes were found to be most attracted to a dichloromethane extract of the female thorax. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of female thoracic extracts and dynamic head space samples of virgin females showed the presence of five compounds: (Z)-3 hexenyl acetate, (Z)-3 hexenyl butanoate, (E)-2 hexenyl pentanoate, 2,4 dimethyl pentanal, and (E)-2-hexenol. Male tea mosquitoes were attracted to blends of (Z)-3 hexenyl acetate and (E)-2-hexenol in the wind tunnel with a 1:5 ratio eliciting the greatest response. EAG recordings of male antenna confirmed the ability of this blend to evoke antennal responses in male insects. Similarly active EAG responses were recorded toward female thoracic extract and a blend of (Z)-3 hexenyl acetate and (E)-2-hexenol. Behavioral responses of adult males are mediated by a blend of volatile female sex pheromone compounds, (Z)-3 hexenyl acetate and (E)-2-hexenol, at a ratio of 1:5. This female sex pheromone blend may be useful for tea mosquito control and management programs.

Field and Laboratory Responses of Male Leaf Roller Moths, Choristoneura rosaceana and Pandemis pyrusana, to Pheromone Concentrations in an Attracticide Paste Formulation

PubMed Central

Curkovic, Tomislav; Brunner, Jay F.; Landolt, Peter J.

2009-01-01

Male leafroller moths, Choristoneura rosaceana (Harris) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) and Pandemis pyrusana (Kearfott), were evaluated for responses to a paste formulation loaded with a range of concentrations of the two species' pheromone blends and evaluated in a laboratory wind tunnel and in the field. Response criteria were flight, flight towards the pheromone source, and contact with the pheromone source for the wind tunnel assays, and capture of moths in traps for the field tests. In the wind tunnel and field, responses of males of both species to the paste generally increased as the pheromone concentration in the paste was increased. There was little response by either species to paste with less than 0.16% pheromone. The relationship between pheromone concentration and response for P. pyrusana was linear and for C. rosaceana was sinusoidal over the range of pheromone concentrations tested. These patterns were seen both in the wind tunnel and in the field. Initial release rates from the paste of (Z)-11-tetradecenyl acetate, the main component of the pheromone blends of both species was 3.6–3.8 ng/h. Inhibitory thresholds for responses were not reached for either species, using pheromone concentrations as high as 16%, in either the wind tunnel or the field. For both species, response of males to rubber septa with one mg pheromone loads was similar to the response to the paste with pheromone at concentrations greater than 3–4%. For C. rosaceana, rates of contact with the paste in the wind tunnel were statistically similar to rates of contact in response to conspecific females, with paste pheromone concentrations above 1.6%. Response rates for males of P. pyrusana were significantly lower to the paste than to conspecific females at all paste pheromone concentrations tested. Overall, the optimum pheromone concentration in the paste for moth attraction to contact was 3.2 % for C. rosaceana and 8% for P. pyrusana. PMID:19619030

Sex pheromone in the moth Heliothis virescens is produced as a mixture of two pools: de novo and via precursor storage in glycerolipids.

PubMed

Foster, Stephen P; Anderson, Karin G; Casas, Jérôme

2017-08-01

Most species of moths use a female-produced volatile sex pheromone, typically produced via de novo fatty acid synthesis in a specialized gland, for communication among mates. While de novo biosynthesis of pheromone (DNP) is rapid, suggesting transient precursor acids, substantial amounts of pheromone precursor (and other) acids are stored, predominantly in triacylglycerols in the pheromone gland. Whether these stored acids are converted to pheromone later or not has been the subject of some debate. Using a tracer/tracee approach, in which we fed female Heliothis virescens U- 13 C-glucose, we were able to distinguish two pools of pheromone, in which precursors were temporally separated (after and before feeding on labeled glucose): DNP synthesized from a mixed tracer/tracee acetyl CoA pool after feeding, and pheromone made from precursor acids primarily synthesized before feeding, which we call recycled precursor fat pheromone (RPP). DNP titer varied from high (during scotophase) to low (photophase) and with presence/absence of pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN), in accord with native pheromone titer previously observed. By contrast, RPP was constant throughout the photoperiod and did not change with PBAN presence/absence. The amount of RPP (6.3-10.3 ng/female) was typically much lower than that of DNP, especially during the scotophase (peak DNP, 105 ng/female). We propose an integral role for stored fats in pheromone biosynthesis, in which they are hydrolyzed and re-esterified throughout the photoperiod, with a small proportion of liberated precursor acyl CoAs being converted to pheromone. During the sexually active period, release of PBAN results in increased flux of glucose (from trehalose) and hydrolyzed acids entering the mitochondria, producing acetyl CoA precursor for de novo fat and pheromone biosynthesis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sex Pheromone Evolution Is Associated with Differential Regulation of the Same Desaturase Gene in Two Genera of Leafroller Moths

PubMed Central

Albre, Jérôme; Liénard, Marjorie A.; Sirey, Tamara M.; Schmidt, Silvia; Tooman, Leah K.; Carraher, Colm; Greenwood, David R.; Löfstedt, Christer; Newcomb, Richard D.

2012-01-01

Chemical signals are prevalent in sexual communication systems. Mate recognition has been extensively studied within the Lepidoptera, where the production and recognition of species-specific sex pheromone signals are typically the defining character. While the specific blend of compounds that makes up the sex pheromones of many species has been characterized, the molecular mechanisms underpinning the evolution of pheromone-based mate recognition systems remain largely unknown. We have focused on two sets of sibling species within the leafroller moth genera Ctenopseustis and Planotortrix that have rapidly evolved the use of distinct sex pheromone blends. The compounds within these blends differ almost exclusively in the relative position of double bonds that are introduced by desaturase enzymes. Of the six desaturase orthologs isolated from all four species, functional analyses in yeast and gene expression in pheromone glands implicate three in pheromone biosynthesis, two Δ9-desaturases, and a Δ10-desaturase, while the remaining three desaturases include a Δ6-desaturase, a terminal desaturase, and a non-functional desaturase. Comparative quantitative real-time PCR reveals that the Δ10-desaturase is differentially expressed in the pheromone glands of the two sets of sibling species, consistent with differences in the pheromone blend in both species pairs. In the pheromone glands of species that utilize (Z)-8-tetradecenyl acetate as sex pheromone component (Ctenopseustis obliquana and Planotortrix octo), the expression levels of the Δ10-desaturase are significantly higher than in the pheromone glands of their respective sibling species (C. herana and P. excessana). Our results demonstrate that interspecific sex pheromone differences are associated with differential regulation of the same desaturase gene in two genera of moths. We suggest that differential gene regulation among members of a multigene family may be an important mechanism of molecular innovation in sex pheromone evolution and speciation. PMID:22291612

Novel synthetic compounds enhance the attractiveness of host-plant volatiles: An opportunity to boost detection and monitoring of Asian citrus psyllid?

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In the absence of pheromone attractants, host-plant volatiles offer the most likely means of improving capture levels of Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) with sticky cards and other types of visual traps. However, developing scent lures that can compete with the attractiveness of actual host-plants, espe...

Increased pheromone signaling by small male sea lamprey has distinct effects on female mate search and courtship

USGS Publications Warehouse

Buchinger, Tyler J.; Bussy, Ugo; Buchinger, Ethan G.; Fissette, Skye D.; Li, Weiming; Johnson, Nicholas

2017-01-01

Male body size affects access to mates in many animals. Attributes of sexual signals often correlate with body size due to physiological constraints on signal production. Larger males generally produce larger signals, but costs of being large or compensation by small males can result in smaller males producing signals of equal or greater magnitude. Female choice following multiple male traits with different relationships to size might further complicate the effect of male body size on access to mates. We report the relationship between male body size and pheromone signaling, and the effects on female mate search and courtship in the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus). We predicted that pheromone production in the liver and the liver mass to body mass ratio would remain constant across sizes, resulting in similar mass-adjusted pheromone release rates across sizes but a positive relationship between absolute pheromone release and body mass. Our results confirmed positive relationships between body mass and liver mass, and liver mass and the magnitude of the pheromone signal. Surprisingly, decreasing body mass was correlated with higher pheromone concentrations in the liver, liver mass to body mass ratios, and mass-adjusted pheromone release rates. In a natural stream, females more often entered nests treated with small versus large male odors. However, close-proximity courtship behaviors were similar in nests treated with small or large male odors. We conclude that small males exhibit increased release of the main pheromone component, but female discrimination of male pheromones follows several axes of variation with different relationships to size.

Blend chemistry and field attraction of commercial sex pheromone lures to grape berry moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), and a nontarget tortricid in vineyards.

PubMed

Jordan, T A; Zhang, A; Pfeiffer, D G

2013-06-01

Anecdotal reports by scientists and growers suggested commercial sex pheromone lures were ineffective with monitoring field populations of grape berry moth, Paralobesia viteana (Clemens), in vineyards. This study addressed the need to evaluate commercial sex pheromone lures for chemical purity and efficacy of attracting grape berry moth and a nontarget tortricid, the sumac moth, Episumus argutanus (Clemens). The percentage of chemical components from a set of eight lures from each manufacturer was found using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and confirmed by chemical standards. No lures adhered to the 9:1 blend of (Z)-9-dodecenyl acetate (Z9-12:Ac) to (Z)-11-tetradecenyl acetate (Z11-14:Ac), though Suterra (9.1:1), ISCA (5.7:1), and Trécé (5.4:1) lures were closest. The Trécé lures contained ≍98 μg Z9-12:Ac, which is 3-51 times more than the other lures. The Suterra and ISCA lures were loaded with ≍29 and 33 μg Z9-12:Ac, and the Alpha Scents lures only contained ≍2 μg Z9-12:Ac. An antagonistic impurity, (E)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (E9-12:Ac), was found in all manufacturer lures at concentrations from 3.2 to 4.8%. Field attraction studies were done in summer 2010, and again in 2011, to evaluate commercial lures for their potential to attract P. viteana and E. argutanus in the presence of lures from other manufacturers. Separate experiments were established in two vineyards in Augusta County, VA, one with open and the other with wooded surroundings. In field experiments, Suterra lures detected P. viteana most often, Trécé lures detected more E. argutanus, and ISCA lures detected P. viteana in the open vineyard the least, while Alpha Scents lures were least attractive to E. argutanus in both environments. Fewer P. viteana were captured in the wooded versus open vineyard, which may limit the potential for sex pheromone monitoring of P. viteana in wooded vineyards.

The search for human pheromones: the lost decades and the necessity of returning to first principles

PubMed Central

Wyatt, Tristram D.

2015-01-01

As humans are mammals, it is possible, perhaps even probable, that we have pheromones. However, there is no robust bioassay-led evidence for the widely published claims that four steroid molecules are human pheromones: androstenone, androstenol, androstadienone and estratetraenol. In the absence of sound reasons to test the molecules, positive results in studies need to be treated with scepticism as these are highly likely to be false positives. Common problems include small sample sizes, an overestimate of effect size (as no effect can be expected), positive publication bias and lack of replication. Instead, if we are to find human pheromones, we need to treat ourselves as if we were a newly discovered mammal, and use the rigorous methods already proven successful in pheromone research on other species. Establishing a pheromone relies on demonstration of an odour-mediated behavioural or physiological response, identification and synthesis of the bioactive molecule(s), followed by bioassay confirmation of activity. Likely sources include our sebaceous glands. Comparison of secretions from adult and pre-pubertal humans may highlight potential molecules involved in sexual behaviour. One of the most promising human pheromone leads is a nipple secretion from the areola glands produced by all lactating mothers, which stimulates suckling by any baby not just their own. PMID:25740891

Semiochemical -Based Communication in interspecific interactions between IPS PINI and Pityogenes Knecteli (Swaine) (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) in Lodgepole Pine

Treesearch

Therese M. Poland; John H. Borden

1994-01-01

The pine engraver, Ips pini Say, and Pityogenes knechteli Swaine often co-exist in lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelmann. We tested the hypotheses that P. knechteli produces an attractive pheromone and that the attraction of P. knechteli...

Trapping western pine beetles with baited toxic trees

Treesearch

Richard H. Smith

1985-01-01

Baited toxic trap trees—trunks of living trees sprayed with an insecticide and then baited with an attractive substance—were tested in California to kill western pine beetles attacking ponderosa pine. The attractant was the triplet pheromone mixture of brevicomin, frontalin, and myrcene. Insecticides were lindane, Sevin, permethrin, and deltamethrin...

The sex specific metabolic footprint of Oithona davisae

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heuschele, Jan; Nemming, Louise; Tolstrup, Lea; Kiørboe, Thomas; Nylund, Göran M.; Selander, Erik

2016-11-01

In pelagic copepods, the group representing the highest animal abundances on earth, males and females have distinct morphological and behavioural differences. In several species female pheromones are known to facilitate the mate finding process, and copepod exudates induce changes in physiology and behaviour in several phytoplankton species. Here we tested whether the sexual dimorphism in morphology and behaviour is mirrored in the exudate composition of males and females. We find differences in the exudate composition, with females seemingly producing more compounds. While we were able to remove the sex pheromones from the water by filtration through reverse phase solid phase extraction columns, we were not able to recover the active pheromone from the solid phase.

Genetic dissection of pheromone processing reveals main olfactory system-mediated social behaviors in mice.

PubMed

Matsuo, Tomohiko; Hattori, Tatsuya; Asaba, Akari; Inoue, Naokazu; Kanomata, Nobuhiro; Kikusui, Takefumi; Kobayakawa, Reiko; Kobayakawa, Ko

2015-01-20

Most mammals have two major olfactory subsystems: the main olfactory system (MOS) and vomeronasal system (VNS). It is now widely accepted that the range of pheromones that control social behaviors are processed by both the VNS and the MOS. However, the functional contributions of each subsystem in social behavior remain unclear. To genetically dissociate the MOS and VNS functions, we established two conditional knockout mouse lines that led to either loss-of-function in the entire MOS or in the dorsal MOS. Mice with whole-MOS loss-of-function displayed severe defects in active sniffing and poor survival through the neonatal period. In contrast, when loss-of-function was confined to the dorsal MOB, sniffing behavior, pheromone recognition, and VNS activity were maintained. However, defects in a wide spectrum of social behaviors were observed: attraction to female urine and the accompanying ultrasonic vocalizations, chemoinvestigatory preference, aggression, maternal behaviors, and risk-assessment behaviors in response to an alarm pheromone. Functional dissociation of pheromone detection and pheromonal induction of behaviors showed the anterior olfactory nucleus (AON)-regulated social behaviors downstream from the MOS. Lesion analysis and neural activation mapping showed pheromonal activation in multiple amygdaloid and hypothalamic nuclei, important regions for the expression of social behavior, was dependent on MOS and AON functions. Identification of the MOS-AON-mediated pheromone pathway may provide insights into pheromone signaling in animals that do not possess a functional VNS, including humans.

Sex-specific mating pheromones in the nematode Panagrellus redivivus.

PubMed

Choe, Andrea; Chuman, Tatsuji; von Reuss, Stephan H; Dossey, Aaron T; Yim, Joshua J; Ajredini, Ramadan; Kolawa, Adam A; Kaplan, Fatma; Alborn, Hans T; Teal, Peter E A; Schroeder, Frank C; Sternberg, Paul W; Edison, Arthur S

2012-12-18

Nematodes use an extensive chemical language based on glycosides of the dideoxysugar ascarylose for developmental regulation (dauer formation), male sex attraction, aggregation, and dispersal. However, no examples of a female- or hermaphrodite-specific sex attractant have been identified to date. In this study, we investigated the pheromone system of the gonochoristic sour paste nematode Panagrellus redivivus, which produces sex-specific attractants of the opposite sex. Activity-guided fractionation of the P. redivivus exometabolome revealed that males are strongly attracted to ascr#1 (also known as daumone), an ascaroside previously identified from Caenorhabditis elegans hermaphrodites. Female P. redivivus are repelled by high concentrations of ascr#1 but are specifically attracted to a previously unknown ascaroside that we named dhas#18, a dihydroxy derivative of the known ascr#18 and an ascaroside that features extensive functionalization of the lipid-derived side chain. Targeted profiling of the P. redivivus exometabolome revealed several additional ascarosides that did not induce strong chemotaxis. We show that P. redivivus females, but not males, produce the male-attracting ascr#1, whereas males, but not females, produce the female-attracting dhas#18. These results show that ascaroside biosynthesis in P. redivivus is highly sex-specific. Furthermore, the extensive side chain functionalization in dhas#18, which is reminiscent of polyketide-derived natural products, indicates unanticipated biosynthetic capabilities in nematodes.

Synergy of aggregation pheromone with methyl (E,E,Z)-2,4,6-decatrienoate in attraction of brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The male-produced aggregation pheromone of the brown marmorated stink bug ((BMSB), Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)), recently identified as a mixture of (3S,6S,7R,10S)-10,11-epoxy-1-bisabolen-3-ol and (3S,6S,7R,10R)-10,11-epoxy-1-bisabolen-3-ol, offers new opportunities for manage...

Variable responses by southern pine beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmermann, to the pheromone component endo-Brevicomin: influence of enantiomeric composition, release rate, and proximity to infestations

Treesearch

Brian Sullivan; Mark Dulusky; Kenji Mori; Cavell Brownie

2011-01-01

The male-produced bicyclic acetal endo-brevicomin is a component of the pheromone blend that mediates colonization of host pines by the bark beetle Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmermann. Efforts to identify its behavioral function have been complicated by contrasting reports that it either enhances or reduces attraction of flying beetles. Our studies failed to support the...

Factors Affecting Pheromone Production by the Pepper Weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and Collection Efficiency

PubMed Central

Eller, Fred J.; Palmquist, Debra E.

2014-01-01

Several factors affecting pheromone production by male pepper weevils, Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) as well as collection efficiency were investigated. Factors studied included: porous polymer adsorbents (Tenax versus Super Q), male age, time of day, male density, and male diet. Super Q was found to be a superior adsorbent for the male-produced alcohols and geranic acid as well as the plant-produced E-β-ocimene. Pheromone production increased with male age up to about age 15 days old and then tapered off. Male pepper weevils produced the highest amount of pheromone between noon and 2 pm (i.e., 4 to 6 h after “lights on”) and were producing ca. 800 ng/h during this period. Thereafter, pheromone production decreased and was extremely low during the scotophase (i.e., ca. 12 ng/h). Male pepper weevil density had a significant effect on both release rate and pheromone composition. Pheromone production on a per male basis was highest for individual males and the percentage of geranic acid in the blend was lowest for individual males. Male pepper weevils produced only extremely low amounts of pheromone when feeding on artificial diet; however, they produced very high amounts when on fresh peppers. Together, this information will be useful in designing better attractant lures for pepper weevils. PMID:26462948

Courtship Pheromone Use in a Model Urodele, the Mexican Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum)

PubMed Central

Maex, Margo; Van Bocxlaer, Ines; Mortier, Anneleen; Proost, Paul; Bossuyt, Franky

2016-01-01

Sex pheromones have been shown to constitute a crucial aspect of salamander reproduction. Until now, courtship pheromones of Salamandridae and Plethodontidae have been intensively studied, but information on chemical communication in other urodelan families is essentially lacking. The axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum, Ambystomatidae) has a courtship display that suggests a key role for chemical communication in the orchestration of its sexual behavior, but no sex pheromones have yet been characterized from this species. Here we combined whole transcriptome analyses of the male cloaca with proteomic analyses of water in which axolotls were allowed to court to show that male axolotls secrete multiple ca. 20 kDa glycosylated sodefrin precursor-like factor (SPF) proteins during courtship. In combination with phylogenetic analyses, our data show that the male cloaca essentially secretes a courtship-specific clade of SPF proteins that is orthologous to salamandrid courtship pheromones. In addition, we identified an SPF protein for which no orthologs have been described from other salamanders so far. Overall, our study advocates a central role for SPF proteins during the courtship display of axolotls and adds knowledge on pheromone use in a previously unexplored deep evolutionary branch of salamander evolution. PMID:26842386

Courtship Pheromone Use in a Model Urodele, the Mexican Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum).

PubMed

Maex, Margo; Van Bocxlaer, Ines; Mortier, Anneleen; Proost, Paul; Bossuyt, Franky

2016-02-04

Sex pheromones have been shown to constitute a crucial aspect of salamander reproduction. Until now, courtship pheromones of Salamandridae and Plethodontidae have been intensively studied, but information on chemical communication in other urodelan families is essentially lacking. The axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum, Ambystomatidae) has a courtship display that suggests a key role for chemical communication in the orchestration of its sexual behavior, but no sex pheromones have yet been characterized from this species. Here we combined whole transcriptome analyses of the male cloaca with proteomic analyses of water in which axolotls were allowed to court to show that male axolotls secrete multiple ca. 20 kDa glycosylated sodefrin precursor-like factor (SPF) proteins during courtship. In combination with phylogenetic analyses, our data show that the male cloaca essentially secretes a courtship-specific clade of SPF proteins that is orthologous to salamandrid courtship pheromones. In addition, we identified an SPF protein for which no orthologs have been described from other salamanders so far. Overall, our study advocates a central role for SPF proteins during the courtship display of axolotls and adds knowledge on pheromone use in a previously unexplored deep evolutionary branch of salamander evolution.

Pheromone gland development and pheromone production in lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae).

PubMed

Spiegel, Carolina N; Batista-Pereira, Luciane G; Bretas, Jorge A C; Eiras, Alvaro E; Hooper, Antony M; Peixoto, Alexandre A; Soares, Maurilio J

2011-05-01

The sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis (Lutz & Neiva) (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae) is the main vector of American visceral leishmaniasis. Adult males produce a terpenoid sex pheromone that in some cases also acts as male aggregation pheromone. We have analyzed the correlation between male pheromone production levels and pheromone gland cell morphogenesis after adult emergence from pupae. The abdominal tergites of L. longipalpis males were dissected and fixed in glutaraldehyde for transmission electron microscopy, or the pheromone was extracted in analytical grade hexane. Pheromone chemical analysis was carried out at 3- to 6-h intervals during the first 24 h after emergence and continued daily until the seventh day. All extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography. For the morphological analysis, we used insects collected at 0-6, 9-12, 12-14, and 96 h after emergence. Ultrastructural data from 0- to 6-h-old adult males revealed smaller pheromone gland cells with small microvilli at the end apparatus. Lipid droplets and peroxisomes were absent or very rare, but a large number of mitochondria could be seen. Lipid droplets started to appear in the gland cells cytoplasm approximately 9 h after adult emergence, and their number and size increased with age, together with the presence of several peroxisomes, suggesting a role for these organelles in pheromone biosynthesis. At 12-15 h after emergence, the lipid droplets were mainly distributed near the microvilli but were smaller than those in mature older males (4 d old). Pheromone biosynthesis started around 12 h after emergence and increased continuously during the first 3 d, stabilizing thereafter, coinciding with the period when males are more able to attract females.

The Dynamics of Pheromone Gland Synthesis and Release: a Paradigm Shift for Understanding Sex Pheromone Quantity in Female Moths.

PubMed

Foster, Stephen P; Anderson, Karin G; Casas, Jérôme

2018-05-10

Moths are exemplars of chemical communication, especially with regard to specificity and the minute amounts they use. Yet, little is known about how females manage synthesis and storage of pheromone to maintain release rates attractive to conspecific males and why such small amounts are used. We developed, for the first time, a quantitative model, based on an extensive empirical data set, describing the dynamical relationship among synthesis, storage (titer) and release of pheromone over time in a moth (Heliothis virescens). The model is compartmental, with one major state variable (titer), one time-varying (synthesis), and two constant (catabolism and release) rates. The model was a good fit, suggesting it accounted for the major processes. Overall, we found the relatively small amounts of pheromone stored and released were largely a function of high catabolism rather than a low rate of synthesis. A paradigm shift may be necessary to understand the low amounts released by female moths, away from the small quantities synthesized to the (relatively) large amounts catabolized. Future research on pheromone quantity should focus on structural and physicochemical processes that limit storage and release rate quantities. To our knowledge, this is the first time that pheromone gland function has been modeled for any animal.

The scent of inbreeding: a male sex pheromone betrays inbred males

PubMed Central

van Bergen, Erik; Brakefield, Paul M.; Heuskin, Stéphanie; Zwaan, Bas J.; Nieberding, Caroline M.

2013-01-01

Inbreeding depression results from mating among genetically related individuals and impairs reproductive success. The decrease in male mating success is usually attributed to an impact on multiple fitness-related traits that reduce the general condition of inbred males. Here, we find that the production of the male sex pheromone is reduced significantly by inbreeding in the butterfly Bicyclus anynana. Other traits indicative of the general condition, including flight performance, are also negatively affected in male butterflies by inbreeding. Yet, we unambiguously show that only the production of male pheromones affects mating success. Thus, this pheromone signal informs females about the inbreeding status of their mating partners. We also identify the specific chemical component (hexadecanal) probably responsible for the decrease in male mating success. Our results advocate giving increased attention to olfactory communication as a major causal factor of mate-choice decisions and sexual selection. PMID:23466986

Attractiveness of a Four-component Pheromone Blend to Male Navel Orangeworm Moths

PubMed Central

Kanno, Hiroo; Kuenen, L. P. S.; Klingler, Kimberly A.; Millar, Jocelyn G.

2010-01-01

The attractiveness to male navel orangeworm moth, Amyelois transitella, of various combinations of a four-component pheromone blend was measured in wind-tunnel bioassays. Upwind flight along the pheromone plume and landing on the odor source required the simultaneous presence of two components, (11Z,13Z)-hexadecadienal and (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)-tricosapentaene, and the addition of either (11Z,13Z)-hexadecadien-1-ol or (11Z,13E)-hexadecadien-1-ol. A mixture of all four components produced the highest levels of rapid source location and source contact. In wind-tunnel assays, males did not seem to distinguish among a wide range of ratios of any of the three components added to (11Z,13Z)-hexadecadienal. Dosages of 10 and 100 ng of the 4-component blend produced higher levels of source location than dosages of 1 and 1,000 ng. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10886-010-9799-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. PMID:20473710

Semiochemical-mediated flight responses of sap beetle vectors of oak wilt, Ceratocystis fagacearum.

PubMed

Kyhl, John F; Bartelt, Robert J; Cossé, Allard; Juzwik, Jennifer; Seybold, Steven J

2002-08-01

The sap beetle, Colopterus truncatus (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae), is one of the primary vectors of the oak wilt pathogen, Ceratocystis fagacearum, in the north-central United States. Field behavioral assays utilizing various release rates and blends of three methyl-branched hydrocarbon aggregation pheromone components showed that flight responses of this beetle were similar in Illinois and Minnesota populations. In both locations, both sexes of the beetle responded synergistically to a combination of the three-component pheromone and fermenting whole-wheat bread dough. Further, Colopterus truncatus preferred a high release rate over a low release rate of the three-component blend. In both locations, the response of C. truncatus to a simplified version of the pheromone consisting of (2E,4E,6E)-3,5-dimethyl-2,4,6-octatriene (1) and (2E,4E,6E,8E)-3,5,7-trimethyl-2,4,6,8-decatetraene (3) was not significantly different from the response to the three-component blend. An experiment in Illinois with all possible combinations of the components demonstrated that the decatetraene (3) was the crucial component in the blend; of all treatments, the maximal response was elicited by 3 + dough. Chipped bark, phloem, and xylem from northern pin oak, Quercus ellipsoidalis, was not attractive to C. truncatus in Minnesota. During a weekly survey over two seasons in Minnesota, C. truncatus flew in response to the three-component pheromone between early April and early July, with the maximum responses coming on May 4, 2000 and April 20, 2001. During both years, more than 98% of the beetles were trapped between April 14 and June 1. During the same survey, Glischrochilus spp. (Nitiduildae) flew during longer periods of the summer, particularly in 2001. The sex ratio of C. truncatus responding during all experiments was female-biased (1.8:1, female-male), which is characteristic of other male-produced coleopteran aggregation pheromones. Other sap beetles that play a minor role in the pathobiology of C. fagacearum also responded in experiments conducted in Minnesota. Carpophilus brachypterus Say was cross-attracted to the two- and three-component blends of the C. truncatus pheromone and dough, whereas two Glischrochilus spp. were attracted to all treatments that contained dough.

On the roles of colour and scent in a specialized floral mimicry system

PubMed Central

Vereecken, Nicolas J.; Schiestl, Florian P.

2009-01-01

Background and Aims Sexually deceptive orchids achieve cross-pollination by mimicking the mating signals of female insects, generally hymenopterans. This pollination mechanism is often highly specific as it is based primarily on the mimicry of mating signals, especially the female sex pheromones of the targeted pollinator. Like many deceptive orchids, the Mediterranean species Ophrys arachnitiformis shows high levels of floral trait variation, especially in the colour of the perianth, which is either green or white/pinkinsh within populations. The adaptive significance of perianth colour polymorphism and its influence on pollinator visitation rates in sexually deceptive orchids remain obscure. Methods The relative importance of floral scent versus perianth colour in pollinator attraction in this orchid pollinator mimicry system was evaluated by performing floral scent analyses by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and behavioural bioassays with the pollinators under natural conditions were performed. Key Results The relative and absolute amounts of behaviourally active compounds are identical in the two colour morphs of O. arachnitiformis. Neither presence/absence nor the colour of the perianth (green versus white) influence attractiveness of the flowers to Colletes cunicularius males, the main pollinator of O. arachnitiformis. Conclusion Chemical signals alone can mediate the interactions in highly specialized mimicry systems. Floral colour polymorphism in O. arachnitiformis is not subjected to selection imposed by C. cunicularius males, and an interplay between different non-adaptive processes may be responsible for the maintenance of floral colour polymorphism both within and among populations. PMID:19692390

On the roles of colour and scent in a specialized floral mimicry system.

PubMed

Vereecken, Nicolas J; Schiestl, Florian P

2009-11-01

Sexually deceptive orchids achieve cross-pollination by mimicking the mating signals of female insects, generally hymenopterans. This pollination mechanism is often highly specific as it is based primarily on the mimicry of mating signals, especially the female sex pheromones of the targeted pollinator. Like many deceptive orchids, the Mediterranean species Ophrys arachnitiformis shows high levels of floral trait variation, especially in the colour of the perianth, which is either green or white/pinkinsh within populations. The adaptive significance of perianth colour polymorphism and its influence on pollinator visitation rates in sexually deceptive orchids remain obscure. The relative importance of floral scent versus perianth colour in pollinator attraction in this orchid pollinator mimicry system was evaluated by performing floral scent analyses by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and behavioural bioassays with the pollinators under natural conditions were performed. The relative and absolute amounts of behaviourally active compounds are identical in the two colour morphs of O. arachnitiformis. Neither presence/absence nor the colour of the perianth (green versus white) influence attractiveness of the flowers to Colletes cunicularius males, the main pollinator of O. arachnitiformis. Chemical signals alone can mediate the interactions in highly specialized mimicry systems. Floral colour polymorphism in O. arachnitiformis is not subjected to selection imposed by C. cunicularius males, and an interplay between different non-adaptive processes may be responsible for the maintenance of floral colour polymorphism both within and among populations.

The effects of mating status and time since mating on female sex pheromone levels in the rice leaf bug, Trigonotylus caelestialium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamane, Takashi; Yasuda, Tetsuya

2014-02-01

Although mating status affects future mating opportunities, the biochemical changes that occur in response to mating are not well understood. This study investigated the effects of mating status on the quantities of sex pheromone components found in whole-body extracts and volatile emissions of females of the rice leaf bug, Trigonotylus caelestialium. When sampled at one of four time points within a 4-day postmating period, females that had copulated with a male had greater whole-body quantities of sex pheromone components than those of virgin females sampled at the same times. The quantities of sex pheromone components emitted by virgin females over a 24-h period were initially high but then steadily decreased, whereas 24-h emissions were persistently low among mated females when measured at three time points within the 4 days after mating. As a result, soon after mating, the mated females emitted less sex pheromones than virgin females, but there were no significant differences between mated and virgin females at the end of the experiment. Thus, postmating reduction in the rate of emission of sex pheromones could explain previously observed changes in female attractiveness to male T. caelestialium.

Insektenpheromone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bestmann, H. J.; Vostrowsky, O.

1982-10-01

Pheromones — semiochemicals used by insects for intraspecific chemical communication — can be isolated and with special analytical techniques their chemical structure elucidated. With stereoselective synthesis methods, presented by the preparation of sex attractants and aggregating pheromones of moths and beetles, respectively, a synthetic access to compounds is given which can be used for behavior manipulation of insects. Aside the importance of these compounds for investigations of the sensoric process the possibility of their application in an integrated and biological pest control is discussed.

Effect of verbenone on attraction of predatory and woodboring beetles (Coleoptera) to kairomones in Lodgepole pine forests

Treesearch

B. Staffan Lindgren; Daniel R. Miller

2002-01-01

The response of bark beetle predators and woodboring beetles to the bark beetle anti-aggregation pheromone, verbenone, was tested in the field with multiple-funnel traps baited with attractant kairomones. Catches of the predators Thanasimus undatulus (Say), Enoclerus sphegeus (F.), Enocleris lecontei (Wolcott) (...

Comparison of a -pinene and myrcene on attraction of mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) to pheromones in stands of western white pine

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; B. Staffan Lindgren

2000-01-01

Multiple-funnel traps baited with exo-brevicomin and a mixture of cis- and trans-verbenol were used to test the relative attractiveness of myrcene and (-)-a -pinene to the mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins, in a stand...

A synthetic sex pheromone for the large aspen tortrix in Alaska.

Treesearch

Richard A. Werner; J. Weatherston

1980-01-01

Cis-11-tetradecenal was found to be the specific attractant for adult male large aspen tortrix, Choristoneura conflictana (Walker), populations in quaking aspen, Populus tremuloides Michx., forests of interior Alaska. The attractant was dispersed from polyethylene caps in Pherocon® -2 traps placed 1.5 m above ground.

The Use of Monoterpenes as Kairomones by Ips latidens (LeConte) (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

D.R. Miller; J.H. Borden

1990-01-01

The responses of Ips lutidens (LeConte) to multiple-funnel traps baited with various monoterpenes were determined in stands of lodgepole pine in British Columbia. ß-Phellandrene was attractive to I. lutidens in the absence of the pheromone ipsenol ß-Phellandrene increased the attraction of I. lutidens to...

(Z)-11-hexadecenal attracts male Hecatera dysodea (Denis and Schiffermüller) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae).

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Larvae of certain species of moths that can severely damage a number of agricultural crops, including vegetables. Pheromone-baited traps are used to detect and monitor the adult moths of these pests. Researchers at the USDA-ARS laboratory in Wapato, Washington developed a chemical attractant for th...

Semiochemicals to enhance herbivory by Diorhabda carinulata aggregations in saltcedar (Tamarix spp.) infestations

Treesearch

Alexander M. Gaffke; Sharlene E. Sing; Tom L. Dudley; Daniel W. Bean; Justin A. Russak; Agenor Mafra-Neto; Paul A. Grieco; Robert K. D. Peterson; David K. Weaver

2018-01-01

BACKGROUND: Semiochemicals formonitoring, attracting or repelling pest and beneficial organisms are increasingly deployed in agricultural and forest systems for pest management. However, the use of aggregation pheromones and host-plant attractants for the express purpose of increasing the efficacy of classical biological control agents of weeds has not been widely...

The Best Timing of Mate Search in Armadillidium vulgare (Isopoda, Oniscidea)

PubMed Central

Beauché, Fanny; Richard, Freddie-Jeanne

2013-01-01

Mate choice is mediated by many components with the criteria varying across the animal kingdom. Chemical cues used for mate attractiveness can also reflect mate quality. Regarding the gregarious species Armadillidium vulgare (isopod crustacean), we tested whether individuals can discriminate conspecifics at two different levels (between sex and physiological status) based on olfactory perception. Tested conspecifics were individuals of the same or opposite sex, with the females at different moult stages. We found that the attractiveness of individuals was mediated by short-distance chemical cues and tested individuals were able to discriminate and prefer individuals of the opposite sex. Moreover, male preference to female increased during their moulting status as they matured. Males were particularly more attracted by females with appearing white calcium plates, which corresponds to the beginning of their higher receptivity period. These differences in attractiveness due to sex and physiological status are likely to shape the composition of aggregates and facilitate mate finding and optimize the reproductive success for both males and females. Thus aggregation pheromones could be linked to sex pheromones in terrestrial isopods. PMID:23469225

Are body size and volatile blends honest signals in orchid bees?

PubMed

Arriaga-Osnaya, Brenda Jessica; Contreras-Garduño, Jorge; Espinosa-García, Francisco Javier; García-Rodríguez, Yolanda Magdalena; Moreno-García, Miguel; Lanz-Mendoza, Humberto; Godínez-Álvarez, Héctor; Cueva Del Castillo, Raúl

2017-05-01

Secondary sexual traits may convey reliable information about males' ability to resist pathogens and that females may prefer those traits because their genes for resistance would be passed on to their offspring. In many insect species, large males have high mating success and can canalize more resources to the immune function than smaller males. In other species, males use pheromones to identify and attract conspecific mates, and thus, they might function as an honest indicator of a male's condition. The males of orchid bees do not produce pheromones. They collect and store flower volatiles, which are mixed with the volatile blends from other sources, like fungi, sap and resins. These blends are displayed as perfumes during the courtship. In this study, we explored the relationship between inter-individual variation in body size and blend composition with the males' phenoloxidase (PO) content in Euglossa imperialis . PO content is a common measure of insect immune response because melanine, its derived molecule, encapsulates parasites and pathogens. Body size and blend composition were related to bees' phenolic PO content. The inter-individual variation in body size and tibial contents could indicate differences among males in their skills to gain access to some compounds. The females may evaluate their potential mates through these compounds because some of them are reliable indicators of the males' capacity to resist infections and parasites.

Interference of plant volatiles on pheromone receptor neurons of male Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae).

PubMed

Ammagarahalli, Byrappa; Gemeno, César

2015-10-01

In moths, sex pheromone components are detected by pheromone-specific olfactory receptor neurons (ph-ORNs) housed in sensilla trichodea in the male antennae. In Grapholita molesta, ph-ORNs are highly sensitive and specific to the individual sex pheromone components, and thus help in the detection and discrimination of the unique conspecific pheromone blend. Plant odors interspersed with a sub-optimal pheromone dose are reported to increase male moth attraction. To determine if the behavioral synergism of pheromone and plant odors starts at the ph-ORN level, single sensillum recordings were performed on Z8-12:Ac and E8-12:Ac ph-ORNs (Z-ORNs and E-ORNs, respectively) stimulated with pheromone-plant volatile mixtures. First, biologically meaningful plant-volatile doses were determined by recording the response of plant-specific ORNs housed in sensilla auricillica and trichodea to several plant odorants. This exploration provided a first glance at plant ORNs in this species. Then, using these plant volatile doses, we found that the spontaneous activity of ph-ORNs was not affected by the stimulation with plant volatiles, but that a binary mixture of sex pheromone and plant odorants resulted in a small (about 15%), dose-independent, but statistically significant, reduction in the spike frequency of Z-ORNs with respect to stimulation with Z8-12:Ac alone. The response of E-ORNs to a combination of E8-12:Ac and plant volatiles was not different from E8-12:Ac alone. We argue that the small inhibition of Z-ORNs caused by physiologically realistic plant volatile doses is probably not fully responsible for the observed behavioral synergism of pheromone and plant odors. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Structure-Activity Relationship of α Mating Pheromone from the Fungal Pathogen Fusarium oxysporum.

PubMed

Vitale, Stefania; Partida-Hanon, Angélica; Serrano, Soraya; Martínez-Del-Pozo, Álvaro; Di Pietro, Antonio; Turrà, David; Bruix, Marta

2017-03-03

During sexual development ascomycete fungi produce two types of peptide pheromones termed a and α. The α pheromone from the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae , a 13-residue peptide that elicits cell cycle arrest and chemotropic growth, has served as paradigm for the interaction of small peptides with their cognate G protein-coupled receptors. However, no structural information is currently available for α pheromones from filamentous ascomycetes, which are significantly shorter and share almost no sequence similarity with the S. cerevisiae homolog. High resolution structure of synthetic α-pheromone from the plant pathogenic ascomycete Fusarium oxysporum revealed the presence of a central β-turn resembling that of its yeast counterpart. Disruption of the-fold by d-alanine substitution of the conserved central Gly 6 -Gln 7 residues or by random sequence scrambling demonstrated a crucial role for this structural determinant in chemoattractant activity. Unexpectedly, the growth inhibitory effect of F. oxysporum α-pheromone was independent of the cognate G protein-coupled receptors Ste2 and of the central β-turn but instead required two conserved Trp 1 -Cys 2 residues at the N terminus. These results indicate that, despite their reduced size, fungal α-pheromones contain discrete functional regions with a defined secondary structure that regulate diverse biological processes such as polarity reorientation and cell division. © 2017 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Identification of the sex pheromone of the tree infesting Cossid Moth Coryphodema tristis (Lepidoptera: Cossidae).

PubMed

Bouwer, Marc Clement; Slippers, Bernard; Degefu, Dawit; Wingfield, Michael John; Lawson, Simon; Rohwer, Egmont Richard

2015-01-01

The cossid moth (Coryphodema tristis) has a broad range of native tree hosts in South Africa. The moth recently moved into non-native Eucalyptus plantations in South Africa, on which it now causes significant damage. Here we investigate the chemicals involved in pheromone communication between the sexes of this moth in order to better understand its ecology, and with a view to potentially develop management tools for it. In particular, we characterize female gland extracts and headspace samples through coupled gas chromatography electro-antennographic detection (GC-EAD) and two dimensional gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCxGC-MS). Tentative identities of the potential pheromone compounds were confirmed by comparing both retention time and mass spectra with authentic standards. Two electrophysiologically active pheromone compounds, tetradecyl acetate (14:OAc) and Z9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:OAc) were identified from pheromone gland extracts, and an additional compound (Z9-14:OH) from headspace samples. We further determined dose response curves for the identified compounds and six other structurally similar compounds that are common to the order Cossidae. Male antennae showed superior sensitivity toward Z9-14:OAc, Z7-tetradecenyl acetate (Z7-14:OAc), E9-tetradecenyl acetate (E9-14:OAc), Z9-tetradecenol (Z9-14:OH) and Z9-tetradecenal (Z9-14:Ald) when compared to female antennae. While we could show electrophysiological responses to single pheromone compounds, behavioral attraction of males was dependent on the synergistic effect of at least two of these compounds. Signal specificity is shown to be gained through pheromone blends. A field trial showed that a significant number of males were caught only in traps baited with a combination of Z9-14:OAc (circa 95% of the ratio) and Z9-14:OH. Addition of 14:OAc to this mixture also improved the number of males caught, although not significantly. This study represents a major step towards developing a useful attractant to be used in management tools for C. tristis and contributes to the understanding of chemical communication and biology of this group of insects.

Identification of the Sex Pheromone of the Tree Infesting Cossid Moth Coryphodema tristis (Lepidoptera: Cossidae)

PubMed Central

Bouwer, Marc Clement; Slippers, Bernard; Degefu, Dawit; Wingfield, Michael John; Lawson, Simon; Rohwer, Egmont Richard

2015-01-01

The cossid moth (Coryphodema tristis) has a broad range of native tree hosts in South Africa. The moth recently moved into non-native Eucalyptus plantations in South Africa, on which it now causes significant damage. Here we investigate the chemicals involved in pheromone communication between the sexes of this moth in order to better understand its ecology, and with a view to potentially develop management tools for it. In particular, we characterize female gland extracts and headspace samples through coupled gas chromatography electro-antennographic detection (GC-EAD) and two dimensional gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCxGC-MS). Tentative identities of the potential pheromone compounds were confirmed by comparing both retention time and mass spectra with authentic standards. Two electrophysiologically active pheromone compounds, tetradecyl acetate (14:OAc) and Z9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:OAc) were identified from pheromone gland extracts, and an additional compound (Z9-14:OH) from headspace samples. We further determined dose response curves for the identified compounds and six other structurally similar compounds that are common to the order Cossidae. Male antennae showed superior sensitivity toward Z9-14:OAc, Z7-tetradecenyl acetate (Z7-14:OAc), E9-tetradecenyl acetate (E9-14:OAc), Z9-tetradecenol (Z9-14:OH) and Z9-tetradecenal (Z9-14:Ald) when compared to female antennae. While we could show electrophysiological responses to single pheromone compounds, behavioral attraction of males was dependent on the synergistic effect of at least two of these compounds. Signal specificity is shown to be gained through pheromone blends. A field trial showed that a significant number of males were caught only in traps baited with a combination of Z9-14:OAc (circa 95% of the ratio) and Z9-14:OH. Addition of 14:OAc to this mixture also improved the number of males caught, although not significantly. This study represents a major step towards developing a useful attractant to be used in management tools for C. tristis and contributes to the understanding of chemical communication and biology of this group of insects. PMID:25826254

Olfactory responses of Plutella xylostella natural enemies to host pheromone, larval frass, and green leaf cabbage volatiles.

PubMed

Reddy, G V P; Holopainen, J K; Guerrero, A

2002-01-01

The parasitoids Trichogramma chilonis (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) and Cotesia plutellae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), and the predator Chrysoperla carnea (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae), are potential biological control agents for the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Yponomeutidae). We present studies on the interactions between these bioagents and various host-associated volatiles using a Y olfactometer. T chilonis was attracted to a synthetic pheromone blend (Z11-16:Ald, Z11-16:Ac, and Z11-16:OH in a 1:1:0.01 ratio), to Z11-16:Ac alone, and to a 1:1 blend of Z11-16:Ac and Z11-16:Ald. C. plutellae responded to the blend and to Z11-16:Ac and Z11-16:Ald. Male and female C. carnea responded to the blend and to a 1:1 blend of the major components of the pheromone, although no response was elicited by single compounds. Among the four host larval frass volatiles tested (dipropyl disulfide, dimethyl disulfide, allyl isothiocyanate, and dimethyl trisulfide), only allyl isothiocyanate elicited significant responses in the parasitoids and predator, but C. plutellae and both sexes of C. carnea did respond to all four volatiles. Among the green leaf volatiles of cabbage (Brassica oleracea subsp. capitata), only Z3-6:Ac elicited significant responses from T. chilonis, C. plutellae, and C. carnea, but C. plutellae also responded to E2-6:Ald and Z3-6:OH. When these volatiles were blended with the pheromone, the responses were similar to those elicited by the pheromone alone, except for C. carnea males, which had an increased response. The effect of temperature on the response of the biological agents to a mixture of the pheromone blend and Z3-6:Ac was also studied. T. chilonis was attracted at temperatures of 25-35 degrees C, while C. plutellae and C. carnea responded optimally at 30-35 degrees C and 20-25 degrees C, respectively. These results indicate that the sex pheromone and larval frass volatiles from the diamondback moth, as well as volatile compounds from cabbage, may be used by these natural enemies to locate their diamondback moth host.

Determination of the Relative and Absolute Configurations of the Female-produced Sex Pheromone of the Cerambycid Beetle Prionus californicus

PubMed Central

Rodstein, Joshua; Barbour, James D.; McElfresh, J. Steven; Wright, Ian M.; Barbour, Karen S.; Ray, Ann M.; Hanks, Lawrence M.

2010-01-01

We previously identified the basic structure of the female-produced sex attractant pheromone of the cerambycid beetle, Prionus californicus Motschulsky (Cerambycidae: Prioninae), as 3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid. A synthesized mixture of the four stereoisomers of 3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid was highly attractive to male beetles. Here, we describe stereoselective syntheses of three of the four possible stereoisomers, and the results of laboratory and field bioassays showing that male beetles are attracted specifically to (3R,5S)-3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid, but not to its enantiomer, (3S,5R)-3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid, indicating that the (3R,5S)-enantiomer is the active pheromone component. The diastereomeric (3R,5R)- and (3S,5S)-enantiomers were excluded from consideration because their gas chromatographic retention times were different from that of the insect-produced compound. The mixture of the four stereoisomers of 3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid was as attractive to male P. californicus as the (3R,5S)-enantiomer, indicating that none of the other three stereoisomers inhibited responses to the active enantiomer. Beetles responded to as little as 10 ng and 10 μg of synthetic 3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid in laboratory and field studies, respectively. Field studies indicated that capture rate did not increase with dosages of 3,5-dimethyldodecanoic acid greater than 100 μg. In field bioassays, males of a congeneric species, P. lecontei Lameere, were captured in southern California but not in Idaho. PMID:21127949

Response of Olive Fruit Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) to an Attract-and-Kill Trap in Greenhouse Cage Tests

PubMed Central

Yokoyama, Victoria Y.

2014-01-01

Abstract A novel attract-and-kill trap for olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae (Rossi) (Diptera: Tephritidae), was constructed with yellow corrugated plastic in an inverted cylindrical pan shape formed from a disk and collar. The trap components were tested under three greenhouse temperatures and humidities of warm, hot, and very hot for attractiveness to caged young or older adults. A greater proportion of adults regardless of age were found underneath the devices including disks, cylindrical pans, and pans with pheromone lures and test units of cylindrical pans sprayed with water, insecticidal bait spray, and with lures. The effect was related to lower temperatures on the underside compared with the top and the intolerance of the pest to heat. A circular collar added to the perimeter of the disk that formed the top of the inverted cylinder made the attract-and-kill trap more attractive to adults than the disk alone. Pheromone lures or bait sprays did not increase adult attraction, so were not needed for efficacy. The cylindrical pan was especially attractive to adults when temperatures were high by providing shelter from the heat. At very high temperatures, the pan became unattractive, possibly due to heating of the construction materials. Cylindrical pans sprayed with water on the underside attracted the highest number of adults especially at high temperatures. Greenhouse tests showed that the inverted cylindrical pan design has potential as an attract-and-kill device for olive fruit fly control. PMID:25368094

Identification of the sex pheromone of the invasive scale Acutaspis albopicta (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), arriving in California on shipments of avocados from Mexico.

PubMed

Millar, Jocelyn G; Chinta, Satya P; McElfresh, J Steven; Robinson, Lindsay J; Morse, Joseph G

2012-04-01

As a result of relaxation of importation restrictions ordered by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, shipments of fresh avocados from Mexico began entering California year-round in 2007, despite the fact that these shipments were heavily infested with a number of exotic and potentially invasive armored scale species that are not thought to be present in California. Here, we report the identification of the sex pheromone of one of these species, Acutaspis albopicta (Cockerell), from a quarantine colony of these insects initiated from specimens collected from commercial shipments of Mexican avocados. The compound was identified as [(1S,3S)-2,2-dimethyl-3-(prop-1-en-2-yl)cyclobutyl)]methyl (R)-2-methylbutanoate, and was similar in structure to the pheromones of several other scale and mealybug species. In laboratory bioassays, the pheromone was highly attractive to male scales in microgram doses. The pheromone will provide a very sensitive and selective tool for detection of the scale to try and prevent its permanent establishment in California.

A simple, cost-effective emitter for controlled release of fish pheromones: development, testing, and application to management of the invasive sea lamprey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wagner, Michael C.; Hanson, James E.; Meckley, Trevor D.; Johnson, Nicholas; Bals, Jason D.

2018-01-01

Semiochemicals that elicit species-specific attraction or repulsion have proven useful in the management of terrestrial pests and hold considerable promise for control of nuisance aquatic species, particularly invasive fishes. Because aquatic ecosystems are typically large and open, use of a semiochemical to control a spatially dispersed invader will require the development of a cost-effective emitter that is easy to produce, environmentally benign, inexpensive, and controls the release of the semiochemical without altering its structure. We examined the release properties of five polymers, and chose polyethylene glycol (PEG) as the best alternative. In a series of laboratory and field experiments, we examined the response of the invasive sea lamprey to PEG, and to a partial sex pheromone emitted from PEG that has proven effective as a trap bait to capture migrating sea lamprey prior to spawning. Our findings confirm that the sea lamprey does not behaviorally respond to PEG, and that the attractant response to the pheromone component was conserved when emitted from PEG. Further, we deployed the pheromone-PEG emitters as trap bait during typical control operations in three Great Lakes tributaries, observing similar improvements in trap performance when compared to a previous study using mechanically pumped liquid pheromone. Finally, the polymer emitters tended to dissolve unevenly in high flow conditions. We demonstrate that housing the emitter stabilizes the dissolution rate at high water velocity. We conclude the performance characteristics of PEG emitters to achieve controlled-release of a semiochemical are sufficient to recommend its use in conservation and management activities related to native and invasive aquatic organisms.

Sticky Traps Baited with Synthetic Aggregation Pheromone Predict Fruit Orchard Infestations of Plautia stali (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae).

PubMed

Toyama, Masatoshi; Kishimoto, Hidenari; Mishiro, Koji; Nakano, Ryo; Ihara, Fumio

2015-10-01

The brown-winged green bug, Plautia stali Scott, mainly reproduces on Japanese cedar or cypress cones in Japanese plantation forests during summer and autumn. It often depletes its food sources in forest habitats and moves to cultivated crops in large numbers. To establish an easy method for assessing the risk of fruit orchard infestation by P. stali, we conducted a 3-yr field survey that monitored the attraction of bugs to the synthetic P. stali aggregation pheromone using a sticky trap. We used a morphological indicator, variable body size depending on food intake, to estimate the nutritional status in nymphs, which showed that nymphs attracted to the synthetic pheromone were starving. Comparisons between increasing changes in the number of stylet sheaths left on the cones by P. stali and the number of trapped nymphs show that monitoring nymphs with the pheromone-baited sticky trap is useful for inferring conditions regarding food resources in forest habitats. The trend toward trapping second instars can provide a timely overview of resource competition for cones. Trapping middle-to-late (third-fifth) instars is a warning that the cones are finally depleted and that there is a high probability that adults will leave the forests and invade the orchards. In addition, trends in trapping adults suggest that there is a potential risk of orchard infestation by the pest and predict the intensity and period of the invasion. The pheromone-baited sticky trap is an easy but useful survey tool for predicting P. stali orchard infestations. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

A simple, cost-effective emitter for controlled release of fish pheromones: Development, testing, and application to management of the invasive sea lamprey

PubMed Central

Meckley, Trevor D.; Johnson, Nicholas S.; Bals, Jason D.

2018-01-01

Semiochemicals that elicit species-specific attraction or repulsion have proven useful in the management of terrestrial pests and hold considerable promise for control of nuisance aquatic species, particularly invasive fishes. Because aquatic ecosystems are typically large and open, use of a semiochemical to control a spatially dispersed invader will require the development of a cost-effective emitter that is easy to produce, environmentally benign, inexpensive, and controls the release of the semiochemical without altering its structure. We examined the release properties of five polymers, and chose polyethylene glycol (PEG) as the best alternative. In a series of laboratory and field experiments, we examined the response of the invasive sea lamprey to PEG, and to a partial sex pheromone emitted from PEG that has proven effective as a trap bait to capture migrating sea lamprey prior to spawning. Our findings confirm that the sea lamprey does not behaviorally respond to PEG, and that the attractant response to the pheromone component was conserved when emitted from PEG. Further, we deployed the pheromone-PEG emitters as trap bait during typical control operations in three Great Lakes tributaries, observing similar improvements in trap performance when compared to a previous study using mechanically pumped liquid pheromone. Finally, the polymer emitters tended to dissolve unevenly in high flow conditions. We demonstrate that housing the emitter stabilizes the dissolution rate at high water velocity. We conclude the performance characteristics of PEG emitters to achieve controlled-release of a semiochemical are sufficient to recommend its use in conservation and management activities related to native and invasive aquatic organisms. PMID:29897927

A simple, cost-effective emitter for controlled release of fish pheromones: Development, testing, and application to management of the invasive sea lamprey.

PubMed

Wagner, C Michael; Hanson, James E; Meckley, Trevor D; Johnson, Nicholas S; Bals, Jason D

2018-01-01

Semiochemicals that elicit species-specific attraction or repulsion have proven useful in the management of terrestrial pests and hold considerable promise for control of nuisance aquatic species, particularly invasive fishes. Because aquatic ecosystems are typically large and open, use of a semiochemical to control a spatially dispersed invader will require the development of a cost-effective emitter that is easy to produce, environmentally benign, inexpensive, and controls the release of the semiochemical without altering its structure. We examined the release properties of five polymers, and chose polyethylene glycol (PEG) as the best alternative. In a series of laboratory and field experiments, we examined the response of the invasive sea lamprey to PEG, and to a partial sex pheromone emitted from PEG that has proven effective as a trap bait to capture migrating sea lamprey prior to spawning. Our findings confirm that the sea lamprey does not behaviorally respond to PEG, and that the attractant response to the pheromone component was conserved when emitted from PEG. Further, we deployed the pheromone-PEG emitters as trap bait during typical control operations in three Great Lakes tributaries, observing similar improvements in trap performance when compared to a previous study using mechanically pumped liquid pheromone. Finally, the polymer emitters tended to dissolve unevenly in high flow conditions. We demonstrate that housing the emitter stabilizes the dissolution rate at high water velocity. We conclude the performance characteristics of PEG emitters to achieve controlled-release of a semiochemical are sufficient to recommend its use in conservation and management activities related to native and invasive aquatic organisms.

Evidence for volatile male-produced pheromone in banana weevilCosmopolites sordidus.

PubMed

Budenberg, W J; Ndiege, I O; Karago, F W

1993-09-01

Females of the banana weevil,Cosmopolites sordidus, were attracted to and made longer visits to live conspecific males, trapped volatiles from males, and dissected male hindguts in a still-air olfactometer. Male weevils were attracted to volatiles trapped from males and made longer visits to live males and volatiles from males. Live females, collected volatiles from females and female hindguts, elicited small or no behavioral responses from either sex. Electroantennogram (EAG) responses from both male and female antennae were elicited by collected volatiles from males and by dichloromethane extracts of male hindguts and bodies but not by surface washes of males. No significant EAG responses were given to equivalent material from females. It is therefore suggested that male banana weevils release an aggregation pheromone via their hindgut.

Pheromone communication and the mushroom body of the ant, Camponotus obscuripes (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamagata, Nobuhiro; Fujiwara-Tsujii, Nao; Yamaoka, Ryohei; Mizunami, Makoto

2005-11-01

Communication by means of pheromones plays predominant roles in colony integration by social insects. However, almost nothing is known about pheromone processing in the brains of social insects. In this study, we successfully applied intracellular recording and staining techniques to anatomically and physiologically characterize brain neurons of the ant Camponotus obscuripes. We identified 42 protocerebral neurons that responded to undecane and/or formic acid, components of alarm pheromones that evoke attraction or evasive behavior, respectively. Notably, 30 (71%) of these neurons were efferent (output) or feedback neurons of the mushroom body, and many of these exhibited different responses to formic acid and undecane. Eight of the remaining 12 neurons had arborizations in the lateral and/or medial protocerebrum, which receive terminations of efferent neurons of the mushroom body and from which premotor descending neurons originate. The remaining four neurons were bilateral neurons that connect lateral accessory lobes or dorsal protocerebrums of both hemispheres. We suggest that the mushroom body of the ant participates in the processing of alarm pheromones. Seventeen (40%) of 42 neurons exhibited responses to nonpheromonal odors, indicating that the pheromonal and nonpheromonal signals are not fully segregated when they are processed in the protocerebrum. This may be related to modulatory functions of alarm pheromones, i.e., they change alertness of the ant and change responses to a variety of sensory stimuli.

Sublethal Effects of Neonicotinoid Insecticide on Calling Behavior and Pheromone Production of Tortricid Moths.

PubMed

Navarro-Roldán, Miguel A; Gemeno, César

2017-09-01

In moths, sexual behavior combines female sex pheromone production and calling behavior. The normal functioning of these periodic events requires an intact nervous system. Neurotoxic insecticide residues in the agroecosystem could impact the normal functioning of pheromone communication through alteration of the nervous system. In this study we assess whether sublethal concentrations of the neonicotinoid insecticide thiacloprid, that competitively modulates nicotinic acetylcholine receptors at the dendrite, affect pheromone production and calling behavior in adults of three economically important tortricid moth pests; Cydia pomonella (L.), Grapholita molesta (Busck), and Lobesia botrana (Denis & Schiffermüller). Thiacloprid significantly reduced the amount of calling in C. pomonella females at LC 0.001 (a lethal concentration that kills only 1 in 10 5 individuals), and altered its calling period at LC 1 , and in both cases the effect was dose-dependent. In the other two species the effect was similar but started at higher LCs, and the effect was relatively small in L. botrana. Pheromone production was altered only in C. pomonella, with a reduction of the major compound, codlemone, and one minor component, starting at LC 10 . Since sex pheromones and neonicotinoids are used together in the management of these three species, our results could have implications regarding the interaction between these two pest control methods.

Male scent-marking pheromone of Bombus ardens ardens (Hymenoptera; Apidae) attracts both conspecific queens and males

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kubo, Ryohei; Harano, Ken-ichi; Ono, Masato

2017-10-01

To explore the role of the volatiles emitted from male labial gland (LG) of the bumblebee Bombus ardens ardens, we investigated the responses of virgin queens and males to volatiles using a gas chromatography-electroantennographic detector (GC-EAD) system and Y-tube olfactometer. GC-EAD analysis revealed that citronellol, the main compound detected in the male LG, caused clear electrophysiological responses in the antennae of B. a. ardens virgin queens and males although two minor compounds elicited antennal responses when applied in a high concentration. Behavioral tests using a Y-tube olfactometer showed that queens and males were significantly attracted to both LG extracts and citronellol more than to the solvent alone. This is the first study to demonstrate that citronellol as a major compound of male scent-marking pheromone in B. a. ardens functions as a sex attractant for queens. The results also suggest that this compound has another function as a trail marker used by males.

The discovery of 2,5-dialkylcyclohexan-1,3-diones as a new class of natural products

PubMed Central

Franke, S.; Ibarra, F.; Schulz, C. M.; Twele, R.; Poldy, J.; Barrow, R. A.; Peakall, R.; Schiestl, F. P.; Francke, W.

2009-01-01

Orchids employing sexual deceit attract males of their pollinator species through specific volatile signals that mimic female-released sex pheromones. One of these signals proved to be 2-ethyl-5-propylcyclohexan-1,3-dione (chiloglottone1), a new natural product that was shown to be most important in the relations between orchids of the genus Chiloglottis, native to Australia, and corresponding pollinator species. Systematic investigations on the mass spectrometric fragmentation pattern of 2,5-dialkylcyclohexan-1,3-diones identified key ions providing information about the structures of the substituents at positions 2 and 5. Results enabled us to identify 2-ethyl-5-pentylcyclohexan-1,3-dione (chiloglottone2) and 2-butyl-5-methylcyclohexan-1,3-dione (chiloglottone3) as new natural products that play a decisive role in the pollination syndrome of some Chiloglottis species. During field bioassays, pure synthetic samples of chiloglottone1–3 or mixtures thereof proved to be attractive to the corresponding orchid pollinators. Because of their likely biogenesis from ubiquitous fatty acid precursors, 2,5-dialkylcyclohexan-1,3-diones may represent a hitherto overlooked, widespread class of natural products. PMID:19470640

Selection by mating competitiveness improves the performance of Anastrepha ludens males of the genetic sexing strain Tapachula-7.

PubMed

Quintero-Fong, L; Toledo, J; Ruiz, L; Rendón, P; Orozco-Dávila, D; Cruz, L; Liedo, P

2016-10-01

The sexual performance of Anastrepha ludens males of the Tapachula-7 genetic sexing strain, produced via selection based on mating success, was compared with that of males produced without selection in competition with wild males. Mating competition, development time, survival, mass-rearing quality parameters and pheromone production were compared. The results showed that selection based on mating competitiveness significantly improved the sexual performance of offspring. Development time, survival of larvae, pupae and adults, and weights of larvae and pupae increased with each selection cycle. Differences in the relative quantity of the pheromone compounds (Z)-3-nonenol and anastrephin were observed when comparing the parental males with the F4 and wild males. The implications of this colony management method on the sterile insect technique are discussed.

Evolution of multicomponent pheromone signals in small ermine moths involves a single fatty-acyl reductase gene

PubMed Central

Liénard, Marjorie A.; Hagström, Åsa K.; Lassance, Jean-Marc; Löfstedt, Christer

2010-01-01

Fatty-acyl CoA reductases (FAR) convert fatty acids into fatty alcohols in pro- and eukaryotic organisms. In the Lepidoptera, members of the FAR gene family serve in the biosynthesis of sex pheromones involved in mate communication. We used a group of closely related species, the small ermine moths (Lepidoptera: Yponomeutidae) as a model to investigate the role of FARs in the biosynthesis of complex pheromone blends. Homology-based molecular cloning in three Yponomeuta species led to the identification of multiple putative FAR transcripts homologous to FAR genes from the Bombyx mori genome. The expression of one transcript was restricted to the female pheromone-gland tissue, suggesting a role in pheromone biosynthesis, and the encoded protein belonged to a recently identified Lepidoptera-specific pgFAR gene subfamily. The Yponomeuta evonymellus pgFAR mRNA was up-regulated in sexually mature females and exhibited a 24-h cyclic fluctuation pattern peaking in the pheromone production period. Heterologous expression confirmed that the Yponomeuta pgFAR orthologs in all three species investigated [Y. evonymellus (L.), Yponomeuta padellus (L.), and Yponomeuta rorellus (Hübner)] encode a functional FAR with a broad substrate range that efficiently promoted accumulation of primary alcohols in recombinant yeast supplied with a series of biologically relevant C14- or C16-acyl precursors. Taken together, our data evidence that a single alcohol-producing pgFAR played a critical function in the production of the multicomponent pheromones of yponomeutids and support the hypothesis of moth pheromone-biosynthetic FARs belonging to a FAR gene subfamily unique to Lepidoptera. PMID:20534481

Sex pheromone component ratios and mating isolation among three Lygus plant bug species of North America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byers, John A.; Fefer, Daniela; Levi-Zada, Anat

2013-12-01

The plant bugs Lygus hesperus, Lygus lineolaris, and Lygus elisus (Hemiptera: Miridae) are major pests of many agricultural crops in North America. Previous studies suggested that females release a sex pheromone attractive to males. Other studies showed that males and females contain microgram amounts of ( E)-4-oxo-2-hexenal, hexyl butyrate, and ( E)-2-hexenyl butyrate that are emitted as a defense against predators. Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, we found that female L. lineolaris and L. elisus have a 4:10 ratio of hexyl butyrate to ( E)-2-hexenyl butyrate that is reversed from the 10:1 ratio in female L. hesperus (males of the three species have ~10:1 ratio). These reversed ratios among females of the species suggest a behavioral role. Because both sexes have nearly equal amounts of the major volatiles, females should release more to attract males. This expectation was supported because L. hesperus females released more hexyl butyrate (mean of 86 ng/h) during the night (1800-0700 hours) than did males (<1 ng/h). We used slow-rotating pairs of traps to test the attraction of species to blends of the volatiles with a subtractive method to detect synergism. Each species' major butyrate ester was released at 3 μg/h, the minor butyrate according to its ratio, and ( E)-4-oxo-2-hexenal at 2 μg/h. The resulting catches of only Lygus males suggest that ( E)-4-oxo-2-hexenal is an essential sex pheromone component for all three species, ( E)-2-hexenyl butyrate is essential for L. elisus and L. lineolaris, and hexyl butyrate is essential for L. hesperus. However, all three components are recognized by each species since ratios of the butyrate esters are critical for conspecific attraction and heterospecific avoidance by males and thus play a role in reproductive isolation among the three species. Because L. hesperus males and females are known to emit these major volatiles for repelling ant predators, our study links defensive allomones in Lygus bugs with an additional use as sex pheromones.

Novel sex cells and evidence for sex pheromones in diatoms.

PubMed

Sato, Shinya; Beakes, Gordon; Idei, Masahiko; Nagumo, Tamotsu; Mann, David G

2011-01-01

Diatoms belong to the stramenopiles, one of the largest groups of eukaryotes, which are primarily characterized by a presence of an anterior flagellum with tubular mastigonemes and usually a second, smooth flagellum. Based on cell wall morphology, diatoms have historically been divided into centrics and pennates, of which only the former have flagella and only on the sperm. Molecular phylogenies show the pennates to have evolved from among the centrics. However, the timing of flagellum loss--whether before the evolution of the pennate lineage or after--is unknown, because sexual reproduction has been so little studied in the 'araphid' basal pennate lineages, to which Pseudostaurosira belongs. Sexual reproduction of an araphid pennate, Pseudostaurosira trainorii, was studied with light microscopy (including time lapse observations and immunofluorescence staining observed under confocal scanning laser microscopy) and SEM. We show that the species produces motile male gametes. Motility is mostly associated with the extrusion and retrieval of microtubule-based 'threads', which are structures hitherto unknown in stramenopiles, their number varying from one to three per cell. We also report experimental evidence for sex pheromones that reciprocally stimulate sexualization of compatible clones and orientate motility of the male gametes after an initial 'random walk'. The threads superficially resemble flagella, in that both are produced by male gametes and contain microtubules. However, one striking difference is that threads cannot beat or undulate and have no motility of their own, and they do not bear mastigonemes. Threads are sticky and catch and draw objects, including eggs. The motility conferred by the threads is probably crucial for sexual reproduction of P. trainorii, because this diatom is non-motile in its vegetative stage but obligately outbreeding. Our pheromone experiments are the first studies in which gametogenesis has been induced in diatoms by cell-free exudates, opening new possibilities for molecular 'dissection' of sexualization.

Drosophila adult and larval pheromones modulate larval food choice

PubMed Central

Farine, Jean-Pierre; Cortot, Jérôme; Ferveur, Jean-François

2014-01-01

Insects use chemosensory cues to feed and mate. In Drosophila, the effect of pheromones has been extensively investigated in adults, but rarely in larvae. The colonization of natural food sources by Drosophila buzzatii and Drosophila simulans species may depend on species-specific chemical cues left in the food by larvae and adults. We identified such chemicals in both species and measured their influence on larval food preference and puparation behaviour. We also tested compounds that varied between these species: (i) two larval volatile compounds: hydroxy-3-butanone-2 and phenol (predominant in D. simulans and D. buzzatii, respectively), and (ii) adult cuticular hydrocarbons (CHs). Drosophila buzzatii larvae were rapidly attracted to non-CH adult conspecific cues, whereas D. simulans larvae were strongly repulsed by CHs of the two species and also by phenol. Larval cues from both species generally reduced larval attraction and pupariation on food, which was generally—but not always—low, and rarely reflected larval response. As these larval and adult pheromones specifically influence larval food search and the choice of a pupariation site, they may greatly affect the dispersion and survival of Drosophila species in nature. PMID:24741012

A reference gene set for sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation genes from the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, based on genome and transcriptome digital gene expression analyses.

PubMed

He, Peng; Zhang, Yun-Fei; Hong, Duan-Yang; Wang, Jun; Wang, Xing-Liang; Zuo, Ling-Hua; Tang, Xian-Fu; Xu, Wei-Ming; He, Ming

2017-03-01

Female moths synthesize species-specific sex pheromone components and release them to attract male moths, which depend on precise sex pheromone chemosensory system to locate females. Two types of genes involved in the sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation pathways play essential roles in this important moth behavior. To understand the function of genes in the sex pheromone pathway, this study investigated the genome-wide and digital gene expression of sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation genes in various adult tissues in the diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella, which is a notorious vegetable pest worldwide. A massive transcriptome data (at least 39.04 Gb) was generated by sequencing 6 adult tissues including male antennae, female antennae, heads, legs, abdomen and female pheromone glands from DBM by using Illumina 4000 next-generation sequencing and mapping to a published DBM genome. Bioinformatics analysis yielded a total of 89,332 unigenes among which 87 transcripts were putatively related to seven gene families in the sex pheromone biosynthesis pathway. Among these, seven [two desaturases (DES), three fatty acyl-CoA reductases (FAR) one acetyltransferase (ACT) and one alcohol dehydrogenase (AD)] were mainly expressed in the pheromone glands with likely function in the three essential sex pheromone biosynthesis steps: desaturation, reduction, and esterification. We also identified 210 odorant-degradation related genes (including sex pheromone-degradation related genes) from seven major enzyme groups. Among these genes, 100 genes are new identified and two aldehyde oxidases (AOXs), one aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), five carboxyl/cholinesterases (CCEs), five UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs), eight cytochrome P450 (CYP) and three glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) displayed more robust expression in the antennae, and thus are proposed to participate in the degradation of sex pheromone components and plant volatiles. To date, this is the most comprehensive gene data set of sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation enzyme related genes in DBM created by genome- and transcriptome-wide identification, characterization and expression profiling. Our findings provide a basis to better understand the function of genes with tissue enriched expression. The results also provide information on the genes involved in sex pheromone biosynthesis and degradation, and may be useful to identify potential gene targets for pest control strategies by disrupting the insect-insect communication using pheromone-based behavioral antagonists.

The importance of feeling sexually attractive: Can it predict an individual's experience of their sexuality and sexual relationships across gender and sexual orientation?

PubMed

Amos, Natalie; McCabe, Marita

2017-10-01

Limited research exists on the implications of feeling sexually attractive for various aspects of sexuality and sexual relationships. This article examined associations between self-perceived sexual attractiveness and sexual esteem, sexual satisfaction and amount of sexual experience, among both men and women who identified as heterosexual (n = 1017), gay or lesbian (n = 1225) or bisexual (n = 651). Results of the study demonstrated that positive self-perceptions of sexual attractiveness predicted greater sexual esteem, greater sexual satisfaction, a higher frequency of sexual activity with others and a larger number of sexual partners among both men and women who identified as heterosexual, gay, lesbian or bisexual. The findings suggest that feeling sexually attractive may have implications for how an individual experiences their sexuality and sexual relationships regardless of their gender or sexual orientation. The importance of considering an individual's self-perceptions of sexual attractiveness when they present with concerns related to their sexual experiences or relationships, and the potential benefits of educational and therapeutic interventions designed to enhance self-perceptions of sexual attractiveness are discussed. © 2015 International Union of Psychological Science.

Acarine attractants: Chemoreception, bioassay, chemistry and control

PubMed Central

Carr, Ann L.; Roe, Michael

2016-01-01

The Acari are of significant economic importance in crop production and human and animal health. Acaricides are essential for the control of these pests, but at the same time, the number of available pesticides is limited, especially for applications in animal production. The Acari consist of two major groups, the mites that demonstrate a wide variety of life strategies, i.e., herbivory, predation and ectoparasitism, and ticks which have evolved obligatory hematophagy. The major sites of chemoreception in the acarines are the chelicerae, palps and tarsi on the forelegs. A unifying name, the “foretarsal sensory organ” (FSO), is proposed for the first time in this review for the sensory site on the forelegs of all acarines. The FSO has multiple sensory functions including olfaction, gustation, and heat detection. Preliminary transcriptomic data in ticks suggest that chemoreception in the FSO is achieved by a different mechanism from insects. There are a variety of laboratory and field bioassay methods that have been developed for the identification and characterization of attractants but minimal techniques for electrophysiology studies. Over the past three to four decades, significant progress has been made in the chemistry and analysis of function for acarine attractants in mites and ticks. In mites, attractants include aggregation, immature female, female sex and alarm pheromones; in ticks, the attraction–aggregation–attachment, assembly and sex pheromones; in mites and ticks host kairomones and plant allomones; and in mites, fungal allomones. There are still large gaps in our knowledge of chemical communication in the acarines compared to insects, especially relative to acarine pheromones, and more so for mites than ticks. However, the use of lure-and-kill and lure-enhanced biocontrol strategies has been investigated for tick and mite control, respectively, with significant environmental advantages which warrant further study. PMID:27265828

Weathering the storm: how lodgepole pine trees survive mountain pine beetle outbreaks.

PubMed

Erbilgin, Nadir; Cale, Jonathan A; Hussain, Altaf; Ishangulyyeva, Guncha; Klutsch, Jennifer G; Najar, Ahmed; Zhao, Shiyang

2017-06-01

Recent mountain pine beetle outbreaks in western North America killed millions of lodgepole pine trees, leaving few survivors. However, the mechanism underlying the ability of trees to survive bark beetle outbreaks is unknown, but likely involve phytochemicals such as monoterpenes and fatty acids that can drive beetle aggregation and colonization on their hosts. Thus, we conducted a field survey of beetle-resistant lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) trees to retrospectively deduce whether these phytochemicals underlie their survival by comparing their chemistry to that of non-attacked trees in the same stands. We also compared beetle attack characteristics between resistant and beetle-killed trees. Beetle-killed trees had more beetle attacks and longer ovipositional galleries than resistant trees, which also lacked the larval establishment found in beetle-killed trees. Resistant trees contained high amounts of toxic and attraction-inhibitive compounds and low amounts of pheromone-precursor and synergist compounds. During beetle host aggregation and colonization, these compounds likely served three critical roles in tree survival. First, low amounts of pheromone-precursor (α-pinene) and synergist (mycrene, terpinolene) compounds reduced or prevented beetles from attracting conspecifics to residual trees. Second, high amounts of 4-allyanisole further inhibited beetle attraction to its pheromone. Finally, high amounts of toxic limonene, 3-carene, 4-allyanisole, α-linolenic acid, and linoleic acid inhibited beetle gallery establishment and oviposition. We conclude that the variation of chemotypic expression of local plant populations can have profound ecological consequences including survival during insect outbreaks.

Chemical similarity between historical and novel host plants promotes range and host expansion of the mountain pine beetle in a naïve host ecosystem.

PubMed

Erbilgin, Nadir; Ma, Cary; Whitehouse, Caroline; Shan, Bin; Najar, Ahmed; Evenden, Maya

2014-02-01

Host plant secondary chemistry can have cascading impacts on host and range expansion of herbivorous insect populations. We investigated the role of host secondary compounds on pheromone production by the mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) (MPB) and beetle attraction in response to a historical (lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta var. latifolia) and a novel (jack pine, Pinus banksiana) hosts, as pheromones regulate the host colonization process. Beetles emit the same pheromones from both hosts, but more trans-verbenol, the primary aggregation pheromone, was emitted by female beetles on the novel host. The phloem of the novel host contains more α-pinene, a secondary compound that is the precursor for trans-verbenol production in beetle, than the historical host. Beetle-induced emission of 3-carene, another secondary compound found in both hosts, was also higher from the novel host. Field tests showed that the addition of 3-carene to the pheromone mixture mimicking the aggregation pheromones produced from the two host species increased beetle capture. We conclude that chemical similarity between historical and novel hosts has facilitated host expansion of MPB in jack pine forests through the exploitation of common host secondary compounds for pheromone production and aggregation on the hosts. Furthermore, broods emerging from the novel host were larger in terms of body size. © 2013 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2013 New Phytologist Trust.

Discovery of a modified tetrapolar sexual cycle in Cryptococcus amylolentus and the evolution of MAT in the Cryptococcus species complex.

PubMed

Findley, Keisha; Sun, Sheng; Fraser, James A; Hsueh, Yen-Ping; Averette, Anna Floyd; Li, Wenjun; Dietrich, Fred S; Heitman, Joseph

2012-01-01

Sexual reproduction in fungi is governed by a specialized genomic region called the mating-type locus (MAT). The human fungal pathogenic and basidiomycetous yeast Cryptococcus neoformans has evolved a bipolar mating system (a, α) in which the MAT locus is unusually large (>100 kb) and encodes >20 genes including homeodomain (HD) and pheromone/receptor (P/R) genes. To understand how this unique bipolar mating system evolved, we investigated MAT in the closely related species Tsuchiyaea wingfieldii and Cryptococcus amylolentus and discovered two physically unlinked loci encoding the HD and P/R genes. Interestingly, the HD (B) locus sex-specific region is restricted (∼2 kb) and encodes two linked and divergently oriented homeodomain genes in contrast to the solo HD genes (SXI1α, SXI2a) of C. neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii. The P/R (A) locus contains the pheromone and pheromone receptor genes but has expanded considerably compared to other outgroup species (Cryptococcus heveanensis) and is linked to many of the genes also found in the MAT locus of the pathogenic Cryptococcus species. Our discovery of a heterothallic sexual cycle for C. amylolentus allowed us to establish the biological roles of the sex-determining regions. Matings between two strains of opposite mating-types (A1B1×A2B2) produced dikaryotic hyphae with fused clamp connections, basidia, and basidiospores. Genotyping progeny using markers linked and unlinked to MAT revealed that meiosis and uniparental mitochondrial inheritance occur during the sexual cycle of C. amylolentus. The sexual cycle is tetrapolar and produces fertile progeny of four mating-types (A1B1, A1B2, A2B1, and A2B2), but a high proportion of progeny are infertile, and fertility is biased towards one parental mating-type (A1B1). Our studies reveal insights into the plasticity and transitions in both mechanisms of sex determination (bipolar versus tetrapolar) and sexual reproduction (outcrossing versus inbreeding) with implications for similar evolutionary transitions and processes in fungi, plants, and animals.

Love Is Blind: Indiscriminate Female Mating Responses to Male Courtship Pheromones in Newts (Salamandridae)

PubMed Central

Matthijs, Severine; Du Four, Dimitri; Janssenswillen, Sunita; Willaert, Bert; Bossuyt, Franky

2013-01-01

Internal fertilization without copulation or prolonged physical contact is a rare reproductive mode among vertebrates. In many newts (Salamandridae), the male deposits a spermatophore on the substrate in the water, which the female subsequently takes up with her cloaca. Because such an insemination requires intense coordination of both sexes, male newts have evolved a courtship display, essentially consisting of sending pheromones under water by tail-fanning towards their potential partner. Behavioral experiments until now mostly focused on an attractant function, i.e. showing that olfactory cues are able to bring both sexes together. However, since males start their display only after an initial contact phase, courtship pheromones are expected to have an alternative function. Here we developed a series of intraspecific and interspecific two-female experiments with alpine newt (Ichthyosaura alpestris) and palmate newt (Lissotriton helveticus) females, comparing behavior in male courtship water and control water. We show that male olfactory cues emitted during tail-fanning are pheromones that can induce all typical features of natural female mating behavior. Interestingly, females exposed to male pheromones of their own species show indiscriminate mating responses to conspecific and heterospecific females, indicating that visual cues are subordinate to olfactory cues during courtship. PMID:23457580

Changes of sex pheromone communication systems associated with tebufenozide and abamectin resistance in diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.).

PubMed

Xu, Zhen; Cao, Guang-Chun; Dong, Shuang-Lin

2010-05-01

Many insect pests have evolved resistance to insecticides. Along with this evolution, the sex pheromone communication system of insects also may change, and subsequently reproductive isolation may occur between resistant and susceptible populations. In this study of the diamondback moth, we found that resistant females (especially Abamectin resistant females) produced less sex pheromone and displayed a lower level of calling behavior. Resistant males showed higher EAG responsiveness to the sex pheromone mixture of females, and responded to a broader range of ratios between the two major components compared to the responses of susceptible moths. In addition, wind tunnel experiments indicated that changes associated with insecticide resistance in the Abamectin resistant strain (Aba-R) significantly reduced female attractiveness to susceptible males. Furthermore, mating choice experiments confirmed that non-random mating occurred between the two different strains. Aba-R females with an abnormal pheromone production and blend ratio exhibited significantly lower mating percentages with males from either their own strain or other strains, which corroborates the results obtained by the wind tunnel experiments. The implications of this non-random mating for insect speciation and insecticide resistance management are discussed.

Sexual Attraction, Sexual Identity, and Psychosocial Wellbeing in a National Sample of Young Women during Emerging Adulthood

PubMed Central

Johns, Michelle Marie; Zimmerman, Marc; Bauermeister, Jose A.

2012-01-01

Identity-based conceptualizations of sexual orientation may not account adequately for variation in young women’s sexuality. Sexual minorities fare worse in psychosocial markers of wellbeing (i.e., depressive symptoms, anxiety, self esteem, social support) than heterosexual youth; however, it remains unclear whether these health disparities exclusively affect individuals who adopt a sexual minority identity or if it also may be present among heterosexually-identified youth who report same-sex attractions. We examined the relationship between sexual attraction, sexual identity, and psychosocial wellbeing in the female only subsample (weighted, n = 391) of a national sample of emerging adults (age 18–24). Women in this study rated on a scale from 1 (Not at all) to 5 (Extremely) their degree of sexual attraction to males and females, respectively. From these scores, women were divided into 4 groups (low female /low male attraction, low female /high male attraction, high female /low male attraction, or high female /high male attraction). We explored the relationship between experiences of attraction, reported sexual identity, and psychosocial outcomes using ordinary least squares regression. The results indicated sexual attraction to be predictive of women’s psychosocial wellbeing as much as or more than sexual identity measures. We discuss these findings in terms of the diversity found in young women’s sexuality, and how sexual minority status may be experienced by this group. PMID:22847750

Sexual attraction, sexual identity, and psychosocial wellbeing in a national sample of young women during emerging adulthood.

PubMed

Johns, Michelle Marie; Zimmerman, Marc; Bauermeister, Jose A

2013-01-01

Identity-based conceptualizations of sexual orientation may not account adequately for variation in young women's sexuality. Sexual minorities fare worse in psychosocial markers of wellbeing (i.e., depressive symptoms, anxiety, self esteem, social support) than heterosexual youth; however, it remains unclear whether these health disparities exclusively affect individuals who adopt a sexual minority identity or if they also may be present among heterosexually-identified youth who report same-sex attractions. We examined the relationship between sexual attraction, sexual identity, and psychosocial wellbeing in the female only subsample (weighted, n = 391) of a national sample of emerging adults (age 18-24). Women in this study rated on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 5 (extremely) their degree of sexual attraction to males and females, respectively. From these scores, women were divided into 4 groups (low female/low male attraction, low female/high male attraction, high female/low male attraction, or high female/high male attraction). We explored the relationship between experiences of attraction, reported sexual identity, and psychosocial outcomes using ordinary least squares regression. The results indicated sexual attraction to be predictive of women's psychosocial wellbeing as much as or more than sexual identity measures. We discuss these findings in terms of the diversity found in young women's sexuality, and how sexual minority status may be experienced by this group.

A hormone-related female anti-aphrodisiac signals temporary infertility and causes sexual abstinence to synchronize parental care.

PubMed

Engel, Katharina C; Stökl, Johannes; Schweizer, Rebecca; Vogel, Heiko; Ayasse, Manfred; Ruther, Joachim; Steiger, Sandra

2016-03-22

The high energetic demand of parental care requires parents to direct their resources towards the support of existing offspring rather than investing into the production of additional young. However, how such a resource flow is channelled appropriately is poorly understood. In this study, we provide the first comprehensive analysis of the physiological mechanisms coordinating parental and mating effort in an insect exhibiting biparental care. We show a hormone-mediated infertility in female burying beetles during the time the current offspring is needy and report that this temporary infertility is communicated via a pheromone to the male partner, where it inhibits copulation. A shared pathway of hormone and pheromone system ensures the reliability of the anti-aphrodisiac. Female infertility and male sexual abstinence provide for the concerted investment of parental resources into the existing developing young. Our study thus contributes to our deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying adaptive parental decisions.

A Drosophila protein family implicated in pheromone perception is related to Tay-Sachs GM2-activator protein.

PubMed

Starostina, Elena; Xu, Aiguo; Lin, Heping; Pikielny, Claudio W

2009-01-02

Low volatility, lipid-like cuticular hydrocarbon pheromones produced by Drosophila melanogaster females play an essential role in triggering and modulating mating behavior, but the chemosensory mechanisms involved remain poorly understood. Recently, we showed that the CheB42a protein, which is expressed in only 10 pheromone-sensing taste hairs on the front legs of males, modulates progression to late stages of male courtship behavior in response to female-specific cuticular hydrocarbons. Here we report that expression of all 12 genes in the CheB gene family is predominantly or exclusively gustatory-specific, and occurs in many different, often non-overlapping patterns. Only the Gr family of gustatory receptor genes displays a comparable variety of gustatory-specific expression patterns. Unlike Grs, however, expression of all but one CheB gene is sexually dimorphic. Like CheB42a, other CheBs may therefore function specifically in gustatory perception of pheromones. We also show that CheBs belong to the ML superfamily of lipid-binding proteins, and are most similar to human GM2-activator protein (GM2-AP). In particular, GM2-AP residues involved in ligand binding are conserved in CheBs but not in other ML proteins. Finally, CheB42a is specifically secreted into the inner lumen of pheromone-sensing taste hairs, where pheromones interact with membrane-bound receptors. We propose that CheB proteins interact directly with lipid-like Drosophila pheromones and modulate their detection by the gustatory signal transduction machinery. Furthermore, as loss of GM2-AP in Tay-Sachs disease prevents degradation of GM2 gangliosides and results in neurodegeneration, the function of CheBs in pheromone response may involve biochemical mechanisms critical for lipid metabolism in human neurons.

Transcriptomes of Mouse Olfactory Epithelium Reveal Sexual Differences in Odorant Detection

PubMed Central

Shiao, Meng-Shin; Chang, Andrew Ying-Fei; Liao, Ben-Yang; Ching, Yung-Hao; Lu, Mei-Yeh Jade; Chen, Stella Maris; Li, Wen-Hsiung

2012-01-01

To sense numerous odorants and chemicals, animals have evolved a large number of olfactory receptor genes (Olfrs) in their genome. In particular, the house mouse has ∼1,100 genes in the Olfr gene family. This makes the mouse a good model organism to study Olfr genes and olfaction-related genes. To date, whether male and female mice possess the same ability in detecting environmental odorants is still unknown. Using the next generation sequencing technology (paired-end mRNA-seq), we detected 1,088 expressed Olfr genes in both male and female olfactory epithelium. We found that not only Olfr genes but also odorant-binding protein (Obp) genes have evolved rapidly in the mouse lineage. Interestingly, Olfr genes tend to express at a higher level in males than in females, whereas the Obp genes clustered on the X chromosome show the opposite trend. These observations may imply a more efficient odorant-transporting system in females, whereas a more active Olfr gene expressing system in males. In addition, we detected the expression of two genes encoding major urinary proteins, which have been proposed to bind and transport pheromones or act as pheromones in mouse urine. This observation suggests a role of main olfactory system (MOS) in pheromone detection, contrary to the view that only accessory olfactory system (AOS) is involved in pheromone detection. This study suggests the sexual differences in detecting environmental odorants in MOS and demonstrates that mRNA-seq provides a powerful tool for detecting genes with low expression levels and with high sequence similarities. PMID:22511034

Dimensionality and Transcultural Specificity of the Sexual Attraction Questionnaire (SAQ).

PubMed

Fernández, Juan; Quiroga, María Angeles; Icaza, Vanessa J; Escorial, Sergio

2012-03-01

Sexual attraction was considered a component of sexual orientation from the beginning of the second half of the 20th century to present times. However, some recent researchers have studied sexual attraction as an independent field measuring it by the Sexual Attraction Questionnaire (SAQ). This study analyzes sexual attraction through the SAQ in 400 university students from a Peruvian catholic university. These participants -191 women and 209 men- show a very diverse curricular background. The following hypotheses were tested: a) the structure of the SAQ, pointing out two concepts: attraction to men and attraction to women; b) the high inverse correlation between these two concepts or factors; c) the specific impact of this context in sexual attraction: higher percentage of attracted by none of the sexes and lower percentage of attracted to the opposite sex, in comparison with other contexts; and d) the Lippa prediction (2006, 2007), regarding a higher polarization of sexual attraction for men than for women. Results support the first three hypotheses. Clarifications are laid down with regard to the fourth one. Discussion focuses on theoretical and applied advantages of using the SAQ as opposed to the frequent use of a single item of sexual attraction for each sex.

Early and Late Trisporoids Differentially Regulate β-Carotene Production and Gene Transcript Levels in the Mucoralean Fungi Blakeslea trispora and Mucor mucedo

PubMed Central

Sahadevan, Yamuna; Richter-Fecken, Mareike; Kaerger, Kerstin; Voigt, Kerstin

2013-01-01

The multistep cleavage of carotenoids in Mucorales during the sexual phase results in a cocktail of trisporic acid (C18) sex pheromones. We hypothesized that the C18 trisporoid intermediates have a specific regulatory function for sex pheromone production and carotenogenesis that varies with genus/species and vegetative and sexual phases of their life cycles. Real-time quantitative PCR kinetics determined for Blakeslea trispora displayed a very high transcript turnover in the gene for carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase, tsp3, during the sexual phase. An in vivo enzyme assay and chromatographic analysis led to the identification of β-apo-12′-carotenal as the first apocarotenoid involved in trisporic acid biosynthesis in B. trispora. Supplementation of C18 trisporoids, namely D'orenone, methyl trisporate C, and trisporin C, increased tsp3 transcripts in the plus compared to minus partners. Interestingly, the tsp1 gene, which is involved in trisporic acid biosynthesis, was downregulated compared to tsp3 irrespective of asexual or sexual phase. Only the minus partners of both B. trispora and Mucor mucedo had enhanced β-carotene production after treatment with C20 apocarotenoids, 15 different trisporoids, and their analogues. We conclude that the apocarotenoids and trisporoids influence gene transcription and metabolite production, depending upon the fungal strain, corresponding genus, and developmental phase, representing a “chemical dialect” during sexual communication. PMID:24056470

Semiochemical Production and Laboratory Behavior Response of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, Halyomorpha Halys

PubMed Central

Harris, Christina; Abubeker, Sitra; Yu, Mengmeng; Leskey, Tracy; Zhang, Aijun

2015-01-01

Background The brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is an exotic insect pest that was first recognized in the United States in 2001. As of today, it has been found in more than 42 states. BMSB has a very broad host plant range and damage to crops in mid-Atlantic States has reached a critical level. A reliable and accurate tool for infestation detection and population monitoring is urgently needed to provide better and more timely interventions. Pheromones produced by male BMSB have been previously identified and are currently used in BMSB infestation detection. However, the conditions affecting BMSB production of these pheromones were unknown. Methodology/Principal Findings In this study, we collected headspace volatiles from male BMSB under laboratory conditions, measured the temporal patterns of release of these pheromones, and assayed the attractiveness to conspecifics. In addition to the pheromone components, tridecane (C13) and E-2-decenal (an alarm compound) were observed in headspace collections of males, as well as in females and nymphs. Exposure of pheromone-emitting adult males to synthetic C13 greatly reduced pheromone emission. Conclusions/Significance This information should lead to a better understanding of the biology, physiology, and chemical ecology of BMSB, which will help scientists and growers develop more efficient strategies based on natural products to manage BMSB population, therefore, reducing pesticide usage and protecting the crops from BMSB damage. PMID:26528717

Methyltestosterone-induced changes in electro-olfactogram responses and courtship behaviors of cyprinids.

PubMed

Belanger, Rachelle M; Pachkowski, Melanie D; Stacey, Norm E

2010-01-01

In the tinfoil barb (Barbonymus schwanenfeldii; family Cyprinidae), we previously found that increased olfactory sensitivity to a female prostaglandin pheromone could induce sexual behavior display in juvenile fish treated with androgens. Here, we determined if this phenomenon is widespread among cyprinid fishes by adding 17alpha-methyltestosterone (MT) to aquaria containing juveniles of 4 cyprinid species (tinfoil barbs; redtail sharkminnows, Epalzeorhynchos bicolor; goldfish, Carassius auratus; zebrafish, Danio rerio) and then using electro-olfactogram (EOG) recordings and behavioral assays to determine if androgen treatment enhances pheromone detection and male sex behaviors. In all 4 cyprinids, MT treatment increased the magnitudes and sensitivities of EOG response to prostaglandins and, consistent with our initial study on tinfoil barbs, did not affect EOG responses to the free and conjugated steroid to which each species is most sensitive. In zebrafish, EOG responses to prostaglandins were similar in MT-treated juveniles and adult males, whereas responses of control (ethanol exposed) fish were similar to those of adult females. Finally, as previously observed in tinfoil barbs, MT treatment of juvenile redtail sharkminnows increased courtship behaviors (nuzzling and quivering) with a stimulus fish. We conclude that androgen-induced increase in olfactory responsiveness to pheromonal prostaglandins is common among the family Cyprinidae. This phenomenon will help us unravel the development of sexually dimorphic olfactory-mediated behavior.

Sexual chemoecology of mosquitoes (Diptera, Culicidae): Current knowledge and implications for vector control programs.

PubMed

Vaníčková, Lucie; Canale, Angelo; Benelli, Giovanni

2017-04-01

Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) act as vectors of medical and veterinary importance, due to their ability to transmit many pathogens and parasites. Renewed interest has been recently devoted to the potential of sterile insect technique (SIT) for mosquito suppression. However, the success of the SIT is mostly dependent on the ability of sterile males to compete for mates with the wild ones in the field. Nevertheless, little is known on the sexual chemical ecology of mosquitoes, with special reference to the role of chemical signals in males. We reviewed the current knowledge on mosquito sexual chemical ecology and other key cues affecting courtship and mating behavior. The information available on the aggregation and sex pheromones in mosquito males is rather limited. To the best of our knowledge, the components of the aggregation pheromone stimulating swarming mechanisms have been fully characterized only for Aedes aegypti, while evidence for aggregation pheromones in other mosquito species remains elusive. Further research on this issue is needed, as well as to dissect the relative importance of visual (with special reference to swarming landmarks), vibrational, olfactory and tactile cues perceived during swarming and mate. On the other hand, more knowledge is available for cuticular hydrocarbons, which modulate mating behavior in several species of economic importance. These compounds, coupled with volatile aggregation components, have potential interest for the development of monitoring and trapping systems. In addition, the analyses of cuticular hydrocarbons are essential for discrimination between closely related mosquito species and/or populations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Establishment of Tools for Neurogenetic Analysis of Sexual Behavior in the Silkmoth, Bombyx mori

PubMed Central

Kiya, Taketoshi; Morishita, Koudai; Uchino, Keiro; Iwami, Masafumi; Sezutsu, Hideki

2014-01-01

Background Silkmoth, Bombyx mori, is an ideal model insect for investigating the neural mechanisms underlying sex pheromone-induced innate behavior. Although transgenic techniques and the GAL4/UAS system are well established in the silkmoth, genetic tools useful for investigating brain function at the neural circuit level have been lacking. Results In the present study, we established silkmoth strains in which we could visualize neural projections (UAS-mCD8GFP) and cell nucleus positions (UAS-GFP.nls), and manipulate neural excitability by thermal stimulation (UAS-dTrpA1). In these strains, neural projections and nucleus position were reliably labeled with green fluorescent protein in a GAL4-dependent manner. Further, the behavior of silkworm larvae and adults could be controlled by GAL4-dependent misexpression of dTrpA1. Ubiquitous dTrpA1 misexpression led both silkmoth larvae and adults to exhibit seizure-like phenotypes in a heat stimulation-dependent manner. Furthermore, dTrpA1 misexpression in the sex pheromone receptor neurons of male silkmoths allowed us to control male sexual behavior by changing the temperature. Thermally stimulated male silkmoths exhibited full sexual behavior, including wing-flapping, orientation, and attempted copulation, and precisely approached a thermal source in a manner similar to male silkmoths stimulated with the sex pheromone. Conclusion These findings indicate that a thermogenetic approach using dTrpA1 is feasible in Lepidopteran insects and thermogenetic analysis of innate behavior is applicable in the silkmoth. These tools are essential for elucidating the relationships between neural circuits and function using neurogenetic methods. PMID:25396742

Establishment of tools for neurogenetic analysis of sexual behavior in the silkmoth, Bombyx mori.

PubMed

Kiya, Taketoshi; Morishita, Koudai; Uchino, Keiro; Iwami, Masafumi; Sezutsu, Hideki

2014-01-01

Silkmoth, Bombyx mori, is an ideal model insect for investigating the neural mechanisms underlying sex pheromone-induced innate behavior. Although transgenic techniques and the GAL4/UAS system are well established in the silkmoth, genetic tools useful for investigating brain function at the neural circuit level have been lacking. In the present study, we established silkmoth strains in which we could visualize neural projections (UAS-mCD8GFP) and cell nucleus positions (UAS-GFP.nls), and manipulate neural excitability by thermal stimulation (UAS-dTrpA1). In these strains, neural projections and nucleus position were reliably labeled with green fluorescent protein in a GAL4-dependent manner. Further, the behavior of silkworm larvae and adults could be controlled by GAL4-dependent misexpression of dTrpA1. Ubiquitous dTrpA1 misexpression led both silkmoth larvae and adults to exhibit seizure-like phenotypes in a heat stimulation-dependent manner. Furthermore, dTrpA1 misexpression in the sex pheromone receptor neurons of male silkmoths allowed us to control male sexual behavior by changing the temperature. Thermally stimulated male silkmoths exhibited full sexual behavior, including wing-flapping, orientation, and attempted copulation, and precisely approached a thermal source in a manner similar to male silkmoths stimulated with the sex pheromone. These findings indicate that a thermogenetic approach using dTrpA1 is feasible in Lepidopteran insects and thermogenetic analysis of innate behavior is applicable in the silkmoth. These tools are essential for elucidating the relationships between neural circuits and function using neurogenetic methods.

Quantitative analysis of sex-pheromone coding in the antennal lobe of the moth Agrotis ipsilon: a tool to study network plasticity.

PubMed

Jarriault, David; Gadenne, Christophe; Rospars, Jean-Pierre; Anton, Sylvia

2009-04-01

To find a mating partner, moths rely on pheromone communication. Released in very low amounts, female sex pheromones are used by males to identify and localize females. Depending on the physiological state (i.e. age, reproductive state), the olfactory system of the males of the noctuid moth Agrotis ipsilon is 'switched on or off'. To understand the neural basis of this behavioural plasticity, we performed a detailed characterization of the qualitative, quantitative and temporal aspects of pheromone coding in the primary centre of integration of pheromonal information, the macroglomerular complex (MGC) of the antennal lobe. MGC neurons were intracellularly recorded and stained in sexually mature virgin males. When stimulating antennae of males with the three main components of the female pheromone blend, most of the neurons showed a biphasic excitatory-inhibitory response. Although they showed different preferences, 80% of the neurons responded at least to the main pheromone component (Z-7-dodecenyl acetate). Six stained neurons responding to this component had their dendrites in the largest MGC glomerulus. Changes in the stimulus intensity and duration affected the excitatory phase but not the inhibitory phase properties. The stimulus intensity was shown to be encoded in the firing frequency, the number of spikes and the latency of the excitatory phase, whereas the stimulus duration only changed its duration. We conclude that the inhibitory input provided by local interneurons following the excitatory phase might not contribute directly to the encoding of stimulus characteristics. The data presented will serve as a basis for comparison with those of immature and mated males.

A Biologically Active Analog of the Sex Pheromone of the Emerald Ash Borer, Agrilus planipennis.

PubMed

Silk, P J; Ryall, K; Mayo, P; MaGee, D I; Leclair, G; Fidgen, J; Lavallee, R; Price, J; McConaghy, J

2015-03-01

The emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) (EAB), is an invasive species causing unprecedented levels of mortality to ash trees in its introduced range. The female-produced sex pheromone of EAB has been shown to contain the macrocyclic lactone (3Z)-dodecen-12-olide. This compound and its geometrical isomer, (3E)-dodecen-12-olide, have been demonstrated previously to be EAG active and, in combination with a host-derived green leaf volatile, (3Z)-hexenol, to be attractive to male EAB in green prism traps deployed in the ash tree canopy. In the current study, we show that the saturated analog, dodecan-12-olide, is similarly active, eliciting an antennal response and significant attraction of EAB in both olfactometer and trapping bioassays in green traps with (3Z)-hexenol. Conformational modeling of the three lactones reveals that their energies and shapes are very similar, suggesting they might share a common receptor in EAB antennae. These findings provide new insight into the pheromone ecology of this species, highlighting the apparent plasticity in response of adults to the pheromone and its analog. Both of the unsaturated isomers are costly to synthesize, involving multistep, low-yielding processes. The saturated analog can be made cheaply, in high yield, and on large scale via Mitsunobu esterification of a saturated ω-hydroxy acid or more simply by Baeyer-Villiger oxidation of commercially available cyclododecanone. The analog can thus provide an inexpensive option as a lure for detection surveys as well as for possible mitigation purposes, such as mating disruption.

Trail Pheromone of the Argentine Ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

PubMed Central

Choe, Dong-Hwan; Villafuerte, David B.; Tsutsui, Neil D.

2012-01-01

The Argentine ant (Linepithema humile) is recognized as one of the world's most damaging invasive species. One reason for the ecological dominance of introduced Argentine ant populations is their ability to dominate food and habitat resources through the rapid mobilization and recruitment of thousands of workers. More than 30 years ago, studies showed that (Z)-9-hexadecenal strongly attracted Argentine ant workers in a multi-choice olfactometer, suggesting that (Z)-9-hexadecenal might be the trail pheromone, or a component of a trail pheromone mixture. Since then, numerous studies have considered (Z)-9-hexadecenal as the key component of the Argentine ant trails. Here, we report the first chemical analyses of the trails laid by living Argentine ants and find that (Z)-9-hexadecenal is not present in a detectible quantity. Instead, two iridoids, dolichodial and iridomyrmecin, appear to be the primary chemical constituents of the trails. Laboratory choice tests confirmed that Argentine ants were attracted to artificial trails comprised of these two chemicals significantly more often than control trails. Although (Z)-9-hexadecenal was not detected in natural trails, supplementation of artificial dolichodial+iridomyrmecin trails with an extremely low concentraion of (Z)-9-hexadecenal did increase the efficacy of the trail-following behavior. In stark contrast with previous dogma, our study suggests that dolichodial and iridomyrmecin are major components of the Argentine ant trail pheromone. (Z)-9-hexadecenal may act in an additive manner with these iridoids, but it does not occur in detectable quantities in Argentine ant recruitment trails. PMID:23028739

Communication disruption of guava moth (Coscinoptycha improbana) using a pheromone analog based on chain length.

PubMed

Suckling, D M; Dymock, J J; Park, K C; Wakelin, R H; Jamieson, L E

2013-09-01

The guava moth, Coscinoptycha improbana, an Australian species that infests fruit crops in commercial and home orchards, was first detected in New Zealand in 1997. A four-component pheromone blend was identified but is not yet commercially available. Using single sensillum recordings from male antennae, we established that the same olfactory receptor neurons responded to two guava moth sex pheromone components, (Z)-11-octadecen-8-one and (Z)-12-nonadecen-9-one, and to a chain length analog, (Z)-13-eicosen-10-one, the sex pheromone of the related peach fruit moth, Carposina sasakii. We then field tested whether this non-specificity of the olfactory neurons might enable disruption of sexual communication by the commercially available analog, using male catch to synthetic lures in traps in single-tree, nine-tree and 2-ha plots. A disruptive pheromone analog, based on chain length, is reported for the first time. Trap catches for guava moth were disrupted by three polyethylene tubing dispensers releasing the analog in single-tree plots (86% disruption of control catches) and in a plots of nine trees (99% disruption). Where peach fruit moth pheromone dispensers were deployed at a density of 1000/ha in two 2-ha areas, pheromone traps for guava moth were completely disrupted for an extended period (up to 470 days in peri-urban gardens in Mangonui and 422 days in macadamia nut orchards in Kerikeri). In contrast, traps in untreated areas over 100 m away caught 302.8 ± 128.1 moths/trap in Mangonui and 327.5 ± 78.5 moths/ trap in Kerikeri. The longer chain length in the pheromone analog has greater longevity than the natural pheromone due to its lower volatility. Chain length analogs may warrant further investigation for mating disruption in Lepidoptera, and screening using single-sensillum recording is recommended.

Do perfume additives termed human pheromones warrant being termed pheromones?

PubMed

Winman, Anders

2004-09-30

Two studies of the effects of perfume additives, termed human pheromones by the authors, have conveyed the message that these substances can promote an increase in human sociosexual behaviour [Physiol. Behav. 75 (2003) R1; Arch. Sex. Behav. 27 (1998) R2]. The present paper presents an extended analysis of this data. It is shown that in neither study is there a statistically significant increase in any of the sociosexual behaviours for the experimental groups. In the control groups of both studies, there are, however, moderate but statistically significant decreases in the corresponding behaviour. Most notably, there is no support in data for the claim that the substances increase the attractiveness of the wearers of the substances to the other sex. It is concluded that more research using matched homogenous groups of participants is needed. Copyright 2004 Elsevier Inc.

Pheromone induction of agglutination in Saccharomyces cerevisiae a cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Terrance, K.; Lipke, P.N.

1987-10-01

a-Agglutinin, the cell surface sexual agglutinin of yeast a cells, was assayed by its ability to bind its complementary agglutinin, ..cap alpha..-agglutinin. The specific binding of /sup 125/I-..cap alpha..-agglutinin to a cells treated with the sex pheromone ..cap alpha..-factor was 2 to 2.5 times that of binding to a cells not treated with ..cap alpha..-factor. Competition with unlabeled ..cap alpha..-agglutinin revealed that the increased binding was due to increased cell surface expression of a-agglutinin, with no apparent change in the binding constant. The increase in site number was similar to the increase in cellular agglutinability. Increased expression of a-agglutinin followedmore » the same kinetics as the increase in cellular agglutinability, with a 10-min lag followed by a 15- to 20-min response time. Induction kinetics were similar in cells in phases G1 and G2 of the cell cycle. Maximal expression levels were similar in cells treated with excess pheromone and in cells exposed to pheromone after destruction of constitutively expressed a-agglutinin.« less

Olfaction in a viscous environment: the "color" of sexual smells in Temora longicornis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinow, Peter; Strickler, J. Rudi; Yen, Jeannette

2017-06-01

We investigate chemical aspects of mating in the marine copepod Temora longicornis (Copepoda, Calanoidea). Our emphasis is the female pheromone signaling in form of well-defined trails for males to follow, observed in Doall et al. (Phil Trans R Soc Lond B 353:681-689, 1998). The viscous environment and the properties of the odorants play important roles as the spread of the pheromone trail limits the time during which it is useful for tracing. A key observation from our earlier work is the ability of a searching male to detect the direction of the female and to correct its swimming direction if necessary. We propose a simple mathematical model for the spread of a pheromone from a moving source and carry out numerical simulations of two possible detection mechanisms. We find that a searching agent that is capable to detect a ratio outperforms a searcher that depends on the gradient of a single compound. This suggests that copepod sex pheromones consist of blends of chemical compounds, and that a ratio detection mechanism similar to that in airborne insects is at work.

Reported sexual desire predicts men's preferences for sexually dimorphic cues in women's faces.

PubMed

Jones, Benedict C; Little, Anthony C; Watkins, Christopher D; Welling, Lisa L M; DeBruine, Lisa M

2011-12-01

Recent studies investigating the relationship between sexual desire and sexual attraction have found that heterosexual women's reported sexual desire is positively correlated with their reported attraction to both own- and opposite-sex individuals, but that heterosexual men's reported sexual desire is positively correlated with their reported attraction to opposite-sex individuals only. These findings have led to the proposal that sexual desire is a generalized energizer of sexual attraction in heterosexual women (i.e., influences women's attraction to both men and women), but only energizes heterosexual men's sexual attraction to women. Here we show that heterosexual men's scores on the Sexual Desire Inventory-2 were positively correlated with their preferences for exaggerated sex-typical shape cues in opposite-sex, but not own-sex, faces. Together with previous research showing that heterosexual women's reported sexual desire is positively correlated with their preferences for exaggerated sex-typical shape cues in both own- and opposite-sex faces, our findings present novel converging evidence for sex-specific relationships between sexual desire and attractiveness judgments of own- and opposite-sex individuals.

Larval Diet Affects Male Pheromone Blend in a Laboratory Strain of the Medfly, Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae).

PubMed

Merli, Daniele; Mannucci, Barbara; Bassetti, Federico; Corana, Federica; Falchetto, Marco; Malacrida, Anna R; Gasperi, Giuliano; Scolari, Francesca

2018-04-01

The Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly) Ceratitis capitata is a polyphagous pest of fruits and crops with a worldwide distribution. Its ability to use different larval hosts may have multiple effects, including impacts on adult reproductive biology. The male sex pheromone, which plays a key role in attracting both other males to lekking arenas and females for mating, is a mixture of chemical compounds including esters, acids, alkanes and terpenes known to differ between laboratory strains and wild-type populations. The relationship between larval diet and adult pheromone composition remains unexplored. Here, we investigated the effect of larval diet, including laboratory media and fresh fruits, on the composition of the male pheromone mixture. Using Headspace Solid Phase Microextraction we collected the pheromone emitted by males reared as larvae on different substrates and found both qualitative and quantitative differences. A number of alkanes appeared to be typical of the pheromone of males reared on wheat bran-based larval medium, and these may be cuticular hydrocarbons involved in chemical communication. We also detected differences in pheromone composition related to adult male age, suggesting that variations in hormonal levels and/or adult diet could also play a role in determining the chemical profile emitted. Our findings highlight the plasticity of dietary responses of C. capitata, which may be important in determining the interactions of this pest with the environment and with conspecifics. These results also have applied relevance to increase the mating competitiveness of mass-reared C. capitata used in Sterile Insect Technique programs.

Olfactory eavesdropping between two competing stingless bee species.

PubMed

Lichtenberg, Elinor M; Hrncir, Michael; Turatti, Izabel C; Nieh, James C

2011-04-01

Foragers can improve search efficiency, and ultimately fitness, by using social information: cues and signals produced by other animals that indicate food location or quality. Social information use has been well studied in predator-prey systems, but its functioning within a trophic level remains poorly understood. Eavesdropping, use of signals by unintended recipients, is of particular interest because eavesdroppers may exert selective pressure on signaling systems. We provide the most complete study to date of eavesdropping between two competing social insect species by determining the glandular source and composition of a recruitment pheromone, and by examining reciprocal heterospecific responses to this signal. We tested eavesdropping between Trigona hyalinata and Trigona spinipes, two stingless bee species that compete for floral resources, exhibit a clear dominance hierarchy and recruit nestmates to high-quality food sources via pheromone trails. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of T. hyalinata recruitment pheromone revealed six carboxylic esters, the most common of which is octyl octanoate, the major component of T. spinipes recruitment pheromone. We demonstrate heterospecific detection of recruitment pheromones, which can influence heterospecific and conspecific scout orientation. Unexpectedly, the dominant T. hyalinata avoided T. spinipes pheromone in preference tests, while the subordinate T. spinipes showed neither attraction to nor avoidance of T. hyalinata pheromone. We suggest that stingless bees may seek to avoid conflict through their eavesdropping behavior, incorporating expected costs associated with a choice into the decision-making process. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00265-010-1080-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Positive Perceptions of Genital Appearance and Feeling Sexually Attractive: Is It a Matter of Sexual Esteem?

PubMed

Amos, Natalie; McCabe, Marita

2016-07-01

The present study examined the relationship between perceptions of genital appearance and self-perceived sexual attractiveness. The study sample included men and women (aged 18-45 years, M = 23.7, SD = 4.98) who identified as heterosexual (n = 1017), gay or lesbian (n = 1225), or bisexual (n = 651). Participants responded to an online survey assessing their self-perceived sexual attractiveness, genital self-image, genital self-consciousness during sexual activity, and sexual esteem. Based on previous findings, we hypothesized a positive link between genital self-perceptions and self-perceived sexual attractiveness, with sexual esteem acting as a mediator. We tested this hypothesis using structural equation modeling. Analyses revealed a significant association between both genital self-image and genital self-consciousness and self-perceived sexual attractiveness. However, these relationships were at least partially mediated by sexual esteem, across both gender and sexual orientation. The findings suggest that, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, individuals who maintain a positive genital self-image or lack genital self-consciousness, are more likely to experience greater sexual esteem, and in turn, feel more sexually attractive. The findings have implications for the importance of genital appearance perceptions and improving individuals' sexual esteem and self-perceived sexual attractiveness.

Differential recognition of geometric isomers by the boll weevil,Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): Evidence for only three essential components in aggregation pheromone.

PubMed

Dickens, J C; Prestwich, G D

1989-02-01

For two decades, the aggregation pheromone of the boll weevil,Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), was thought to consist of four compounds: I [(+)-(Z)-2-isopropenyl-1-methylcyclobutane ethanol]; II [(Z)-3,3-dimethyl-Δ(I,β)-cyclohexane ethanol]; III [(Z)-3,3-dimethyl-Δ(1,α)-cyclohexane acetaldehyde); and IV [(E)-3,3-dimethyl-Δ(1,α)-cyclohexane acetaldehyde). Evidence is presented from behavioral and electrophysiological studies to show that only three of these components, I, II, and IV, are essential for attraction. Competitive field tests, in which each possible three-component blend was tested against the four-component mixture, demonstrated that omission of I, II. or IV resulted in decreased trap captures (P < 0.01). Trap captures by these blends lacking I, II, or IV resembled those by the hexane solvent alone in a similar experiment. However, omission of III did not significantly alter field attractiveness of the blend. Dosage-response curves constructed from electroantennogram responses of both males and females to serial dilutions of III, IV, and a 50∶50 mixture of the geometric isomers III and IV showed both sexes to be 10- to 100-fold more sensitive to IV than III. Data from the electrophysiological studies were consistent with a single acceptor type for the (E)-cyclohexylidene aldehyde, IV, for males, and possibly one or two acceptor types for III and IV for females. Possible roles for the (Z)-cyclohexylidene aldehyde, III, and implications for the pheromonal attractant currently used in boll weevil eradication/suppression programs are discussed.

Sex pheromone in the dog.

PubMed

Goodwin, M; Gooding, K M; Regnier, F

1979-02-09

Methyl p-hydroxybenzoate has been identified in the vaginal secretions of female dogs in estrus. When small amounts of this compound were applied to the vulvas of anestrous or spayed females, males placed with these females became sexually aroused and attempted to mount them.

Patterns of Asexuality in China: Sexual Activity, Sexual and Romantic Attraction, and Sexual Desire.

PubMed

Zheng, Lijun; Su, Yanchen

2018-05-01

This study examined patterns of asexuality in Chinese asexual people in terms of sexual activities, sexual/romantic attraction, and sexual desire. The sample included 227 (64 men and 163 women) asexual participants and 57 (26 men and 31 women) uncertain asexual participants recruited from social networks for asexual people. The control group included 217 (115 men and 102 women) heterosexual participants recruited from general social networks. Participants scoring 40 or higher on the Asexuality Identification Scale were classified as asexual. Asexual participants reported having less frequent masturbation, sexual intercourse experience, and sexual and romantic attraction compared to heterosexual participants. Lower sexual attraction among asexuals indicated that "people who experience little or no sexual attraction" would be a more appropriate definition of asexuality. The pattern of uncertain asexual participants' sexual/romantic attraction and sexual desire was intermediate between heterosexual and asexual participants. Asexual participants scored significantly lower on dyadic sexual desire and slightly lower on solitary sexual desire than heterosexual participants. There were significant differences in sexual activities and solitary sexual desire among romantic orientation categories. Homoromantic participants showed higher dyadic sexual desire and were more likely to engage in masturbation, indicating the heterogeneity among asexual people. The findings indicated that Chinese asexual people showed similar patterns of asexuality as in Western nations. Specifically, asexual people have little or no sexual attraction, non-partner-orientated sexual desire, and are heterogeneous in sexual activities and sexual desire. This implies similar mechanisms underlying the etiology of asexuality across cultures.

40 CFR 180.1069 - (Z)-11-Hexadecenal; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... exemption from the requirement of a tolerance is established for residues of the biological insecticide (pheromone) (Z)-11-hexadecenal when used as a sex attractant on artichoke plants to control the artichoke...

40 CFR 180.1069 - (Z)-11-Hexadecenal; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... exemption from the requirement of a tolerance is established for residues of the biological insecticide (pheromone) (Z)-11-hexadecenal when used as a sex attractant on artichoke plants to control the artichoke...

40 CFR 180.1069 - (Z)-11-Hexadecenal; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... exemption from the requirement of a tolerance is established for residues of the biological insecticide (pheromone) (Z)-11-hexadecenal when used as a sex attractant on artichoke plants to control the artichoke...

40 CFR 180.1069 - (Z)-11-Hexadecenal; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... exemption from the requirement of a tolerance is established for residues of the biological insecticide (pheromone) (Z)-11-hexadecenal when used as a sex attractant on artichoke plants to control the artichoke...

40 CFR 180.1069 - (Z)-11-Hexadecenal; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... exemption from the requirement of a tolerance is established for residues of the biological insecticide (pheromone) (Z)-11-hexadecenal when used as a sex attractant on artichoke plants to control the artichoke...

Morganella morganii bacteria produces phenol as the sex pheromone of the New Zealand grass grub from tyrosine in the colleterial gland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marshall, D. G.; Jackson, T. A.; Unelius, C. R.; Wee, S. L.; Young, S. D.; Townsend, R. J.; Suckling, D. M.

2016-08-01

Costelytra zealandica (Coleoptera: Scarabeidae) is a univoltine endemic species that has colonised and become a major pest of introduced clover and ryegrass pastures that form about half of the land area of New Zealand. Female beetles were previously shown to use phenol as their sex pheromone produced by symbiotic bacteria in the accessory or colleterial gland. In this study, production of phenol was confirmed from the female beetles, while bacteria were isolated from the gland and tested for attractiveness towards grass grub males in traps in the field. The phenol-producing bacterial taxon was identified by partial sequencing of the 16SrRNA gene, as Morganella morganii. We then tested the hypothesis that the phenol sex pheromone is biosynthesized from the amino acid tyrosine by the bacteria. This was shown to be correct, by addition of isotopically labelled tyrosine (13C) to the bacterial broth, followed by detection of the labelled phenol by SPME-GCMS. Elucidation of this pathway provides specific evidence how the phenol is produced as an insect sex pheromone by a mutualistic bacteria.

Evaluation of Nasonov Pheromone Dispensers for Pollinator Attraction in Apple, Blueberry, and Cherry.

PubMed

Williamson, J; Adams, C G; Isaacs, R; Gut, L J

2018-04-23

Declines in the number of commercial honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) (Hymenoptera: Apidae) and some wild bee species around the world threaten fruit, nut, and vegetable production and have prompted interest in developing methods for gaining efficiencies in pollination services. One possible approach would be to deploy attractants within the target crop to increase the number of floral visits. In this study, we evaluate two new pollinator attractants, Polynate and SPLAT Bloom, for their ability to increase pollinator visitation and fruit set in apple (Malus pumila Mill.), highbush blueberry (Vaccinium sp. L.), and tart cherry (Prunus cerasus L.). Polynate is a plastic twin-tube dispenser loaded with a mixture of floral scent and Nasonov pheromone. SPLAT Bloom contains the same chemical formula as Polynate, but is applied as a 3 g wax dollop directly onto the tree or bush. The objectives of this study were to determine if Polynate and SPLAT Bloom increase the number of honey bee foragers and fruit set in apples, highbush blueberries, and tart cherries. We conducted replicated evaluations of 32 fields or orchards with and without putative attractants over three growing seasons. Both products failed to provide a measurable increase in pollinator visits or fruit set in these crops, indicating no return on investment for either product.

Female sex pheromone and male behavioral responses of the bombycid moth Trilocha varians: comparison with those of the domesticated silkmoth Bombyx mori

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daimon, Takaaki; Fujii, Takeshi; Yago, Masaya; Hsu, Yu-Feng; Nakajima, Yumiko; Fujii, Tsuguru; Katsuma, Susumu; Ishikawa, Yukio; Shimada, Toru

2012-03-01

Analysis of female sex pheromone components and subsequent field trap experiments demonstrated that the bombycid moth Trilocha varians uses a mixture of ( E, Z)-10,12-hexadecadienal (bombykal) and ( E,Z)-10,12-hexadecadienyl acetate (bombykyl acetate) as a sex pheromone. Both of these components are derivatives of ( E,Z)-10,12-hexadecadienol (bombykol), the sex pheromone of the domesticated silkmoth Bombyx mori. This finding prompted us to compare the antennal and behavioral responses of T. varians and B. mori to bombykol, bombykal, and bombykyl acetate in detail. The antennae of T. varians males responded to bombykal and bombykyl acetate but not to bombykol, and males were attracted only when lures contained both bombykal and bombykyl acetate. In contrast, the antennae of B. mori males responded to all the three components. Behavioral analysis showed that B. mori males responded to neither bombykal nor bombykyl acetate. Meanwhile, the wing fluttering response of B. mori males to bombykol was strongly inhibited by bombykal and bombykyl acetate, thereby indicating that bombykal and bombykyl acetate act as behavioral antagonists for B. mori males. T. varians would serve as a reference species for B. mori in future investigations into the molecular mechanisms underlying the evolution of sex pheromone communication systems in bombycid moths.

Carbonyl reduction in the biosynthesis of a male sex pheromone secreted by the grape borer Xylotrechus pyrrhoderus.

PubMed

Iwabuchi, Kikuo; Arakawa, Maki; Kiyota, Ryutaro; Hoshino, Keita; Ando, Tetsu

2014-10-01

Males of the cerambycid beetle Xylotrechus pyrrhoderus release a mixture of (S)-2-hydroxy-3-octanone [(S)-1] and (2S,3S)-2,3-octanediol [(2S,3S)-2] as a sex pheromone that attracts conspecific females. The chemical structures of these pheromone components include a common motif and are assumed to be biosynthetically related. Here, we show that deuterated (S)-1, applied on the cuticle of a pronotal pheromone gland, was converted into (2S,3S)-2, that included deuterium atoms, but a reverse conversion did not take place. These results reveal a carbonyl reductase to be active in the pheromone gland, and that the ketol is a biosynthetic precursor of the diol. Males did not produce (R)-1; however, deuterated (R)-1 was converted into (2R,3R)-2, indicating an attack of the enzyme from the opposite side of the hydroxyl group at the 2-position. Furthermore, to understand the substrate specificity of the enzyme, racemates of 2-hydroxy-3-hexanone and 2-hydroxy-3-decanone were synthesized and applied to the gland. Their conversion into the corresponding diols suggests that the enzyme reduces the carbonyl group at the 3-position, regardless of the chain length.

Role of the vomeronasal organ on the estral cycle reduction by pheromones in the rat.

PubMed

Mora, O A; Sánchez-Criado, J E; Guisado, S

1985-09-01

The role of he vomeronasal organ on the estral cycle reduction induced by pheromones is studied in adult female wistar rats. The animals were divided in three groups: I, intact rats; II, vomeronasalectomized rats (VNX); and III, sham operated rats (sham). Each group was submitted to another three distinct conditions from the day they were weaned (21 days old): Isolated female rats; with male odors from two adult males of tested sexual potency, and isolated rats again. The isolated intact rats show mainly 5 day length cycles. The groups I and III (intacts and sham) with male odors, show 4 day length cycles. The VNX animals show 5 day cycles in any one experimental conditions. These results support the idea that the vomeronasal organ is the receptor of the male reducing cycle pheromone in the female rat.

Stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturases are associated with floral isolation in sexually deceptive orchids

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schluter, P.M.; Shanklin, J.; Xu, S.

The orchids Ophrys sphegodes and O. exaltata are reproductively isolated from each other by the attraction of two different, highly specific pollinator species. For pollinator attraction, flowers chemically mimic the pollinators sex pheromones, the key components of which are alkenes with different double-bond positions. This study identifies genes likely involved in alkene biosynthesis, encoding stearoyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) desaturase (SAD) homologs. The expression of two isoforms, SAD1 and SAD2, is flower-specific and broadly parallels alkene production during flower development. SAD2 shows a significant association with alkene production, and in vitro assays show that O. sphegodes SAD2 has activity both asmore » an 18:0-ACP {Delta}{sup 9} and a 16:0-ACP {Delta}{sup 4} desaturase. Downstream metabolism of the SAD2 reaction products would give rise to alkenes with double-bonds at position 9 or position 12, matching double-bond positions observed in alkenes in the odor bouquet of O. sphegodes. SAD1 and SAD2 show evidence of purifying selection before, and positive or relaxed purifying selection after gene duplication. By contributing to the production of species-specific alkene bouquets, SAD2 is suggested to contribute to differential pollinator attraction and reproductive isolation among these species. Taken together, these data are consistent with the hypothesis that SAD2 is a florally expressed barrier gene of large phenotypic effect and, possibly, a genic target of pollinator-mediated selection.« less

Stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturases are associated with floral isolation in sexually deceptive orchids

PubMed Central

Schlüter, Philipp M.; Xu, Shuqing; Gagliardini, Valeria; Whittle, Edward; Shanklin, John; Grossniklaus, Ueli; Schiestl, Florian P.

2011-01-01

The orchids Ophrys sphegodes and O. exaltata are reproductively isolated from each other by the attraction of two different, highly specific pollinator species. For pollinator attraction, flowers chemically mimic the pollinators’ sex pheromones, the key components of which are alkenes with different double-bond positions. This study identifies genes likely involved in alkene biosynthesis, encoding stearoyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) desaturase (SAD) homologs. The expression of two isoforms, SAD1 and SAD2, is flower-specific and broadly parallels alkene production during flower development. SAD2 shows a significant association with alkene production, and in vitro assays show that O. sphegodes SAD2 has activity both as an 18:0-ACP Δ9 and a 16:0-ACP Δ4 desaturase. Downstream metabolism of the SAD2 reaction products would give rise to alkenes with double-bonds at position 9 or position 12, matching double-bond positions observed in alkenes in the odor bouquet of O. sphegodes. SAD1 and SAD2 show evidence of purifying selection before, and positive or relaxed purifying selection after gene duplication. By contributing to the production of species-specific alkene bouquets, SAD2 is suggested to contribute to differential pollinator attraction and reproductive isolation among these species. Taken together, these data are consistent with the hypothesis that SAD2 is a florally expressed barrier gene of large phenotypic effect and, possibly, a genic target of pollinator-mediated selection. PMID:21436056

Male sexual enhancement after methoprene treatment in Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae): A sustained response that does not fade away after sexual maturation.

PubMed

Bachmann, G E; Devescovi, F; Nussenbaum, A L; Cladera, J L; Fernández, P C; Vera, M T; Teal, P E A; Segura, D F

2017-08-01

The juvenile hormone (JH) of insects triggers physiological changes related to reproduction in adults of both sexes. Methoprene is a sesquiterpene with some effects that are analogous to those of JH. Treatments with methoprene accelerate sexual maturation in males of the South American fruit fly Anastrepha fraterculus, giving young males a mating advantage over non-treated males of the same age. Here, we evaluated the effects of methoprene treatment on A. fraterculus males after the sexual maturation phase and tested whether this compound provides a long-term mating advantage. Moreover, we took the first step to unravel the mechanisms that underlie male sexual enhancement. We treated males 1day or 8days after adult emergence and compared mate choice between recently matured (young) females and females that had been mature for ca. 10days (aged females). We also addressed methoprene treatment effects on male sexual signalling. We found that methoprene treatment enhanced male sexual competitiveness even after the sexual maturation phase, and the effect did not decrease until males were older than 20days. However, when methoprene treatment was carried out close to sexual maturity, the mating enhancement was no longer observed, suggesting a non-immediate effect and excluding the possibility that methoprene acts as a pheromonal compound. Young and aged females tended to mate more frequently with treated-males. This might indicate that in a context of sexual selection, the potential benefits associated with reproductive success would be similar for females of both ages. Treated males released larger amounts of pheromonal compounds than non-treated males, but their courtship behaviour was not altered to the same extent, suggesting that methoprene treatment may accelerate differently the components of male courtship. We discuss potential benefits of using methoprene to increase the efficiency of the sterile insect technique, which is an environmentally safe method to control this important South American fruit pest. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrated sampling and analysis unit for the determination of sexual pheromones in environmental air using fabric phase sorptive extraction and headspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Alcudia-León, M Carmen; Lucena, Rafael; Cárdenas, Soledad; Valcárcel, Miguel; Kabir, Abuzar; Furton, Kenneth G

2017-03-10

This article presents a novel unit that integrates for the first time air sampling and preconcentration based on the use of fabric phase sorptive extraction principles. The determination of Tuta absoluta sexual pheromone traces in environmental air has been selected as analytical problem. For this aim, a novel laboratory-built unit made up of commercial brass elements as holder of the sol-gel coated fabric extracting phase has been designed and optimized. The performance of the integrated unit was evaluated analyzing environmental air sampled in tomato crops. The unit can work under sampling and analysis mode which eliminates any need for sorptive phase manipulation prior to instrumental analysis. In the sampling mode, the unit can be connected to a sampling pump to pass the air through the sorptive phase at a controlled flow-rate. In the analysis mode, it is placed in the gas chromatograph autosampler without any instrumental modification. It also diminishes the risk of cross contamination between sampling and analysis. The performance of the new unit has been evaluated using the main components of the sexual pheromone of Tuta absoluta [(3E,8Z,11Z)-tetradecatrien-1-yl acetate and (3E,8Z)-tetradecadien-1-yl acetate] as model analytes. The limits of detection for both compounds resulted to be 1.6μg and 0.8μg, respectively, while the precision (expressed as relative standard deviation) was better than 3.7%. Finally, the unit has been deployed in the field to analyze a number of real life samples, some of them were found positive. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Viewing time measures of sexual orientation in Samoan cisgender men who engage in sexual interactions with fa'afafine.

PubMed

Petterson, Lanna J; Dixson, Barnaby J; Little, Anthony C; Vasey, Paul L

2015-01-01

Androphilia refers to attraction to adult males, whereas gynephilia refers to attraction to adult females. The current study employed self-report and viewing time (response time latency) measures of sexual attraction to determine the sexual orientation of Samoan cisgender men (i.e., males whose gender presentation and identity is concordant with their biological sex) who engage in sexual interactions with transgender male androphiles (known locally as fa'afafine) compared to: (1) Samoan cisgender men who only engage in sexual interactions with women, and (2) fa'afafine. As expected, both measures indicated that cisgender men who only engaged in sexual interactions with women exhibited a gynephilic pattern of sexual attraction, whereas fa'afafine exhibited an androphilic one. In contrast, both measures indicated that cisgender men who engaged in sexual interactions with fa'afafine demonstrated a bisexual pattern of sexual attraction. Most of the cisgender men who exhibited bisexual viewing times did not engage in sexual activity with both men and women indicating that the manner in which bisexual patterns of sexual attraction manifest behaviorally vary from one culture to the next.

Cascading trait-mediated interactions induced by ant pheromones

PubMed Central

Hsieh, Hsun-Yi; Liere, Heidi; Soto, Estelí J; Perfecto, Ivette

2012-01-01

Trait-mediated indirect interactions (TMII) can be as important as density-mediated indirect interactions. Here, we provide evidence for a novel trait-mediated cascade (where one TMII affects another TMII) and demonstrate that the mechanism consists of a predator eavesdropping on chemical signaling. Ants protect scale insects from predation by adult coccinellid beetles – the first TMII. However, parasitic phorid flies reduce ant foraging activity by 50% – the second TMII, providing a window of opportunity for female beetles to oviposit in high-quality microsites. Beetle larvae are protected from ant predation and benefit from living in patches with high scale densities. We demonstrate that female beetles can detect pheromones released by the ant when attacked by phorids, and that only females, and especially gravid females, are attracted to the ant pheromone. As ants reduce their movement when under attack by phorids, we conclude that phorids facilitate beetle oviposition, thus producing the TMII cascade. PMID:23139877

The Temporal Stability of Lack of Sexual Attraction Across Young Adulthood.

PubMed

Cranney, Stephen

2016-04-01

There is a large and growing literature on the stability of sexual orientation across the lifespan. However, virtually no studies have been conducted on the longitudinal stability of any dimension of asexuality. Here I utilized Kinsey scale-type data from Wave III and Wave IV of the Add Health survey to measure the stability of indicating "not sexually attracted to either males or females" in a forced-choice, Kinsey-type scale and during the time participants were moving through early adulthood (18-26 years in Wave III and 24-32 years in Wave IV). I found that, for the most part, individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave III were not the same individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave IV, with only three out of the 25 in Wave III who indicated no sexual attraction going on to do the same in Wave IV. This inter-wave consistency was lower than it was for other sexual minorities. However, indicating no sexual attraction in one wave was still a statistically significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave, as was refusing to answer or indicating the "don't know" option in the other wave. These findings do not necessarily denote change in sexual attraction across waves; the fact that not answering the question in one wave was a significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave provides quantitative evidence for the ambiguities involved in sexual identities when sexuality is taken for granted in the broader culture. This ambiguity affects the operationalization and quantification of asexuality.

The Temporal Stability of Lack of Sexual Attraction across Young Adulthood

PubMed Central

Cranney, Stephen

2017-01-01

There is a large and growing literature on the stability of sexual orientation across the lifespan. However, virtually no studies have been conducted on the longitudinal stability of any dimension of asexuality. Here, I utilized Kinsey scale-type data from Wave III and Wave IV of the Add Health survey to measure the stability of indicating “not sexually attracted to either males or females” in a forced-choice, Kinsey-type scale during the time participants were moving through early adulthood (18-26 in Wave III and 24-32 in Wave IV). I found that, for the most part, individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave III were not the same individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave IV, with only three out of the 25 in Wave III who indicated no sexual attraction going on to do the same in Wave IV. This inter-wave consistency was lower than it was for other sexual minorities. However, indicating no sexual attraction in one wave was still a statistically significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave, as was refusing to answer or indicating the “don’t know” option in the other wave. These findings do not necessarily denote change in sexual attraction across waves; the fact that not answering the question in one wave was a significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave provides quantitative evidence for the ambiguities involved in sexual identities when sexuality is taken for granted in the broader culture. This ambiguity affects the operationalization and quantification of asexuality. PMID:26228992

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Queen Reproductive Potential Affects Queen Mandibular Gland Pheromone Composition and Worker Retinue Response.

PubMed

Rangel, Juliana; Böröczky, Katalin; Schal, Coby; Tarpy, David R

2016-01-01

Reproductive division of labor is one of the defining traits of honey bees (Apis mellifera), with non-reproductive tasks being performed by workers while a single queen normally monopolizes reproduction. The decentralized organization of a honey bee colony is maintained in large part by a bouquet of queen-produced pheromones, the distribution of which is facilitated by contact among workers throughout the hive. Previous studies have shown that the developmental fate of honey bee queens is highly plastic, with queens raised from younger worker larvae exhibiting higher measures of reproductive potential compared to queens raised from older worker larvae. We investigated differences in the chemical composition of the mandibular glands and attractiveness to workers of "high-quality" queens (i.e., raised from first instar worker larvae; more queen-like) and "low-quality" queens (i.e., raised from third instar worker larvae; more worker-like). We characterized the chemical profiles of the mandibular glands of high-quality queens and low-quality queens using GC-MS and used the worker retinue response as a measure of the attractiveness to workers of high-quality queens vs. low-quality queens. We found that queen quality affected the chemical profiles of mandibular gland contents differently across years, showing significant differences in the production of the queen mandibular pheromone ("QMP") components HVA and 9-HDA in 2010, but no significant differences of any glandular compound in 2012. We also found that workers were significantly more attracted to high-quality queens than to low-quality queens in 2012, possibly because of increased attractiveness of their mandibular gland chemical profiles. Our results indicate that the age at which honey bee larvae enter the "queen-specific" developmental pathway influences the chemical composition of queen mandibular glands and worker behavior. However, these changes are not consistent across years, suggesting that other external factors may play important roles in modulating queen quality.

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Queen Reproductive Potential Affects Queen Mandibular Gland Pheromone Composition and Worker Retinue Response

PubMed Central

Böröczky, Katalin; Schal, Coby; Tarpy, David R.

2016-01-01

Reproductive division of labor is one of the defining traits of honey bees (Apis mellifera), with non-reproductive tasks being performed by workers while a single queen normally monopolizes reproduction. The decentralized organization of a honey bee colony is maintained in large part by a bouquet of queen-produced pheromones, the distribution of which is facilitated by contact among workers throughout the hive. Previous studies have shown that the developmental fate of honey bee queens is highly plastic, with queens raised from younger worker larvae exhibiting higher measures of reproductive potential compared to queens raised from older worker larvae. We investigated differences in the chemical composition of the mandibular glands and attractiveness to workers of “high-quality” queens (i.e., raised from first instar worker larvae; more queen-like) and “low-quality” queens (i.e., raised from third instar worker larvae; more worker-like). We characterized the chemical profiles of the mandibular glands of high-quality queens and low-quality queens using GC-MS and used the worker retinue response as a measure of the attractiveness to workers of high-quality queens vs. low-quality queens. We found that queen quality affected the chemical profiles of mandibular gland contents differently across years, showing significant differences in the production of the queen mandibular pheromone (“QMP”) components HVA and 9-HDA in 2010, but no significant differences of any glandular compound in 2012. We also found that workers were significantly more attracted to high-quality queens than to low-quality queens in 2012, possibly because of increased attractiveness of their mandibular gland chemical profiles. Our results indicate that the age at which honey bee larvae enter the “queen-specific” developmental pathway influences the chemical composition of queen mandibular glands and worker behavior. However, these changes are not consistent across years, suggesting that other external factors may play important roles in modulating queen quality. PMID:27281328

Combination Phenyl Propionate/Pheromone Traps for Monitoring Navel Orangeworm (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in Almonds in the Vicinity of Mating Disruption.

PubMed

Burks, Charles S

2017-04-01

Aerosol mating disruption is used for management of navel orangeworm, Amyelois transitella (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), in an increasing portion of California almonds and pistachios. This formulation suppresses pheromone monitoring traps far beyond the treatment block, potentially complicating monitoring and management of this key pest. Phenyl propionate is an attractant used to capture adults in the presence of mating disruption, completely suppressing pheromone traps, and lures combining phenyl propionate with a pheromone lure (PPO-combo lure) synergize trap capture in the presence of mating disruption. In this study, laboratory and field trials of different phenyl propionate dispensers indicate a useful life of six weeks. Controlled experiments found similar numbers of adults captured in phenyl propionate and PPO-combo lures in the presence of varying levels of mating disruption intensity. A subsequent trial compared monitoring of field plots at various distances from fields under commercial mating disruption for much of the growing season with pheromone and PPO-combo lures. Although there was some evidence of partial suppression of capture in PPO-combo traps closer to mating disruption compared with lures farther away, there was no failure of detection as occurred with pheromone lures. The ratio of adults in pheromone and PPO-combo traps varied with proximity from treated fields. These results indicate that, in addition to monitoring in mating disruption plots, phenyl propionate lures can be useful for insuring against failure of detection of navel orangeworm pressure in areas where mating disruption is widely used. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America 2017. This work is written by a US Government employee and is in the public domain in the US.

Pheromonal divergence between two strains of Spodoptera frugiperda

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Abstract- Spodoptera frugiperda consists of two genetically and behaviorally different strains, the corn- and the rice-strain, which seem to be in the process of sympatric speciation. We investigated the role of strain-specific sexual communication as a prezygotic mating barrier between both strains...

(3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)-Pentacosapentaene and (Z) -11-Hexadecenyl Acetate: sex attractant blend for Dioryctria amatella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae).

Treesearch

Daniel Miller; Jocelyn Millar; Alex Mangini; Christopher Crowe; Gary Grant

2010-01-01

In 2006-2008, we tested (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)-pentacosapentaene (pentaene) with the pheromone components (Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate (Z11-16:Ac) and (Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:Ac), as sex attractants for four sympatric species of coneworms, Dioryctria Zeller (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in slash (Pinus elliottii Engelm.) and...

Responses of Cerambycidae and other insects to traps baited with ethanol, 2,3-hexanediol, and 3,2-hydroxyketone lures in north-central Georgia

Treesearch

Dan Miller; Christopher Crowe; P. D. Mayo; P. J. Silk; J. D. Sweeney

2015-01-01

In north-central Georgia, 13 species of woodboring beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae) were attracted to multiple-funnel traps baited with ethanol and one of the following pheromones: (1) racemic 3-hydroxyhexan-2-one; (2) racemic 3-hydroxyoctan-2-one; and (3) syn-2,3-hexanediol. The following species were attracted to traps baited with ethanol and 3-...

"Feeling frumpy": the relationships between body image and sexual response changes in midlife women.

PubMed

Koch, Patricia Barthalow; Mansfield, Phyllis Kernoff; Thurau, Debra; Carey, Molly

2005-08-01

This study investigated the relationships between self-rated attractiveness and self-reported sexual response changes (over the past decade) and current sexual satisfaction in 307 heterosexual, midlife women. Results indicated that regardless of the woman's specific age, she was more likely to consider herself more attractive when she was 10 years younger and her self-perceived attractiveness did not significantly differ based on her menopausal status. The more a woman perceived herself as less attractive than before, the more likely she was to report a decline in sexual desire or frequency of sexual activity. The more she perceived herself as attractive, the more likely she was to experience an increase in sexual desire, orgasm, enjoyment, or frequency of sexual activity. There were no significant statistical relationships between a woman's perception of her own attractiveness as she aged and her current sexual satisfaction.

The Effect of Target Sex, Sexual Dimorphism, and Facial Attractiveness on Perceptions of Target Attractiveness and Trustworthiness

PubMed Central

Hu, Yuanyan; Abbasi, Najam ul Hasan; Zhang, Yang; Chen, Hong

2018-01-01

Facial sexual dimorphism has widely demonstrated as having an influence on the facial attractiveness and social interactions. However, earlier studies show inconsistent results on the effect of sexual dimorphism on facial attractiveness judgments. Previous studies suggest that the level of attractiveness might work as a moderating variable among the relationship between sexual dimorphism and facial preference and have often focused on the effect of sexual dimorphism on general attractiveness ratings, rather than concentrating on trustworthiness perception. Male and female participants viewed target male and female faces that varied on attractiveness (more attractive or less attractive) and sexual dimorphism (masculine or feminine). Participants rated the attractiveness of the faces and reported how much money they would give to the target person as a measure of trust. For the facial attractiveness ratings, (a) both men and women participants preferred masculine male faces to feminine male ones under the more attractive condition, whereas preferred feminine male faces to masculine male ones under the less attractive condition; (b) all participants preferred feminine female faces to masculine female ones under the less attractive condition, while there were no differences between feminine female faces and masculine female faces under the more attractive condition. For the target trustworthiness perception, (a) participants showed no preference between masculine male faces and feminine male faces, neither under the more attractive condition nor the less attractiveness condition; (b) however, all the participants preferred masculine female faces over feminine female faces under the more attractive condition, exhibiting no preference between feminine female faces and masculine female faces under the less attractive condition. These findings suggest that the attractiveness of facial stimulus may be a reason to interpret the inconsistent results from the previous studies, which focused on the effect of facial sexual dimorphism on the facial attractiveness. Furthermore, implications about the effect of target facial sexual dimorphism on participants’ trustworthiness perception were discussed.

An integrative view of sexual selection in Tribolium flour beetles.

PubMed

Fedina, Tatyana Y; Lewis, Sara M

2008-05-01

Sexual selection is a major force driving the evolution of diverse reproductive traits. This evolutionary process is based on individual reproductive advantages that arise either through intrasexual competition or through intersexual choice and conflict. While classical studies of sexual selection focused mainly on differences in male mating success, more recent work has focused on the differences in paternity share that may arise through sperm competition or cryptic female choice whenever females mate with multiple males. Thus, an integrative view of sexual selection needs to encompass processes that occur not only before copulation (pre-mating), but also during copulation (peri-mating), as well as after copulation (post-mating), all of which can generate differences in reproductive success. By encompassing mechanisms of sexual selection across all of these sequential reproductive stages this review takes an integrative approach to sexual selection in Tribolium flour beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), a particularly well-studied and economically important model organism. Tribolium flour beetles colonize patchily distributed grain stores, and juvenile and adult stages share the same food resources. Adults are highly promiscuous and female reproduction is distributed across an adult lifespan lasting approximately 1 year. While Tribolium males produce an aggregation pheromone that attracts both sexes, there appears to be little pre-mating discrimination among potential mates by either sex. However, recent work has revealed several peri-mating and post-mating mechanisms that determine how offspring paternity is apportioned among a female's mates. During mating, Tribolium females reject spermatophore transfer and limit sperm numbers transferred by males with low phenotypic quality. Although there is some conflicting evidence, male copulatory leg-rubbing appears to be associated with overcoming female resistance to insemination and does not influence a male's subsequent paternity share. Evidence suggests that Tribolium beetles have several possible post-mating mechanisms that they may use to bias paternity. Male sperm precedence has been extensively studied in Tribolium spp. and the related Tenebrio molitor, and several factors influencing male paternity share among a female's progeny have been identified. These include oviposition time, inter-mating interval, male strain/genotype, the mating regimen of a male's mother, male starvation, and tapeworm infection. Females exert muscular control over sperm storage, although there is no evidence to date that females use this to differentiate among mates. Females could also influence offspring paternity by re-mating with additional males, and T. castaneum females more readily accept spermatophores when they are re-mating with more attractive males. Additional work is needed to examine the possible roles played by both male and female accessory gland products in determining male paternity share. Sexual selection during pre-mating episodes may be reinforced or counteracted by peri- and post-copulatory selection, and antagonistic coevolution between the sexes may be played out across reproductive stages. In Tribolium, males' olfactory attractiveness is positively correlated with both insemination success and paternity share, suggesting consistent selection across different reproductive stages. Similar studies across sequential reproductive stages are needed in other taxa to provide a more integrative view of sexual selection.

Model of Exploratory Search for Mating Partners by Fission Yeast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurwitz, Daniel; Bendezu, Felipe; Martin, Sophie; Vavylonis, Dimitrios

2014-03-01

During conditions of nitrogen starvation, the model eukaryote S. pombe (fission yeast) undergoes sexual sporulation. Because fission yeast are non-motile, contact between opposite mating types during spore formation is accomplished by polarizing growth, via the Rho GTP-ase Cdc42, in each mating type towards the selected mate, a process known as shmooing. Recent findings showed that cells pick one of their neighboring compatible mates by randomizing the position of the Cdc42 complex about the cell membrane, such that the complex is stabilized near areas of high concentration of the opposite mating type pheromone. We developed Monte Carlo simulations to model partner finding in populations of mating cells and in small cell clusters. We assume that pheromones are secreted at the site of Cdc42 accumulation and that the Cdc42 dwell time increases in response to increasing pheromone concentration. We measured the number of cells that succeed in successful reciprocal pairing, the number of cells that were unable to find a partner, and the number of cells that picked a partner already engaged with another cell. For optimal cell pairing, we find the pheromone concentration decay length is around 1 micron, of order the cell size. We show that non-linear response of Cdc42 dwell time to pheromone concentration improves the number of successful pairs for a given spatial cell distribution. We discuss how these results compare to non-exploratory pairing mechanisms.

Tissue distribution and lipophorin transport of hydrocarbons and sex pheromones in the house fly, Musca domestica

PubMed Central

Schal, Coby; Sevala, Veeresh; de L.Capurro, Margareth; Snyder, Theodore E.; Blomquist, Gary J.; Bagnères, Anne–Geneviève

2001-01-01

We investigated the relationship between epicuticular and internal hydrocarbons in the adult house fly, Musca domestica and the distribution of hydrocarbons, including the female sex pheromone component, (Z)-9-tricosene, in tissues. Internal hydrocarbons increased dramatically in relation to sexual maturation and were found in the hemolymph, ovaries, digestive tract, and fat body. (Z)-9-Tricosene comprised a relatively large fraction of the hydrocarbons in the female carcass and hemolymph, and less so in other tissues, while other hydrocarbons were represented in greater amounts in the ovaries than in other tissues. It therefore appears that certain hydrocarbons were selectively provisioned to certain tissues such as the ovaries, from which pheromone was relatively excluded. Both KBr gradient ultracentrifugation and specific immunoprecipitation indicated that > 90% of hemolymph hydrocarbons were associated with a high-density lipophorin (density = 1.09 g ml−1), composed of two apoproteins under denaturing conditions, apolipophorin I (∼240 kD) and apolipophorin II (∼85 kD). Our results support a predicted model (Chino, 1985) that lipophorin is involved in the transport of sex pheromone in M. domestica. In addition to delivering hydrocarbons and sex pheromones to the cuticular surface, we suggest that lipophorin may play an important role in an active mechanism that selectively deposits certain subsets of hydrocarbons at specific tissues. PMID:15455072

Interspecific pheromone plume interference among sympatric heliothine moths: a wind tunnel test using live, calling females.

PubMed

Lelito, Jonathan P; Myrick, Andrew J; Baker, Thomas C

2008-06-01

Three species of North American heliothine moths were used to determine the level at which interspecific female interference of male attraction to conspecific females occurs. We used live calling females of Heliothis virescens, H. subflexa, and Helicoverpa zea, as lures for conspecific males in a wind tunnel, and then placed heterospecific females on either side of the original species such that the plumes of the three females overlapped downwind. In nearly all combinations, in the presence of heterospecific females, fewer males flew upwind and contacted or courted the source than when only conspecific females were used in the same spatial arrangement. Males did not initiate upwind flight to solely heterospecific female arrangements. Our results show that the naturally emitted pheromone plumes from heterospecific females of these three species can interfere with the ability of females to attract conspecific males when multiple females are in close proximity. However, the fact that some males still located their calling, conspecific females attests to the ability of these male moths to discriminate point source odors by processing the conflicting information from interleaved strands of attractive and antagonistic odor filaments on a split-second basis.

Antennal fine morphology of the threatened beetle Osmoderma eremita (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), revealed by scanning electron microscopy.

PubMed

Zauli, Agnese; Maurizi, Emanuela; Carpaneto, Giuseppe M; Chiari, Stefano; Svensson, Glenn P; Di Giulio, Andrea

2016-03-01

The aim of this study was to characterize the antennal morphology of Osmoderma eremita, a threatened scarab beetle inhabiting tree hollows. O. eremita males produce a sex pheromone, (R)-(+)-γ-decalactone, responsible mainly for the attraction of females but also other males. Gross and fine morphology of microstructures including sensilla, microsculpture and pores were analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscopy. The antenna of O. eremita showed the typical lamellicorn shape of scarab beetles, with a basal scape, a pedicel, a funicle composed of five antennomeres and a club composed of three lamellae. Six different subtypes of sensilla chaetica (Ch.1 - 6), Böhm sensilla (Bo), one subtype of sensilla basiconica (Ba.1), two subtypes of sensilla coeloconica (Co.1 - 2), two subtypes of sensilla placodea (Pl.1 - 2), pores and peculiar folds were described. The two sexes did not show any significant differences in the occurrence and number of the sensilla placodea, known to be responsible for the pheromone reception. Instead, some sexual differences were found on the occurrence and topology of three different microstructures: (1) one subtype of sensillum chaeticum (Ch.2) occurring on the pedicel only in males; (2) a characteristic pore occurring on the funicle only in males; (3) a peculiar fold occurring on different antennomeres of the funicle in the two sexes, on the fourth in males and on the fifth in females. A comparison between sensilla of O. eremita and those of other Scarabaeoidea is provided. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

"All of My Lovers Fit Into This Scale": Sexual Minority Individuals' Responses to Two Novel Measures of Sexual Orientation.

PubMed

Galupo, M Paz; Lomash, Edward; Mitchell, Renae C

2017-01-01

Previous qualitative research on traditional measures of sexual orientation raise concerns regarding how well these scales capture sexual minority individuals' experience of sexuality. The present research focused on the critique of two novel scales developed to better capture the way sexual and gender minority individuals conceptualize sexuality. Participants were 179 sexual minority (i.e., gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, queer, asexual) individuals who identified as cisgender (n = 122) and transgender (n = 57). Participants first completed the new scales, then provided qualitative responses regarding how well each scale captured their sexuality. The Sexual-Romantic Scale enabled the measurement of sexual and romantic attraction to each sex independently (same-sex and other-sex). Participants resonated with the way the Sexual-Romantic scale disaggregated sexual and romantic attraction. Although cisgender monosexual (lesbian/gay) individuals positively responded to the separation of same- and other-sex attraction, individuals with either plurisexual (bisexual, pansexual, or fluid) or transgender identities found the binary conceptualization of sex/gender problematic. The Gender-Inclusive Scale incorporated same- and other-sex attraction as well as dimensions of attraction beyond those based on sex (attraction to masculine, feminine, androgynous, and gender non-conforming individuals). The incorporation of dimensions of sexual attraction outside of sex in the Gender-Inclusive Scale was positively regarded by participants of all identities. Findings indicate that the Sexual-Romantic and Gender-Inclusive scales appear to address some of the concerns raised in previous research regarding the measurement of sexual orientation among sexual minority individuals.

Viewing Time Measures of Sexual Orientation in Samoan Cisgender Men Who Engage in Sexual Interactions with Fa’afafine

PubMed Central

Petterson, Lanna J.; Dixson, Barnaby J.; Little, Anthony C.; Vasey, Paul L.

2015-01-01

Androphilia refers to attraction to adult males, whereas gynephilia refers to attraction to adult females. The current study employed self-report and viewing time (response time latency) measures of sexual attraction to determine the sexual orientation of Samoan cisgender men (i.e., males whose gender presentation and identity is concordant with their biological sex) who engage in sexual interactions with transgender male androphiles (known locally as fa’afafine) compared to: (1) Samoan cisgender men who only engage in sexual interactions with women, and (2) fa’afafine. As expected, both measures indicated that cisgender men who only engaged in sexual interactions with women exhibited a gynephilic pattern of sexual attraction, whereas fa’afafine exhibited an androphilic one. In contrast, both measures indicated that cisgender men who engaged in sexual interactions with fa’afafine demonstrated a bisexual pattern of sexual attraction. Most of the cisgender men who exhibited bisexual viewing times did not engage in sexual activity with both men and women indicating that the manner in which bisexual patterns of sexual attraction manifest behaviorally vary from one culture to the next. PMID:25679961

Odor-conditioned rheotaxis of the sea lamprey: modeling, analysis and validation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Choi, Jongeun; Jean, Soo; Johnson, Nicholas S.; Brant, Cory O.; Li, Weiming

2013-01-01

Mechanisms for orienting toward and locating an odor source are sought in both biology and engineering. Chemical ecology studies have demonstrated that adult female sea lamprey show rheotaxis in response to a male pheromone with dichotomous outcomes: sexually mature females locate the source of the pheromone whereas immature females swim by the source and continue moving upstream. Here we introduce a simple switching mechanism modeled after odor-conditioned rheotaxis for the sea lamprey as they search for the source of a pheromone in a one-dimensional riverine environment. In this strategy, the females move upstream only if they detect that the pheromone concentration is higher than a threshold value and drifts down (by turning off control action to save energy) otherwise. In addition, we propose various uncertainty models such as measurement noise, actuator disturbance, and a probabilistic model of a concentration field in turbulent flow. Based on the proposed model with uncertainties, a convergence analysis showed that with this simplistic switching mechanism, the lamprey converges to the source location on average in spite of all such uncertainties. Furthermore, a slightly modified model and its extensive simulation results explain the behaviors of immature female lamprey near the source location.

Attraction of the larval predator Elater ferrugineus to the sex pheromone of its prey, Osmoderma eremita, and its implication for conservation biology.

PubMed

Svensson, Glenn P; Larsson, Mattias C; Hedin, Jonas

2004-02-01

Elater ferrugineus is a threatened click beetle inhabiting old hollow trees. Its larvae consume larvae of other saproxylic insects including the threatened scarab beetle Osmoderma eremita. Recently, (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone was identified as a male-produced sex pheromone of O. eremita. Here we present evidence that E. ferrugineus adults use this odor as a kairomone for location of their prey. In field trapping experiments, significantly more trapping events of E. ferrugineus beetles were observed in Lindgren funnel traps baited with (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone than in control traps (20 vs. 1, respectively). Analyses of headspace collections from E. ferrugineus beetles indicate that the predator itself does not produce the substance. Both sexes were attracted to the prey pheromone. suggesting that E. ferrugineus males use the odor as an indirect cue for location of mates or of the tree hollows, which make up their habitat. When compared to pitfall traps, the Lindgren system was significantly more effective in trapping E. ferragineus, and no difference could be established for O. eremita, showing the high potential to use odor-based systems to catch both species. We suggest that (R)-(+)-gamma-decalactone could be used as a master signal in monitoring programs for these vulnerable beetle species. which are both regarded as indicators of the associated insect fauna of the threatened habitat of old hollow trees.

[Sexual attraction: a concept analysis using an evolutionary perspective].

PubMed

Yang, Shu-Chin; Chu, Chun-Hong; Lu, Zxy-Yann Jane

2015-02-01

Medical technology has transformed the body image of women and altered perceptions of beauty and sexual attraction. While "sexual attraction" is a fundamental concept in sexology, the characteristics of this concept have not been studied in the field of nursing. Because nurses provide advice and health education for women, it is essential to clarify the concept of sexual attraction for the benefit of related nursing research and for the further development of nursing knowledge. This study explores the concept of sexual attraction in a Taiwanese social context using concept analysis based on an evolutionary perspective. Inductive inquiry is used to compare and contrast articles from the academic literature, magazines, and newspapers, and data from participant observation and interviews are used to generate exemplars. The process by which the concept of sexual attraction has evolved over time is captured from three distinct aspects: significance, use, and application. The definitional statement of sexual attraction includes the five dimensions of: 1. sexual-oriented psychological dynamics; 2. personal aesthetics and sensory experience; 3. instinct body forces; 4. body language of self; and 5. social and cultural norms. This study scrutinized the changes in attributes that emphasize the biological, objectified body, and stereotyped gender roles of women. Further directions for research and nursing knowledge development are suggested. Examples include identifying the changes in the concept of sexual attraction that result from technological advancement and further clarifying the experiential knowledge of sexual attraction that represents the selfhood and independence of women in Taiwan.

Heterosexual men's ratings of sexual attractiveness of pubescent girls: Effects of labeling the target as under or over the age of sexual consent.

PubMed

O'Donnell, Muireann; Lowe, Rob; Brotherton, Hannah; Davies, Hannah; Panou, Anna; Bennett, Paul

2014-02-01

The study aimed to identify implicit and explicit processes involved in reporting the sexual attractiveness of photographs of the same pubescent girls labeled as either under or within the age of sexual consent in the UK, women, and men. In two studies, 53 and 70 heterosexual men (M age 25.2 and 31.0 years) rated the sexual attractiveness of photographs in each category presented via computer [seeing target photographs of girls labeled as either under- (14-15 years) or within the age of consent (16-17 years)], using a 7-point response box. Ratings in Study 1 were in response to a question asking participants to rate how sexually attractive the person in each photograph was. In Study 2, participants rated how sexually attractive they personally found the target. Response times were also recorded. Several findings were replicated in both studies (although the strength of findings differed). Mean ratings of the sexual attractiveness of the underage girls were lower than those of overage girls and women. In addition, correlations revealed significantly longer responding times when "underage" girls (and men) were rated as more highly sexually attractive. No such relationship emerged with the same girls labeled within the age of consent or women. Overall, these data suggest that men find pubescent girls identified as being under the age of consent sexually attractive, but inhibit their willingness to report this; the greater the attraction, the greater the inhibition.

Simultaneously hermaphroditic shrimp use lipophilic cuticular hydrocarbons as contact sex pheromones.

PubMed

Zhang, Dong; Terschak, John A; Harley, Maggy A; Lin, Junda; Hardege, Jörg D

2011-04-20

Successful mating is essentially a consequence of making the right choices at the correct time. Animals use specific strategies to gain information about a potential mate, which is then applied to decision-making processes. Amongst the many informative signals, odor cues such as sex pheromones play important ecological roles in coordinating mating behavior, enabling mate and kin recognition, qualifying mate choice, and preventing gene exchange among individuals from different populations and species. Despite overwhelming behavioral evidence, the chemical identity of most cues used in aquatic organisms remains unknown and their impact and omnipresence have not been fully recognized. In many crustaceans, including lobsters and shrimps, reproduction happens through a cascade of events ranging from initial attraction to formation of a mating pair eventually leading to mating. We examined the hypothesis that contact pheromones on the female body surface of the hermaphroditic shrimp Lysmata boggessi are of lipophilic nature, and resemble insect cuticular hydrocarbon contact cues. Via chemical analyses and behavioural assays, we show that newly molted euhermaphrodite-phase shrimp contain a bouquet of odor compounds. Of these, (Z)-9-octadecenamide is the key odor with hexadecanamide and methyl linoleate enhancing the bioactivity of the pheromone blend. Our results show that in aquatic systems lipophilic, cuticular hydrocarbon contact sex pheromones exist; this raises questions on how hydrocarbon contact signals evolved and how widespread these are in the marine environment.

Frontalin pheromone biosynthesis in the mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae, and the role of isoprenyl diphosphate synthases

PubMed Central

Keeling, Christopher I.; Chiu, Christine C.; Aw, Tidiane; Li, Maria; Henderson, Hannah; Tittiger, Claus; Weng, Hong-Biao; Blomquist, Gary J.; Bohlmann, Joerg

2013-01-01

The mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) is the most destructive pest of western North American pine forests. Adult males produce frontalin, an eight-carbon antiaggregation pheromone, via the mevalonate pathway, as part of several pheromones that initiate and modulate the mass attack of host trees. Frontalin acts as a pheromone, attractant, or kairomone in most Dendroctonus species, other insects, and even elephants. 6-Methylhept-6-en-2-one, a frontalin precursor, is hypothesized to originate from 10-carbon geranyl diphosphate (GPP), 15-carbon farnesyl diphosphate (FPP), or 20-carbon geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) via a dioxygenase- or cytochrome P450-mediated carbon–carbon bond cleavage. To investigate the role of isoprenyl diphosphate synthases in pheromone biosynthesis, we characterized a bifunctional GPP/FPP synthase and a GGPP synthase in the mountain pine beetle. The ratio of GPP to FPP produced by the GPP/FPP synthase was highly dependent on the ratio of the substrates isopentenyl diphosphate and dimethylallyl diphosphate used in the assay. Transcript levels in various tissues and life stages suggested that GGPP rather than GPP or FPP is used as a precursor to frontalin. Reduction of transcript levels by RNA interference of the isoprenyl diphosphate synthases identified GGPP synthase as having the largest effect on frontalin production, suggesting that frontalin is derived from a 20-carbon isoprenoid precursor rather than from the 10- or 15-carbon precursors. PMID:24167290

Reverse chemical ecology approach for the identification of a mosquito oviposition attractant

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Pheromones and other semiochemicals play a crucial role in today’s integrated pest and vector management strategies for controlling populations of insects causing loses to agriculture and vectoring diseases to humans. These semiochemicals are typically discovered by bioassay-guided approaches. Here,...

Methyl 2-(methylthio)benzoate: A sex attractant for the June beetles, Phyllophaga tristis and P. apicata

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Male antennae of Phyllophaga tristis (Fabricius) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) were tested using a coupled gas chromatograph-electroantennogram detector (GC-EAD) system for electrophysiological responses to five sex pheromones identified from other Phyllophaga species including L-valine ...

Male-specific sesquiterpenes from Phyllotreta flea beetles

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Flea beetles in several genera are known to possess male-specific sesquiterpenes, at least some of which serve as aggregation pheromones that attract both sexes. In continuing research on the chemical ecology of Phyllotreta flea beetles, six new male-specific sesquiterpenes were identified, one fro...

North American Invasion of the Tawny Crazy Ant (Nylanderia fulva) Is Enabled by Pheromonal Synergism from Two Separate Glands.

PubMed

Zhang, Qing-He; McDonald, Danny L; Hoover, Doreen R; Aldrich, Jeffrey R; Schneidmiller, Rodney G

2015-09-01

A new invader, the "tawny crazy ant", Nylanderia fulva (Hymenoptera: Formicidae; Formicinae), is displacing the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta (Formicidae: Myrmicinae), in the southern U.S., likely through its superior chemical arsenal and communication. Alone, formic acid is unattractive, but this venom (= poison) acid powerfully synergizes attraction of tawny crazy ants to volatiles from the Dufour's gland secretion of N. fulva workers, including the two major components, undecane and 2-tridecanone. The unexpected pheromonal synergism between the Dufour's gland and the venom gland appears to be another key factor, in addition to previously known defensive and detoxification semiochemical features, for the successful invasion and domination of N. fulva in the southern U.S. This synergism is an efficient mechanism enabling N. fulva workers to outcompete Solenopsis and other ant species for food and territory. From a practical standpoint, judicious point-source release formulation of tawny crazy ant volatiles may be pivotal for enhanced attract-and-kill management of this pest.

Self-Perceptions of Sexual Attractiveness: Satisfaction With Physical Appearance is Not of Primary Importance Across Gender and Sexual Orientation.

PubMed

Amos, Natalie; McCabe, Marita P

2016-01-01

Research on self-perceived sexual attractiveness has predominantly focused on the importance of physical appearance, overlooking nonphysical traits that may contribute to these self-perceptions. The present study examined and compared the importance of a variety of traits for self-perceived sexual attractiveness. Self-identified heterosexual, gay, and bisexual men (N = 1,801) and heterosexual, lesbian, and bisexual women (N = 1,092) completed an online questionnaire examining self-perceived sexual attractiveness, body esteem, sexual esteem, adherence to gender norms, and sexual experience. Body esteem and sexual esteem were significant predictors of self-perceived sexual attractiveness, regardless of gender and sexual orientation. Adhering to a masculine gender norm was a significant predictor among all groups (to varying extents) but heterosexual women. Adhering to a feminine gender norm was a significant predictor among heterosexual men and bisexual women. Finally, sexual experience was a significant predictor for all men and bisexual women. Furthermore, while body esteem was a predictor across all groups, for most individuals it did not appear to be of primary importance, with either sexual esteem or masculinity proving to be of greater importance. These findings suggest the need to consider traits related to both physical and nonphysical factors for improving an individual's self-perceived sexual attractiveness.

General odorant-binding proteins and sex pheromone guide larvae of Plutella xylostella to better food.

PubMed

Zhu, Jiao; Ban, Liping; Song, Li-Mei; Liu, Yang; Pelosi, Paolo; Wang, Guirong

2016-05-01

Olfaction of Lepidopteran larvae has received little attention, compared to the damage to crops done by insects at this stage. We report that larvae of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella are attracted to their natural sex pheromone and to their major component (Z)-11-hexadecenal, but only in a food context. For such task they use two general odorant-binding proteins (GOBPs), abundantly expressed in the three major sensilla basiconica of the larval antenna, as shown by whole-mount immunostaining and immunocytochemistry experiments. None of the three genes encoding pheromone-binding proteins (PBPs) are expressed at this stage. Both recombinant GOBPs bind (Z)-11-hexadecenal and the corresponding alcohol, but not the acetate. Binding experiments performed with five mutants of GOBP2, where aromatic residues in the binding pocket were replaced with leucine showed that only one or two amino acid substitutions can completely abolish binding to the pheromone shifting the affinity to plant-derived compounds. We hypothesise that detection of their species-specific pheromone may direct larvae to the sites of foraging chosen by their mother when laying eggs, to find better food, as well as to reduce competition with individuals of the same or other species sharing the same host plant. We also provide evidence that GOBP2 is a narrowly tuned binding protein, whose affinity can be easily switched from linear pheromones to branched plants terpenoids, representing a tool better suited for the simple olfactory system of larvae, as compared to the more sophisticated organ of adults. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Gendered sexuality: a new model and measure of attraction and intimacy.

PubMed

Starks, Tyrel J; Gilbert, Brenda O; Fischer, Ann R; Weston, Rebecca; DiLalla, David L

2009-01-01

Currently, the literature related to sexual orientation is ambiguous with regard to the relationship of sexual orientation, sexual identity, attraction, and intimacy. In order to explore the relationships of self-identified categorical sexual identity (which is the most popular method of sexual orientation assessment) with attraction and intimacy, it is imperative that researchers have access to a reliable and valid measure of the latter. The present study proposes a model for conceptualizing attraction and intimacy, termed gendered sexuality, and examines the factor structure of a measure designed to assess the construct. Results suggest that four factors adequately accounted for the variance in gendered sexuality in a large sample of young adults. These factors assess attraction to females, attraction to males, intimacy with females, and intimacy with males. Exploratory analyses provided preliminary evidence of potential construct validity and suggested that discrepancies between desired and available behavior predict dissatisfaction in interpersonal role as measured by the Outcome Questionnaire 45.2.

Pollination by sexual mimicry in Mormolyca ringens: a floral chemistry that remarkably matches the pheromones of virgin queens of Scaptotrigona sp.

PubMed

Flach, Adriana; Marsaioli, Anita J; Singer, Rodrigo B; Amaral, Maria do Carmo E; Menezes, Cristiano; Kerr, Warwick Estevam; Batista-Pereira, Luciane G; Corrêa, Arlene G

2006-01-01

The chemical composition of some volatile (2-heptanol) and nonvolatile constituents (a homologous 9-alkene/alkane series) of Mormolyca ringens flowers and Scaptotrigona sp. queen waxes (homologous 9-alkene/alkane series) and cephalic extracts (homologous series of 2-alkanols, including 2-heptanol) involved with the pseudocopulation or sexual mimicry in Orchidaceae pollination is compared. The similarity in chemical composition of flowers and insects is assigned to the chemically induced copulatory activity in Scaptotrigona males.

Multitrophic interaction facilitates parasite-host relationship between an invasive beetle and the honey bee.

PubMed

Torto, Baldwyn; Boucias, Drion G; Arbogast, Richard T; Tumlinson, James H; Teal, Peter E A

2007-05-15

Colony defense by honey bees, Apis mellifera, is associated with stinging and mass attack, fueled by the release of alarm pheromones. Thus, alarm pheromones are critically important to survival of honey bee colonies. Here we report that in the parasitic relationship between the European honey bee and the small hive beetle, Aethina tumida, the honey bee's alarm pheromones serve a negative function because they are potent attractants for the beetle. Furthermore, we discovered that the beetles from both Africa and the United States vector a strain of Kodamaea ohmeri yeast, which produces these same honey bee alarm pheromones when grown on pollen in hives. The beetle is not a pest of African honey bees because African bees have evolved effective methods to mitigate beetle infestation. However, European honey bees, faced with disease and pest management stresses different from those experienced by African bees, are unable to effectively inhibit beetle infestation. Therefore, the environment of the European honey bee colony provides optimal conditions to promote the unique bee-beetle-yeast-pollen multitrophic interaction that facilitates effective infestation of hives at the expense of the European honey bee.

Hexyl decanoate, the first trail pheromone compound identified in a stingless bee, Trigona recursa.

PubMed

Jarau, Stefan; Schulz, Claudia M; Hrncir, Michael; Francke, Wittko; Zucchi, Ronaldo; Barth, Friedrich G; Ayasse, Manfred

2006-07-01

Foragers of many species of stingless bees guide their nestmates to food sources by means of scent trails deposited on solid substrates between the food and the nest. The corresponding trail pheromones are generally believed to be produced in the mandibular glands, although definitive experimental proof has never been provided. We tested the trail following behavior of recruits of Trigona recursa in field experiments with artificial scent trails branching off from natural scent trails of this stingless bee. First-time recruits (newcomers) did not follow these trails when they were laid with pure solvent or mandibular gland extract. However, they did follow trails made with labial gland extract. Chemical analyses of labial gland secretions revealed that hexyl decanoate was the dominant component (72.4 +/- 1.9% of all volatiles). Newcomers were significantly attracted to artificial trails made with synthetic hexyl decanoate, demonstrating its key function in eliciting scent-following behavior. According to our experiments with T. recursa, the trail pheromone is produced in the labial glands and not in the mandibular glands. Hexyl decanoate is the first component of a trail pheromone identified and proved to be behaviorally active in stingless bees.

Effect of release rate and enantiomeric composition on response to pheromones of Megaplatypus mutatus (Chapuis) in poplar plantations of Argentina and Italy.

PubMed

Funes, Hernán; Zerba, Eduardo; Gonzalez-Audino, Paola

2013-10-01

Megaplatypus mutatus (=Platypus sulcatus Chapuis) is an Ambrosia beetle native to South America, which was recently introduced in Italy and its presence there is causing severe damage to the local poplar plantations. The male M. mutatus pheromone is composed of (S)-(+)-6-methyl-5-hepten-2-ol [(+)-sulcatol], 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one (sulcatone) and 3-pentanol. A series of field trials testing dose, blend and enantiomer composition performed in Argentina and Italy evaluated attraction and found that the optimal release rate of pheromone components as baits in cross vane baited traps (CIPEIN-CV) was 6, 6 and 30 mg day−1 of sulcatone, (+)-sulcatol and 3-pentanol, respectively. It was also determined that racemic sulcatol is as effective as the pure (+)-isomer for the purpose of beetle catch, due to the inert nature of the (−)-isomer allowing the usage of low cost racemic sulcatol instead of highly expensive (+)-sulcatol. The results of our work contribute to the development of pheromone-based local technologies with low environmental impact and low cost for control or monitoring of an important pest.

Development of an efficient pheromone-based trapping method for the banana root borer Cosmopolites sordidus.

PubMed

Reddy, G V P; Cruz, Z T; Guerrero, A

2009-01-01

The banana root borer Cosmopolites sordidus (Germar) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is a major pest of bananas throughout the world. Chemical control is both undesirable and expensive, where biological control alternatives are limited, and pheromone-based trapping results in low captures. In this study, several important factors that affect pheromone-based catches, such as trap type, trap dimensions, and color and position of the traps, were optimized. Ground traps were found to be superior to ramp and pitfall traps, and larger traps (40 x 25 cm and above) were more efficient than smaller ones (30 x 15 cm). In a color-choice test, the banana weevil clearly preferred brown traps over yellow, red, gray, blue, black, white, and green, with mahogany being more attractive than other shades of brown. In addition, pheromone baited ground traps positioned in the shade of the canopy caught significantly more adults than those placed in sunlight. Therefore, mahogany-brown ground traps 40 x 25 cm appear to be the most efficient at catching C. sordidus adults and have the greatest potential for use in mass trapping and programs for eradication of this pest.

Treatment regimen, sexual attractiveness concerns and psychological adjustment among African American breast cancer patients.

PubMed

Taylor, Kathryn L; Lamdan, Ruth M; Siegel, Jamie E; Shelby, Rebecca; Hrywna, Mary; Moran-Klimi, Karen

2002-01-01

Among a sample of African American women recently diagnosed with breast cancer, we assessed the consequences of different treatment regimens on sexual attractiveness concerns, and the impact of sexual attractiveness concerns on current and subsequent psychological adjustment. The sample included 91 African American women with breast cancer; 90% had Stage I or II disease, 48% had chemotherapy, 47% had a lumpectomy, and 53% received a mastectomy. Feelings of sexual attractiveness and psychological adjustment were assessed an average of 3 months following surgery and again 4 months post-baseline. Regression analyses revealed that chemotherapy was associated with greater concerns about sexual attractiveness among lumpectomy patients (p<0.05), but not among mastectomy patients (p>0.20). The interaction also suggested that chemotherapy equalized the impact of types of surgery, as there was no difference on sexual attractiveness between surgery groups among women who had received chemotherapy (p>0.20). However, among women who had not received chemotherapy, mastectomy patients reported greater sexual attractiveness concerns (p<0.01). Finally, regression analyses revealed that feelings of sexual attractiveness were an important component of psychological well-being, both cross-sectionally (p<0.001) and longitudinally (p<0.001). Assessment of the combined impact of different treatment regimens on feelings of sexual attractiveness is particularly important given the current consensus that all breast cancer patients should receive chemotherapy, regardless of nodal status. Further, concerns about sexual attractiveness should be considered for inclusion as one component of psychosocial support programs for African American women with breast cancer, as our results suggested that they played a significant role in psychological adjustment. Copyright 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Enhanced response of Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) to its aggregation pheromone with ethyl decatrieonate

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The invasive stink bug species, Halyomorpha halys (Stål), severely damages multiple agricultural commodities, resulting in disruption of established integrated pest management (IPM) programs. Several semiochemicals have been identified to attract H. halys to traps and monitor their presence, abunda...

Pheromone lure and trap color affects bycatch in agricultural landscapes of Utah

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Aerial traps, using combinations of color and attractive lures, are a critical tool for detecting and managing insect pest populations. Yet, despite improvements in trap efficacy, collection of non-target species (“bycatch”) plagues many insect pest surveys. Bycatch can influence survey effectivenes...

Field Studies of Wasmannia auropunctata Alkylpyrazines: Towards Management Applications

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Field bioassays with Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger) show that the alarm pheromone components 2,5-dimethyl-3-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazine and 3-methyl-2-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazine both attract and arrest ants in a natural environment. Comparisons between lures containing 2,5-dimethyl- 3-(2-methylbutyl)pyrazi...

Multiple roles of a male-specific compound in the sexual behavior of the dried bean beetle, Acanthoscelides obtectus.

PubMed

Vuts, József; Powers, Stephen J; Caulfield, John C; Pickett, John A; Birkett, Michael A

2015-03-01

Males of Acanthoscelides obtectus (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Bruchinae) emit methyl (E,R)-2,4,5-tetradecatrienoate that attracts females for mating. This study identified further roles for this compound in the sexual behavior of A. obtectus. Earlier observations revealed that males touched females with their antennae while tandem-running with them and initiated mounting and copulation, whereas they showed no such behavior toward other males. A series of subsequent laboratory choice tests were set up to establish if certain cuticular compounds aid contact sex recognition in A. obtectus. Males chose virgin females over other males. The activity toward females could be eliminated by rinsing with hexane, but was regained by application of female extract onto previously rinsed females. Gas chromatographic (GC) comparison of hexane extracts revealed the presence of two male-specific compounds, methyl (E,R)-2,4,5-tetradecatrienoate and octadecanal, which were absent from the behaviorally active female samples. Of the two compounds, methyl (E,R)-2,4,5-tetradecatrienoate was found to be responsible for the inhibition of male sexual behavior, similar to that observed with crude male extracts applied to virgin females. Furthermore, males preferred virgin over mated females. GC analyses revealed the presence of methyl (E,R)-2,4,5-tetradecatrienoate in mated females in amounts sufficient to curtail mating attempts. It appears that methyl (E,R)-2,4,5-tetradecatrienoate, besides being a male-produced sex pheromone, acts as a male-recognition signal in A. obtectus. Males also transfer it onto females during mating, resulting in mated females being avoided by courting males.

Genic rather than genome-wide differences between sexually deceptive Ophrys orchids with different pollinators.

PubMed

Sedeek, Khalid E M; Scopece, Giovanni; Staedler, Yannick M; Schönenberger, Jürg; Cozzolino, Salvatore; Schiestl, Florian P; Schlüter, Philipp M

2014-12-01

High pollinator specificity and the potential for simple genetic changes to affect pollinator attraction make sexually deceptive orchids an ideal system for the study of ecological speciation, in which change of flower odour is likely important. This study surveys reproductive barriers and differences in floral phenotypes in a group of four closely related, coflowering sympatric Ophrys species and uses a genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) approach to obtain information on the proportion of the genome that is differentiated between species. Ophrys species were found to effectively lack postpollination barriers, but are strongly isolated by their different pollinators (floral isolation) and, to a smaller extent, by shifts in flowering time (temporal isolation). Although flower morphology and perhaps labellum coloration may contribute to floral isolation, reproductive barriers may largely be due to differences in flower odour chemistry. GBS revealed shared polymorphism throughout the Ophrys genome, with very little population structure between species. Genome scans for FST outliers identified few markers that are highly differentiated between species and repeatable in several populations. These genome scans also revealed highly differentiated polymorphisms in genes with putative involvement in floral odour production, including a previously identified candidate gene thought to be involved in the biosynthesis of pseudo-pheromones by the orchid flowers. Taken together, these data suggest that ecological speciation associated with different pollinators in sexually deceptive orchids has a genic rather than a genomic basis, placing these species at an early phase of genomic divergence within the 'speciation continuum'. © 2014 The Authors. Molecular Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Your Face is Your Fortune: Does Adolescent Attractiveness Predict Intimate Relationships Later in Life?

PubMed

Karraker, Amelia; Sicinski, Kamil; Moynihan, Donald

2017-01-01

A growing literature documents the importance of physical attractiveness in young and middle adulthood for romantic, marital, and sexual relationships, but little is known about how attractiveness in adolescence matters to intimate relationships in later life. We ask: does attractiveness early in life convey ongoing benefits late in life, or do such benefits erode over time? We use multivariate regression models and more than 50 years of data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study to examine the connections between adolescent physical attractiveness and intimate relationships (i.e., sexual activity and access to potential sexual partners) in later life. We find that adolescent attractiveness facilitates sexual activity in later life. This relationship is largely driven by attractiveness increasing the probability of having access to potential sexual partners. However, attractiveness is not related to sexual activity among married couples, even after controlling for marital duration. Men, those in good health, and wealthier individuals are also more likely to engage in several facets of intimate relationships. These findings highlight the importance of relationship context for later life sexual activity and begin to explicate the pathways through which factors across the life course-particularly attractiveness-influence sexual activity in later life. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Your Face is Your Fortune: Does Adolescent Attractiveness Predict Intimate Relationships Later in Life?

PubMed Central

Sicinski, Kamil; Moynihan, Donald

2017-01-01

Objective: A growing literature documents the importance of physical attractiveness in young and middle adulthood for romantic, marital, and sexual relationships, but little is known about how attractiveness in adolescence matters to intimate relationships in later life. We ask: does attractiveness early in life convey ongoing benefits late in life, or do such benefits erode over time? Methods: We use multivariate regression models and more than 50 years of data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study to examine the connections between adolescent physical attractiveness and intimate relationships (i.e., sexual activity and access to potential sexual partners) in later life. Results: We find that adolescent attractiveness facilitates sexual activity in later life. This relationship is largely driven by attractiveness increasing the probability of having access to potential sexual partners. However, attractiveness is not related to sexual activity among married couples, even after controlling for marital duration. Men, those in good health, and wealthier individuals are also more likely to engage in several facets of intimate relationships. Discussion: These findings highlight the importance of relationship context for later life sexual activity and begin to explicate the pathways through which factors across the life course—particularly attractiveness—influence sexual activity in later life. PMID:26655646

Factors Influencing Labeling Nonconsensual Sex as Sexual Assault.

PubMed

Yndo, Monica C; Zawacki, Tina

2017-03-01

The current study examined the effects of physical attractiveness and sexual interest cues on men's sexual perceptions of women and whether increases in sexual perceptions of a woman would lead to decreases in labeling of subsequent nonconsensual sex as sexual assault. Two hundred thirty-three male college students ( M age = 19.17, SD = 1.22) read a vignette describing a hypothetical social interaction between a man and a woman; within the vignette, the female character's physical attractiveness (attractive vs. less attractive) and the degree to which the female character behaved interested in the male character (uninterested vs. ambiguous) were manipulated. The vignette ends with the male character physically forcing sexual intercourse with the female character. After reading the vignette, participants' labeling of the nonconsensual sex as sexual assault was addressed. Participants' perceptions of the female character's sexual interest in the male character prior to the nonconsensual sex was assessed as a dependent variable during stopping points in the vignette, prior to sexual assault. Both physical attractiveness and interest cues had a significant positive influence on men's perception of the female character as sexually interested. In addition, perceptions of sexual interest had a direct negative effect on sexual assault labeling. These results indicate that increases in physical attractiveness and interest cues increase perceptions of sexual interest, in turn decreasing the labeling of nonconsensual sex as sexual assault. This experimental research contributes to the literature on misperception of sexual interest and sexual assault labeling. These findings provide implications for intervention programs and for forensic issues related to sexual assault.

Counter-perfume: using pheromones to prevent female remating.

PubMed

Malouines, Clara

2017-08-01

Strong selection to secure paternity in polyandrous species leads to the evolution of numerous chemicals in the male's seminal content. These include antiaphrodisiac pheromones, which are transmitted from the male to the female during mating to render her unattractive to subsequent males. An increasing number of species have been shown to use these chemicals. Herein, I examine the taxonomic distribution of species using antiaphrodisiac pheromones, the selection pressures driving their evolution in both males and females, and the ecological interactions in which these pheromones are involved. The literature review shows a highly skewed distribution of antiaphrodisiac use; all species currently known to use them are insects with the exception of the garter snakes Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis and T. radix. Nonetheless, many taxa have not yet been tested for the presence of antiaphrodisiacs, in groups both closely and distantly related to species known to express them. Within the Insecta, there have been multiple cases of convergent evolution of antiaphrodisiac pheromones using different chemical compounds and methods of transmission. Antiaphrodisiacs usually benefit males, but their effect on females is variable as they can either prevent them from mating multiple times or help them reduce male harassment when they are unreceptive. Some indirect costs of antiaphrodisiacs also impact both males and females, but more research is needed to determine how general this pattern is. Additional research is also important to understand how antiaphrodisiacs interact with the reproductive biology and sexual communication in different species. © 2016 Cambridge Philosophical Society.

SNMP is a signaling component required for pheromone sensitivity in Drosophila.

PubMed

Jin, Xin; Ha, Tal Soo; Smith, Dean P

2008-08-05

The only known volatile pheromone in Drosophila, 11-cis-vaccenyl acetate (cVA), mediates a variety of behaviors including aggregation, mate recognition, and sexual behavior. cVA is detected by a small set of olfactory neurons located in T1 trichoid sensilla on the antennae of males and females. Two components known to be required for cVA reception are the odorant receptor Or67d and the extracellular pheromone-binding protein LUSH. Using a genetic screen for cVA-insensitive mutants, we have identified a third component required for cVA reception: sensory neuron membrane protein (SNMP). SNMP is a homolog of CD36, a scavenger receptor important for lipoprotein binding and uptake of cholesterol and lipids in vertebrates. In humans, loss of CD36 is linked to a wide range of disorders including insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and atherosclerosis, but how CD36 functions in lipid transport and signal transduction is poorly understood. We show that SNMP is required in pheromone-sensitive neurons for cVA sensitivity but is not required for sensitivity to general odorants. Using antiserum to SNMP infused directly into the sensillum lymph, we show that SNMP function is required on the dendrites of cVA-sensitive neurons; this finding is consistent with a direct role in cVA signal transduction. Therefore, pheromone perception in Drosophila should serve as an excellent model to elucidate the role of CD36 members in transmembrane signaling.

Mating type gene homologues and putative sex pheromone-sensing pathway in arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, a presumably asexual plant root symbiont.

PubMed

Halary, Sébastien; Daubois, Laurence; Terrat, Yves; Ellenberger, Sabrina; Wöstemeyer, Johannes; Hijri, Mohamed

2013-01-01

The fungal kingdom displays a fascinating diversity of sex-determination systems. Recent advances in genomics provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of sex, mating type determination, and evolution of sexual reproduction in many fungal species in both ancient and modern phylogenetic lineages. All major fungal groups have evolved sexual differentiation and recombination pathways. However, sexuality is unknown in arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) of the phylum Glomeromycota, an ecologically vital group of obligate plant root symbionts. AMF are commonly considered an ancient asexual lineage dating back to the Ordovician, approximately 460 M years ago. In this study, we used genomic and transcriptomic surveys of several AMF species to demonstrate the presence of conserved putative sex pheromone-sensing mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases, comparable to those described in Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. We also find genes for high mobility group (HMG) transcription factors, homologous to SexM and SexP genes in the Mucorales. The SexM genes show a remarkable sequence diversity among multiple copies in the genome, while only a single SexP sequence was detected in some isolates of Rhizophagus irregularis. In the Mucorales and Microsporidia, the sexM gene is flanked by genes for a triosephosphate transporter (TPT) and a RNA helicase, but we find no evidence for synteny in the vicinity of the Sex locus in AMF. Nonetheless, our results, together with previous observations on meiotic machinery, suggest that AMF could undergo a complete sexual reproduction cycle.

A weevil sex pheromone serves as an attractant for its entomopathogenic nematode predators

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Diaprepes abbreviatus is an invasive pest of citrus in the United States originating from the Caribbean. Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) are used as biological control agents in the citrus agroecosystems against D. abbreviatus. EPNs respond to herbivore-induced volatiles from citrus roots to assis...

Density-based regulation of ascr#2 and ascr#4 expression in Caenorhabditis elegans

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The ascarosides are a family of nematode small molecules, many of which induce formation of long-lived and highly stress resistant dauer larvae. More recent studies have shown that ascarosides serve additional functions as social signals and mating pheromones. For example, the male attracting pherom...

Field response of Dendroctonus frontalis (Coleoptera: Scolytinae) to Synthetic Semiochemicals in Chiapas, Mexico.

Treesearch

Benjamin Moreno; Jorge Macias; Brian T. Sullivan; Stephen R. Clarke

2008-01-01

Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmermann (Coleoptera: Scolytinae) is the most serious pest of pines (Pinus spp.) in Mexico. Con specifics are attracted to trees undergoing colonization by the aggregation pheromone frontalin, which is synergized by odors of pine oleoresin released from beetle-damaged host tissue. Synthetic racemic frontalin...

Differences in Sexual Orientation Diversity and Sexual Fluidity in Attractions Among Gender Minority Adults in Massachusetts.

PubMed

Katz-Wise, Sabra L; Reisner, Sari L; Hughto, Jaclyn White; Keo-Meier, Colton L

2016-01-01

This study characterized sexual orientation identities and sexual fluidity in attractions in a community-based sample of self-identified transgender and gender-nonconforming adults in Massachusetts. Participants were recruited in 2013 using bimodel methods (online and in person) to complete a one-time, Web-based quantitative survey that included questions about sexual orientation identity and sexual fluidity. Multivariable logistic regression models estimated adjusted risk ratios (aRRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) to examine the correlates of self-reported changes in attractions ever in lifetime among the whole sample (n = 452) and after transition among those who reported social gender transition (n = 205). The sample endorsed diverse sexual orientation identities: 42.7% queer, 19.0% other nonbinary, 15.7% bisexual, 12.2% straight, and 10.4% gay/lesbian. Overall, 58.2% reported having experienced changes in sexual attractions in their lifetime. In adjusted models, trans masculine individuals were more likely than trans feminine individuals to report sexual fluidity in their lifetime (aRR = 1.69; 95% CI = 1.34, 2.12). Among those who transitioned, 64.6% reported a change in attractions posttransition, and trans masculine individuals were less likely than trans feminine individuals to report sexual fluidity (aRR = 0.44; 95% CI = 0.28, 0.69). Heterogeneity of sexual orientation identities and sexual fluidity in attractions are the norm rather than the exception among gender minority people.

Effect of Brood Pheromone on Survival and Nutrient Intake of African Honey Bees (Apis mellifera scutellata) under Controlled Conditions.

PubMed

Démares, Fabien J; Yusuf, Abdullahi A; Nicolson, Susan W; Pirk, Christian W W

2017-05-01

The influence of pheromones on insect physiology and behavior has been thoroughly reported for numerous aspects, such as attraction, gland development, aggregation, mate and kin recognition. Brood pheromone (BP) is released by honey bee larvae to indicate their protein requirements to the colony. Although BP is known to modulate pollen and protein consumption, which in turn can affect physiological and morphological parameters, such as hypopharyngeal gland (HPG) development and ovarian activation, few studies have focused on the effect of BP on nutritional balance. In this study, we exposed newly emerged worker bees for 14 d and found that BP exposure increased protein intake during the first few days, with a peak in consumption at day four following exposure. BP exposure decreased survival of caged honey bees, but did not affect either the size of the HPG acini or ovarian activation stage. The uncoupling of the BP releaser effect, facilitated by working under controlled conditions, and the presence of larvae as stimulating cues are discussed.

Green Light Synergistally Enhances Male Sweetpotato Weevil Response to Sex Pheromone

PubMed Central

McQuate, Grant T.

2014-01-01

Sweetpotato, commercially grown in over 100 countries, is one of the ten most important staple crops in the world. Sweetpotato weevil is a major pest of sweetpotato in most areas of cultivation, the feeding of which induces production in the sweetpotato root of extremely bitter tasting and toxic sesquiterpenes which can render the sweetpotato unfit for consumption. A significant step towards improved management of this weevil species was the identification of a female-produced sex pheromone [(Z)-3-dodecenyl (E)-2-butenoate] to which males are highly attracted. Reported here are results of research that documents a nearly 5-fold increase in male sweetpotato weevil catch in traps baited with this pheromone and a green light provided by a solar-powered, light-emitting diode (LED). The combination of olfactory and night-visible visual cues significantly enhanced trap effectiveness for this nighttime-active insect species. These results provide promise for improved sweetpotato weevil detection and suppression in mass trapping programs. PMID:24675727

Anatomical localization and stereoisomeric composition of Tribolium castaneum aggregation pheromones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Yujie; Beeman, Richard W.; Campbell, James F.; Park, Yoonseong; Aikins, Michael J.; Mori, Kenji; Akasaka, Kazuaki; Tamogami, Shigeyuki; Phillips, Thomas W.

2011-09-01

We report that the abdominal epidermis and associated tissues are the predominant sources of male-produced pheromones in the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum and, for the first time, describe the stereoisomeric composition of the natural blend of isomers of the aggregation pheromone 4,8-dimethyldecanal (DMD) in this important pest species. Quantitative analyses via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry showed that the average amount of DMD released daily by single feeding males of T. castaneum was 878 ± 72 ng (SE). Analysis of different body parts identified the abdominal epidermis as the major source of aggregation pheromone; the thorax was a minor source, while no DMD was detectable in the head. No internal organs or obvious male-specific glands were associated with pheromone deposition. Complete separation of all four stereoisomers of DMD was achieved following oxidation to the corresponding acid, derivatization with (1 R, 2 R)- and (1 S, 2 S)-2-(anthracene-2,3-dicarboximido)cyclohexanol to diastereomeric esters, and their separation on reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography at -54°C. Analysis of the hexane eluate from Porapak-Q-collected volatiles from feeding males revealed the presence of all four isomers (4 R,8 R)/(4 R,8 S)/(4 S,8 R)/(4 S,8 S) at a ratio of approximately 4:4:1:1. A walking orientation bioassay in a wind tunnel with various blends of the four synthetic isomers further indicated that the attractive potency of the reconstituted natural blend of 4:4:1:1 was equivalent to that of the natural pheromone and greater than that of the 1:1 blend of (4 R,8 R)/(4 R,8 S) used in commercial lures.

Identification of pheromone-carrying protein in the preorbital gland post in the endangered Indian male Blackbuck Antelope cervicapra L.

PubMed

Rajagopal, T; Rajkumar, R; Ponmanickam, P; Achiraman, S; Padmanabhan, P; Archunan, G

2015-12-01

In mammals, a low molecular mass protein (17-20 KDa) reported from the pheromone sources such as urine, saliva, glandular secretion, etc., as ligand-carrier (pheromone carrier) has been associated with chemo-communication. Since the preorbital gland post is one of the major pheromone sources in Indian Blackbuck, an endangered species, we assumed that it possibly contains low molecular mass protein for chemical communication. Hence, we investigated the preorbital gland post in territorial and non-territorial male blackbucks for such low molecular mass proteins adopting SDS-PAGE and LC-MS/MS analysis. The total content of protein was higher in the post of territorial males than non-territorial males of adult and sub-adult. In fact, the protein profiles such as 17, 21, 25, 42 and 61 kDa were noted in the gland secretion of territorial and non-territorial males. The intensity of the 17 kDa protein band was higher in territorial males than non-territorial males. In-gel trypsin digestion of the 17 kDa band was processed and subjected to LC-MS/MS and SEQUEST analyses. The results of LC-MS/MS and SEQUEST search showed the presence of α(2u)-globulin in the 17 kDa band. In addition, the identified α(2u)-globulin sequence possessed GDW residues, which are the characteristic signature for lipocalin family. Since the α(2u)-globulin has been reported from the pheromone-carrying proteins in some mammals, this protein may carry the volatiles (pheromone compounds) in male Blackbucks preorbital gland to evoke the scent marking for maintaining territoriality (home range) and attraction towards female, through the secretion of glandular protein.

Resisting majesty: Apis cerana, has lower antennal sensitivity and decreased attraction to queen mandibular pheromone than Apis mellifera

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Shihao; Wen, Ping; Zhang, Qi; Li, Xinyu; Tan, Ken; Nieh, James

2017-03-01

In highly social bees, queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) is vital for colony life. Both Apis cerana (Ac) and Apis mellifera (Am) share an evolutionarily conserved set of QMP compounds: (E)-9-oxodec-2-enoic acid (9-ODA), (E)-9-hydroxydec-2-enoic acid (9-HDA), (E)-10-hydroxy-dec-2-enoic acid (10-HDA), 10-hydroxy-decanoic acid (10-HDAA), and methyl p-hydroxybenzoate (HOB) found at similar levels. However, evidence suggests there may be species-specific sensitivity differences to QMP compounds because Ac workers have higher levels of ovarian activation than Am workers. Using electroantennograms, we found species-specific sensitivity differences for a blend of the major QMP compounds and three individual compounds (9-HDA, 10-HDAA, and 10-HDA). As predicted, Am was more sensitive than Ac in all cases (1.3- to 2.7- fold higher responses). There were also species differences in worker retinue attraction to three compounds (9-HDA, HOB, and 10-HDA). In all significantly different cases, Am workers were 4.5- to 6.2-fold more strongly attracted than Ac workers were. Thus, Ac workers responded less strongly to QMP than Ac workers, and 9-HDA and 10-HDA consistently elicited stronger antennal and retinue formation responses.

Resisting majesty: Apis cerana, has lower antennal sensitivity and decreased attraction to queen mandibular pheromone than Apis mellifera.

PubMed

Dong, Shihao; Wen, Ping; Zhang, Qi; Li, Xinyu; Tan, Ken; Nieh, James

2017-03-15

In highly social bees, queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) is vital for colony life. Both Apis cerana (Ac) and Apis mellifera (Am) share an evolutionarily conserved set of QMP compounds: (E)-9-oxodec-2-enoic acid (9-ODA), (E)-9-hydroxydec-2-enoic acid (9-HDA), (E)-10-hydroxy-dec-2-enoic acid (10-HDA), 10-hydroxy-decanoic acid (10-HDAA), and methyl p-hydroxybenzoate (HOB) found at similar levels. However, evidence suggests there may be species-specific sensitivity differences to QMP compounds because Ac workers have higher levels of ovarian activation than Am workers. Using electroantennograms, we found species-specific sensitivity differences for a blend of the major QMP compounds and three individual compounds (9-HDA, 10-HDAA, and 10-HDA). As predicted, Am was more sensitive than Ac in all cases (1.3- to 2.7- fold higher responses). There were also species differences in worker retinue attraction to three compounds (9-HDA, HOB, and 10-HDA). In all significantly different cases, Am workers were 4.5- to 6.2-fold more strongly attracted than Ac workers were. Thus, Ac workers responded less strongly to QMP than Am workers, and 9-HDA and 10-HDA consistently elicited stronger antennal and retinue formation responses [corrected].

Evaluating the binding efficiency of pheromone binding protein with its natural ligand using molecular docking and fluorescence analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ilayaraja, Renganathan; Rajkumar, Ramalingam; Rajesh, Durairaj; Muralidharan, Arumugam Ramachandran; Padmanabhan, Parasuraman; Archunan, Govindaraju

2014-06-01

Chemosignals play a crucial role in social and sexual communication among inter- and intra-species. Chemical cues are bound with protein that is present in the pheromones irrespective of sex are commonly called as pheromone binding protein (PBP). In rats, the pheromone compounds are bound with low molecular lipocalin protein α2u-globulin (α2u). We reported farnesol is a natural endogenous ligand (compound) present in rat preputial gland as a bound volatile compound. In the present study, an attempt has been made through computational method to evaluating the binding efficiency of α2u with the natural ligand (farnesol) and standard fluorescent molecule (2-naphthol). The docking analysis revealed that the binding energy of farnesol and 2-naphthol was almost equal and likely to share some binding pocket of protein. Further, to extrapolate the results generated through computational approach, the α2u protein was purified and subjected to fluorescence titration and binding assay. The results showed that the farnesol is replaced by 2-naphthol with high hydrophobicity of TYR120 in binding sites of α2u providing an acceptable dissociation constant indicating the binding efficiency of α2u. The obtained results are in corroboration with the data made through computational approach.

Electron microscopic study of the mandibular glands of Kalotermes flavicollis fabr. (isoptera; calotermitidae).

PubMed

Cassier, P; Fain-Maurel, M A; Lebrun, D

1977-08-26

The mandibular glands of Kalotermes were examined in different castes. They show sexual dimorphism in the soldiers and primary reproductives, Moreover, in female soldiers and queens, mandibular gland cells contained numerous crystalline structures of mitochondrial origin. The role of these glands (secretion of saliva or pheromone) is discussed.

Nucleus Accumbens Dopamine Signaling Regulates Sexual Preference for Females in Male Mice.

PubMed

Beny-Shefer, Yamit; Zilkha, Noga; Lavi-Avnon, Yael; Bezalel, Nadav; Rogachev, Ilana; Brandis, Alexander; Dayan, Molly; Kimchi, Tali

2017-12-12

Sexual preference for the opposite sex is a fundamental behavior underlying reproductive success, but the neural mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we examined the role of dopamine signaling in the nucleus accumbens core (NAcc) in governing chemosensory-mediated preference for females in TrpC2 -/- and wild-type male mice. TrpC2 -/- males, deficient in VNO-mediated signaling, do not display mating or olfactory preference toward females. We found that, during social interaction with females, TrpC2 -/- males do not show increased NAcc dopamine levels, observed in wild-type males. Optogenetic stimulation of VTA-NAcc dopaminergic neurons in TrpC2 -/- males during exposure to a female promoted preference response to female pheromones and elevated copulatory behavior toward females. Additionally, we found that signaling through the D1 receptor in the NAcc is necessary for the olfactory preference for female-soiled bedding. Our study establishes a critical role for the mesolimbic dopaminergic system in governing pheromone-mediated responses and mate choice in male mice. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Integrative taxonomy of the fly orchid group: insights from chemical ecology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joffard, Nina; Buatois, Bruno; Schatz, Bertrand

2016-10-01

Several authors have recently stressed the need to develop an integrative approach in taxonomy, but studies applying such an approach to Mediterranean orchids are scarce. In sexually deceptive orchids from the taxonomically difficult genus Ophrys, pollination is specific and performed by male insects attracted to the flowers by sex pheromone-mimicking floral scents. Floral compounds are therefore of primary importance for reproductive isolation and species delimitations in this genus. In the fly orchid group, molecular, morphological, and ecological characters have been extensively studied, but a comprehensive survey of floral scents is still lacking. In the present study, the blends of floral compounds of its three members, Ophrys insectifera, Ophrys aymoninii, and Ophrys subinsectifera, were extracted and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. A total of 107 compounds were found, with a majority of saturated and unsaturated hydrocarbons. Significant differentiation, both qualitative and quantitative, was found among the three taxa. This result, pooled with those from the literature, forms a comprehensive and congruent dataset that allows us to elucidate the taxonomic rank of the three members of the fly orchid group.

Genetic conflict between sexual signalling and juvenile survival in the three-spined stickleback.

PubMed

Kim, Sin-Yeon; Velando, Alberto

2016-02-29

Secondary sexual traits and mating preferences may evolve in part because the offspring of attractive males inherit attractiveness and other genetically correlated traits such as fecundity and viability. A problem regarding these indirect genetic mechanisms is how sufficient genetic variation in the traits subject to sexual selection is maintained within a population. Here we explored the additive genetic correlations between carotenoid-based male ornament colouration, female fecundity and juvenile survival rate in the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) to test the possibility that attractiveness genes reduce important fitness components in the bearers not expressing the sexual trait. Male sexual attractiveness (i.e., red nuptial colouration) as well as female fecundity and juvenile viability showed heritable variations in the three-spined stickleback. Thus, females can gain indirect benefits by mating with an attractive male. There was a strong positive genetic correlation between female fecundity and juvenile viability. However, red sexual signal of male sticklebacks was negatively genetically correlated with juvenile survival, suggesting genetic conflict between attractiveness and viability. There was no significant correlation between attractiveness of brothers and fecundity of sisters, suggesting no intra-locus sexual conflict. The negative effects of mating with a colourful male on offspring viability may contribute to maintaining the heritable variation under strong directional sexual selection. The strength of indirect sexual selection may be weaker than previously thought due to the hidden genetic conflicts.

Sexual identity, sexual attraction and sexual experience: the Second Australian Study of Health and Relationships.

PubMed

Richters, Juliet; Altman, Dennis; Badcock, Paul B; Smith, Anthony M A; de Visser, Richard O; Grulich, Andrew E; Rissel, Chris; Simpson, Judy M

2014-11-01

Background Behavioural and other aspects of sexuality are not always consistent. This study describes the prevalence and overlap of same-sex and other-sex attraction and experience and of different sexual identities in Australia. Computer-assisted telephone interviews were completed by a representative sample of 20094 men and women aged 16-69 years recruited by landline and mobile phone random-digit dialling with a response rate (participation rate among eligible people) of 66.2%. Respondents were asked about their sexual identity ('Do you think of yourself as' heterosexual/straight, homosexual/gay, bisexual, etc.) and the sex of people with whom they had ever had sexual contact and to whom they had felt sexually attracted. Men and women had different patterns of sexual identity. Although the majority of people identified as heterosexual (97% men, 96% women), women were more likely than men to identify as bisexual. Women were less likely than men to report exclusively other-sex or same-sex attraction and experience; 9% of men and 19% of women had some history of same-sex attraction and/or experience. Sexual attraction and experience did not necessarily correspond. Homosexual/gay identity was more common among men with tertiary education and living in cities and less common among men with blue-collar jobs. Many gay men (53%) and lesbians (76%) had some experience with an other-sex partner. More women identified as lesbian or bisexual than in 2001-02. Similarly, more women reported same-sex experience and same-sex attraction. In Australia, men are more likely than women to report exclusive same-sex attraction and experience, although women are more likely than men to report any non-heterosexual identity, experience and attraction. Whether this is a feature of the plasticity of female sexuality or due to lesser stigma than for men is unknown.

Sexual Attraction and Harassment: Management's New Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Driscoll, Jeanne Bosson

1981-01-01

Both sexual attraction and harassment must be dealt with if men and women are to develop truly productive working relationships. Key issues include policies on sexual attraction and harassment, availability of professional resources on the subjects, training, and the role of personnel specialists. (CT)

Differences in Sexual Orientation Diversity and Sexual Fluidity in Attractions among Gender Minority Adults in Massachusetts

PubMed Central

Katz-Wise, Sabra L.; Reisner, Sari L.; White, Jaclyn M.; Keo-Meier, Colton L.

2015-01-01

This study characterized sexual orientation identities and sexual fluidity in attractions in a community-based sample of self-identified transgender and gender nonconforming adults in Massachusetts. Participants were recruited in 2013 using bi-model methods (online and in-person) to complete a one-time web-based quantitative survey that included questions about sexual orientation identity and sexual fluidity. Multivariable logistic regression models estimated Adjusted Risk Ratios (aRR) and 95% Confidence Intervals (95% CI) to examine the correlates of self-reported changes in attractions ever in lifetime among the whole sample (n=452) and after transition among those who reported social gender transition (n=205). The sample endorsed diverse sexual orientation identities: 42.7% queer, 19.0% other non-binary, 15.7% bisexual, 12.2% straight, 10.4% gay/lesbian. Overall, 58.2% reported having experienced changes in sexual attractions in their lifetime. In adjusted models, trans masculine individuals were more likely than trans feminine individuals to report sexual fluidity in their lifetime (aRR=1.69; 95% CI=1.34, 2.12). Among those who transitioned, 64.6% reported a change in attractions post-transition and trans masculine individuals were less likely than trans feminine individuals to report sexual fluidity (aRR=0.44; 95% CI=0.28, 0.69). Heterogeneity of sexual orientation identities and sexual fluidity in attractions are the norm rather than the exception among gender minority people. PMID:26156113

Structural insights into the evolution of a sexy protein: novel topology and restricted backbone flexibility in a hypervariable pheromone from the red-legged salamander, Plethodon shermani.

PubMed

Wilburn, Damien B; Bowen, Kathleen E; Doty, Kari A; Arumugam, Sengodagounder; Lane, Andrew N; Feldhoff, Pamela W; Feldhoff, Richard C

2014-01-01

In response to pervasive sexual selection, protein sex pheromones often display rapid mutation and accelerated evolution of corresponding gene sequences. For proteins, the general dogma is that structure is maintained even as sequence or function may rapidly change. This phenomenon is well exemplified by the three-finger protein (TFP) superfamily: a diverse class of vertebrate proteins co-opted for many biological functions - such as components of snake venoms, regulators of the complement system, and coordinators of amphibian limb regeneration. All of the >200 structurally characterized TFPs adopt the namesake "three-finger" topology. In male red-legged salamanders, the TFP pheromone Plethodontid Modulating Factor (PMF) is a hypervariable protein such that, through extensive gene duplication and pervasive sexual selection, individual male salamanders express more than 30 unique isoforms. However, it remained unclear how this accelerated evolution affected the protein structure of PMF. Using LC/MS-MS and multidimensional NMR, we report the 3D structure of the most abundant PMF isoform, PMF-G. The high resolution structural ensemble revealed a highly modified TFP structure, including a unique disulfide bonding pattern and loss of secondary structure, that define a novel protein topology with greater backbone flexibility in the third peptide finger. Sequence comparison, models of molecular evolution, and homology modeling together support that this flexible third finger is the most rapidly evolving segment of PMF. Combined with PMF sequence hypervariability, this structural flexibility may enhance the plasticity of PMF as a chemical signal by permitting potentially thousands of structural conformers. We propose that the flexible third finger plays a critical role in PMF:receptor interactions. As female receptors co-evolve, this flexibility may allow PMF to still bind its receptor(s) without the immediate need for complementary mutations. Consequently, this unique adaptation may establish new paradigms for how receptor:ligand pairs co-evolve, in particular with respect to sexual conflict.

Beauty and the Eye of the Beholder: Gender and Attractiveness Affect Judgments in Teacher Sex Offense Cases.

PubMed

Mackelprang, Emily; Becker, Judith V

2017-06-01

The present study investigated the effects of gender and attractiveness on judgments of bail requirements, incarceration, and sex offender registration lengths, and attitudes toward offenders and victims in a teacher-student sexual perpetration scenario. Researchers presented 432 undergraduate students at a large southwestern university with one of four vignettes detailing a sexual relationship between a 35-year-old teacher and a 14-year-old student. Vignettes varied by both attractiveness and gender of the offender (using heterosexual offender-victim dyads). Results indicate that both gender and attractiveness affect judgments of sex offenders; specifically, female sexual offenders were viewed more leniently and judged less punitively than male sexual offenders. Although attractive female sexual offenders were given particularly lenient treatment, attractiveness did not affect judgments toward male sex offenders. In addition, although male and female participants tended to rate male offenders similarly, male participants were more lenient toward female offenders than were female participants. Finally, post hoc analyses revealed that, for many variables, unattractive female sexual offenders may not be viewed differently from male sexual offenders. These results have serious implications for the legal system, sex offender management, and societal views regarding male and female sexual offenders and their victims.

SIGNALING EFFICACY DRIVES THE EVOLUTION OF LARGER SEXUAL ORNAMENTS BY SEXUAL SELECTION

PubMed Central

Tazzyman, Samuel J; Iwasa, Yoh; Pomiankowski, Andrew

2014-01-01

Why are there so few small secondary sexual characters? Theoretical models predict that sexual selection should lead to reduction as often as exaggeration, and yet we mainly associate secondary sexual ornaments with exaggerated features such as the peacock's tail. We review the literature on mate choice experiments for evidence of reduced sexual traits. This shows that reduced ornamentation is effectively impossible in certain types of ornamental traits (behavioral, pheromonal, or color-based traits, and morphological ornaments for which the natural selection optimum is no trait), but that there are many examples of morphological traits that would permit reduction. Yet small sexual traits are very rarely seen. We analyze a simple mathematical model of Fisher's runaway process (the null model for sexual selection). Our analysis shows that the imbalance cannot be wholly explained by larger ornaments being less costly than smaller ornaments, nor by preferences for larger ornaments being less costly than preferences for smaller ornaments. Instead, we suggest that asymmetry in signaling efficacy limits runaway to trait exaggeration. PMID:24099137

Scrutinizing Immutability: Research on Sexual Orientation and U.S. Legal Advocacy for Sexual Minorities.

PubMed

Diamond, Lisa M; Rosky, Clifford J

2016-01-01

We review scientific research and legal authorities to argue that the immutability of sexual orientation should no longer be invoked as a foundation for the rights of individuals with same-sex attractions and relationships (i.e., sexual minorities). On the basis of scientific research as well as U.S. legal rulings regarding lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) rights, we make three claims: First, arguments based on the immutability of sexual orientation are unscientific, given what we now know from longitudinal, population-based studies of naturally occurring changes in the same-sex attractions of some individuals over time. Second, arguments based on the immutability of sexual orientation are unnecessary, in light of U.S. legal decisions in which courts have used grounds other than immutability to protect the rights of sexual minorities. Third, arguments about the immutability of sexual orientation are unjust, because they imply that same-sex attractions are inferior to other-sex attractions, and because they privilege sexual minorities who experience their sexuality as fixed over those who experience their sexuality as fluid. We conclude that the legal rights of individuals with same-sex attractions and relationships should not be framed as if they depend on a certain pattern of scientific findings regarding sexual orientation.

1-Tridecene—male-produced sex pheromone of the tenebrionid beetle Parastizopus transgariepinus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geiselhardt, Sven; Ockenfels, Peter; Peschke, Klaus

2008-03-01

Males of the genus Parastizopus (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) exhibit a special pheromone-emitting behaviour. They do a headstand, expose the aedeagus and remain in this posture for a few seconds. The pheromone emitted by P. transgariepinus was collected by solid-phase micro-extraction (100 μm polydimethylsiloxane fibre) and identified as 1-tridecene by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Presumably, this compound originates from the aedeagal gland, a special feature in Parastizopus, as 1-tridecene is the main compound in the gland reservoirs (23.6 ± 3.8%), accompanied by various less volatile fatty acid esters (25.2 ± 2.0%) and hydrocarbons (51.2 ± 5.7%). 1-Tridecene is also part of the pygidial defensive secretion of both sexes, together with other 1-alkenes, monoterpene hydrocarbons and 1,4-benzoquinones, but as none of these other compounds was detected during calling, the pygidial gland could be ruled out as pheromone source. Extracts of the aedeagal gland reservoirs and the pygidial defensive secretion contained comparable amounts of 1-tridecene, 1.24 ± 0.41 and 1.88 ± 0.54 μg/male, respectively. Chemo-orientation experiments using a servosphere showed that 1 μg of 1-tridecene was attractive to females but not to males.

Behavioral and neurosensory responses of the boll weevil,Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), to fluorinated analogs of aldehyde components of its pheromone.

PubMed

Dickens, J C; Prestwich, G D; Sun, W C

1991-06-01

Competitive field tests with α-fluorinated analogs of compounds III and IV (III-α-F and IV-α-F, respectively) of the boll weevil,Anthonomus grandis Boh., aggregation pheromone showed these compounds, when combined with the other pheromone components [(±)-I and II], to be as attractive as grandlure [(+)-I, II, and III+IV]. Dose-response curves constructed from electroantennograms of male boll weevils to serial stimulus loads of III, IV, III-α-F, IV-α-F, and the corresponding acyl fluorinated analogs (III-acyl-F and IV-acyl-F) showed the α-fiuorinated analogs to be as active as the pheromone components (threshold=0.1 μg), while the acyl fluorinated analogs had a 10-100 x higher threshold (=1-10 μg). Single-neuron recordings showed that IV neurons and II neurons (Dickens, 1990) responded to IV-α-F and III-α-F, respectively, while IV-acyl-F and III-acyl-F were inactive. Since a previous study showed compounds I, II, and IV to be essential for behavioral responses in the field, it seems likely that the activity of the α-fluorinated analogs observed here is due to the stimulation of IV neurons by IV-α-F as indicated in single neuron recordings.

Theory and application of semiochemicals in nuisance fish control

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sorensen, Peter W.; Johnson, Nicholas

2016-01-01

Controlling unwanted, or nuisance, fishes is becoming an increasingly urgent issue with few obvious solutions. Because fish rely heavily on semiochemicals, or chemical compounds that convey information between and within species, to mediate aspects of their life histories, these compounds are increasingly being considered as an option to help control wild fish. Possible uses of semiochemicals include measuring their presence in water to estimate population size, adding them to traps to count or remove specific species of fish, adding them to waterways to manipulate large-scale movement patterns, and saturating the environment with synthesized semiochemicals to disrupt responses to the natural cue. These applications may be especially appropriate for pheromones, chemical signals that pass between members of same species and which also have extreme specificity and potency. Alarm cues, compounds released by injured fish, and cues released by potential predators also could function as repellents and be especially useful if paired with pheromonal attractants in “push-pull” configurations. Approximately half a dozen attractive pheromones now have been partially identified in fish, and those for the sea lamprey and the common carp have been tested in the field with modest success. Alarm and predator cues for sea lamprey also have been tested in the laboratory and field with some success. Success has been hampered by our incomplete understanding of chemical identity, a lack of synthesized compounds, the fact that laboratory bioassays do not always reflect natural environments, and the relative difficulty of conducting trials on wild fishes because of short field seasons and regulatory requirements. Nevertheless, workers continue efforts to identify pheromones because of the great potential elucidated by insect control and the fact that few tools are available to control nuisance fish. Approaches developed for nuisance fish also could be applied to valued fishes, which suffer from a lack of powerful management tools.

Theory and Application of Semiochemicals in Nuisance Fish Control.

PubMed

Sorensen, Peter W; Johnson, Nicholas S

2016-07-01

Controlling unwanted, or nuisance, fishes is becoming an increasingly urgent issue with few obvious solutions. Because fish rely heavily on semiochemicals, or chemical compounds that convey information between and within species, to mediate aspects of their life histories, these compounds are increasingly being considered as an option to help control wild fish. Possible uses of semiochemicals include measuring their presence in water to estimate population size, adding them to traps to count or remove specific species of fish, adding them to waterways to manipulate large-scale movement patterns, and saturating the environment with synthesized semiochemicals to disrupt responses to the natural cue. These applications may be especially appropriate for pheromones, chemical signals that pass between members of same species and which also have extreme specificity and potency. Alarm cues, compounds released by injured fish, and cues released by potential predators also could function as repellents and be especially useful if paired with pheromonal attractants in "push-pull" configurations. Approximately half a dozen attractive pheromones now have been partially identified in fish, and those for the sea lamprey and the common carp have been tested in the field with modest success. Alarm and predator cues for sea lamprey also have been tested in the laboratory and field with some success. Success has been hampered by our incomplete understanding of chemical identity, a lack of synthesized compounds, the fact that laboratory bioassays do not always reflect natural environments, and the relative difficulty of conducting trials on wild fishes because of short field seasons and regulatory requirements. Nevertheless, workers continue efforts to identify pheromones because of the great potential elucidated by insect control and the fact that few tools are available to control nuisance fish. Approaches developed for nuisance fish also could be applied to valued fishes, which suffer from a lack of powerful management tools.

Social Networks and Sexual Orientation Disparities in Tobacco and Alcohol Use

PubMed Central

Hatzenbuehler, Mark L; McLaughlin, Katie A; Xuan, Ziming

2015-01-01

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine whether the composition of social networks contributes to sexual orientation disparities in substance use and misuse. Method: Data were obtained from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), a nationally representative cohort study of adolescents (N = 20,745). Wave 1 collected extensive information about the social networks of participants through peer nomination inventories. Results: Same- and both-sex–attracted youths had higher frequency/quantity of tobacco use in their peer networks than did opposite-sex–attracted youths, and both-sex–attracted youths had higher frequency/quantity of alcohol use and misuse in their peer networks than opposite-sex–attracted youths. Among same- and both-sex–attracted youths, greater frequency/quantity of tobacco use in one’s social network predicted greater use of cigarettes. In addition, greater frequency/quantity of peers’ drinking and drinking to intoxication predicted more alcohol use and alcohol misuse in the both-sex–attracted group. These social network factors mediated sexual orientation–related disparities in tobacco use for both- and same-sex–attracted youths. Moreover, sexual orientation disparities in alcohol misuse were mediated by social network characteristics for the same-sex and both-sex–attracted youths. Importantly, sexual minority adolescents were no more likely to have other sexual minorities in their social networks than were sexual majority youths, ruling out an alternative explanation for our results. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of social networks as correlates of substance use behaviors among sexual minority youths and as potential pathways explaining sexual orientation disparities in substance use outcomes. PMID:25486400

Pedophilia, hebephilia, and the DSM-V.

PubMed

Blanchard, Ray; Lykins, Amy D; Wherrett, Diane; Kuban, Michael E; Cantor, James M; Blak, Thomas; Dickey, Robert; Klassen, Philip E

2009-06-01

The term pedophilia denotes the erotic preference for prepubescent children. The term hebephilia has been proposed to denote the erotic preference for pubescent children (roughly, ages 11 or 12-14), but it has not become widely used. The present study sought to validate the concept of hebephilia by examining the agreement between self-reported sexual interests and objectively recorded penile responses in the laboratory. The participants were 881 men who were referred for clinical assessment because of paraphilic, criminal, or otherwise problematic sexual behavior. Within-group comparisons showed that men who verbally reported maximum sexual attraction to pubescent children had greater penile responses to depictions of pubescent children than to depictions of younger or older persons. Between-groups comparisons showed that penile responding distinguished such men from those who reported maximum attraction to prepubescent children and from those who reported maximum attraction to fully grown persons. These results indicated that hebephilia exists as a discriminable erotic age-preference. The authors recommend various ways in which the DSM might be altered to accommodate the present findings. One possibility would be to replace the diagnosis of Pedophilia with Pedohebephilia and allow the clinician to specify one of three subtypes: Sexually Attracted to Children Younger than 11 (Pedophilic Type), Sexually Attracted to Children Age 11-14 (Hebephilic Type), or Sexually Attracted to Both (Pedohebephilic Type). We further recommend that the DSM-V encourage users to record the typical age of children who most attract the patient sexually as well as the gender of children who most attract the patient sexually.

Attraction of the invasive Halyomorpha halys in its native Asian range to traps baited with semiochemical stimuli

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The brown marmorated stink bug or Halyomorpha halys is a globally invasive species that causes agricultural and nuisance problems. Researchers in the United States recently identified the H. halys aggregation pheromone from populations in the introduced range and found that when it is combined with...

An Electronic Weather Vane for Field Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burman, J.; Talbert, R.; Carlton, K.

2014-01-01

This paper details the construction of a weather vane for the measurement of wind direction in field situations. The purpose of its construction was to analyse how wind direction affected the attractiveness of an insect pheromone in a dynamic outdoor environment, where wind could be a significant contributor to odour movement. The apparatus…

Comparison of monitoring techniques in and near almonds and pistachios under mating disruption treatment for navel orangeworm

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

As use of mating disruption for control of the navel orangeworm Amyelois transitella Walker (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in California increases, it becomes more important to find non-pheromonal attractants that perform well for monitoring both in the presence and absence of mating disruption. According...

Attraction of Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) haplotypes in North America and Europe to baited traps

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Halyomorpha halys is a global invasive species native to Southeast Asia that is threatening agriculture in invaded regions. While pheromone-based monitoring tools for H. halys have been validated in North America and South Korea, their efficacy has not been widely evaluated in Europe. Our goals were...

Attraction of Southern Pine Engravers and Associated Bark Beetles (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) to Ipsenol, Ipsdienol, and Lanierone in Southeastern United States

Treesearch

D. R. Miller; C. Asaro; C. W. Berisford

2005-01-01

We determined the response of the small southern pine engraver, Ips avulses (Eichhoff); eastern fivespined ips, Ips grandicollis (Eichhoff); sixspined ips, Ips calligraphus (Germar); and pine engraver, Ips pini (Say) to the pheromones (±)-ipsenol, (±)-ipsdienol, and lanierone in the...

ß-Phellandrene: Kairomone for Pine Engraver, Ips pini (Say) (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Treesearch

Daniel R. Miller; John H. Borden

1990-01-01

The responses of Ips pini (Scolytidae) to multiple-funnel traps baited with the pheromone, ipsdienol, and various monoterpenes were determined in stands of lodgepole pine in southern and central British Columbia. Ips pini was attracted to both ipsdienol and ß-phellandrene, demonstrating that ß-phellandrene is a kairomone for this...

Trapping female Pandemis limitata (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) moths with mixtures of acetic acid, benzenoid apple leaf volatiles, and sex pheromones

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Pandemis limitata (Robinson) is one of several leaf-feeding caterpillar pests of commercial tree-fruit crops in British Columbia. Recent discovery that European Pandemis spp. are attracted to lures containing acetic acid (AA) and caterpillar-induced benzenoid apple leaf volatiles, 2-phenylethanol a...

Mating Disruption for the 21st Century: Matching Technology With Mechanism.

PubMed

Miller, James R; Gut, Larry J

2015-06-01

Progress toward proof of the principal cause of insect mating disruption under a particular set of conditions has been hindered by a lack of logical rigor and clean falsifications of possible explanations. Here we make the case that understanding of mating disruption and optimization of particular formulations can be significantly advanced by rigorous application of the principles of strong inference. To that end, we offer a dichotomous key for eight distinct categories of mating disruption and detail criteria and methodologies for differentiating among them. Mechanisms of mating disruption closely align with those established for enzyme inhibition, falling into two major categories-competitive and noncompetitive. Under competitive disruption, no impairments are experienced by males, females, or the signal of females. Therefore, males can respond to females and traps. Competitive disruption is entirely a numbers game where the ratio of dispensers to females and traps is highly consequential and renders the control pest-density-dependent. Under noncompetitive disruption, males, females, or the signal from females are already impaired when sexual activity commences. The control achieved noncompetitively offers the notable advantage of being pest-density-independent. Dosage-response curves are the best way to distinguish competitive from noncompetitive disruption. Purely competitive disruption produces: a smoothly concave curve when untransformed capture data are plotted on the y-axis against density of dispensers on the x-axis; a straight line with positive slope when the inverse of catch is plotted against density of pheromone dispensers; and, a straight line with negative slope when catch is plotted against density of pheromone dispensers × catch. Disruption operating only noncompetitively produces: a straight line with negative slope when untransformed capture data are plotted on the y-axis against density of dispensers on the x-axis; an upturning curve when the inverse of catch is plotted against density of pheromone dispensers; and, a recurving plot when catch is plotted against density of pheromone dispensers x catch. Hybrid profiles are possible when some males within the population begin the activity period already incapacitated, while those not preexposed have the capacity to respond either to traps or pheromone dispensers. Competitive mechanisms include competitive attraction, induced allopatry, and induced arrestment. Noncompetitive mechanisms include desensitization and inhibition, induced allochrony, suppressed calling and mating, camouflage, and sensory imbalance. Examples of the various disruption types within the two major categories and suggested tactics for differentiating among them are offered as seven case studies of the disruption of important pest species using various formulations are analyzed in depth. We point out how economic optimizations may be achieved once the principal and contributory causes of disruption are proven. Hopefully, these insights will pave the way to a broader and more reliable usage of this environmentally friendly pest management tactic. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Social preferences based on sexual attractiveness: a female strategy to reduce male sexual attention.

PubMed

Brask, Josefine B; Croft, Darren P; Thompson, Katharine; Dabelsteen, Torben; Darden, Safi K

2012-05-07

Male sexual harassment of females is common across sexually reproducing species and can result in fitness costs to females. We hypothesized that females can reduce unwanted male attention by constructing a social niche where their female associates are more sexually attractive than themselves, thus influencing the decision-making of males to their advantage. We tested this hypothesis in the Trinidadian guppy (Poecilia reticulata), a species with high levels of male sexual harassment. First, we confirmed that non-receptive females were harassed less when they were paired with a more sexually attractive (receptive) female than with another non-receptive female. We then found that, indeed, females exploit this as a strategy to reduce sexual harassment; non-receptive females actively preferred to associate with receptive over non-receptive females. Importantly, when given access only to chemosensory cues, non-receptive females still showed this preference, suggesting that they use information from chemical cues to assess the sexual attractiveness of potential female partners. Receptive females in contrast showed no such preferences. Our results demonstrate that females can decrease male harassment by associating with females that are more sexually attractive than themselves and that they perform active partner choices based on this relative attractiveness. We propose that this strategy is likely to represent an important pathway by which females can construct social niches that influence the decision-making of others to their advantage; in this case, to reduce the sexual harassment they experience.

Happy guys finish last: the impact of emotion expressions on sexual attraction.

PubMed

Tracy, Jessica L; Beall, Alec T

2011-12-01

This research examined the relative sexual attractiveness of individuals showing emotion expressions of happiness, pride, and shame compared with a neutral control. Across two studies using different images and samples ranging broadly in age (total N = 1041), a large gender difference emerged in the sexual attractiveness of happy displays: happiness was the most attractive female emotion expression, and one of the least attractive in males. In contrast, pride showed the reverse pattern; it was the most attractive male expression, and one of the least attractive in women. Shame displays were relatively attractive in both genders, and, among younger adult women viewers, male shame was more attractive than male happiness, and not substantially less than male pride. Effects were largely consistent with evolutionary and socio-cultural-norm accounts. Overall, this research provides the first evidence that distinct emotion expressions have divergent effects on sexual attractiveness, which vary by gender but largely hold across age. (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved.

Consequences of Beauty: Effects of Rater Sex and Sexual Orientation on the Visual Exploration and Evaluation of Attractiveness in Real World Scenes

PubMed Central

Mitrovic, Aleksandra; Tinio, Pablo P. L.; Leder, Helmut

2016-01-01

One of the key behavioral effects of attractiveness is increased visual attention to attractive people. This effect is often explained in terms of evolutionary adaptations, such as attractiveness being an indicator of good health. Other factors could influence this effect. In the present study, we explored the modulating role of sexual orientation on the effects of attractiveness on exploratory visual behavior. Heterosexual and homosexual men and women viewed natural-looking scenes that depicted either two women or two men who varied systematically in levels of attractiveness (based on a pre-study). Participants’ eye movements and attractiveness ratings toward the faces of the depicted people were recorded. The results showed that although attractiveness had the largest influence on participants’ behaviors, participants’ sexual orientations strongly modulated the effects. With the exception of homosexual women, all participant groups looked longer and more often at attractive faces that corresponded with their sexual orientations. Interestingly, heterosexual and homosexual men and homosexual women looked longer and more often at the less attractive face of their non-preferred sex than the less attractive face of their preferred sex, evidence that less attractive faces of the preferred sex might have an aversive character. These findings provide evidence for the important role that sexual orientation plays in guiding visual exploratory behavior and evaluations of the attractiveness of others. PMID:27047365

Consequences of Beauty: Effects of Rater Sex and Sexual Orientation on the Visual Exploration and Evaluation of Attractiveness in Real World Scenes.

PubMed

Mitrovic, Aleksandra; Tinio, Pablo P L; Leder, Helmut

2016-01-01

One of the key behavioral effects of attractiveness is increased visual attention to attractive people. This effect is often explained in terms of evolutionary adaptations, such as attractiveness being an indicator of good health. Other factors could influence this effect. In the present study, we explored the modulating role of sexual orientation on the effects of attractiveness on exploratory visual behavior. Heterosexual and homosexual men and women viewed natural-looking scenes that depicted either two women or two men who varied systematically in levels of attractiveness (based on a pre-study). Participants' eye movements and attractiveness ratings toward the faces of the depicted people were recorded. The results showed that although attractiveness had the largest influence on participants' behaviors, participants' sexual orientations strongly modulated the effects. With the exception of homosexual women, all participant groups looked longer and more often at attractive faces that corresponded with their sexual orientations. Interestingly, heterosexual and homosexual men and homosexual women looked longer and more often at the less attractive face of their non-preferred sex than the less attractive face of their preferred sex, evidence that less attractive faces of the preferred sex might have an aversive character. These findings provide evidence for the important role that sexual orientation plays in guiding visual exploratory behavior and evaluations of the attractiveness of others.

The influence of attraction to partner on heterosexual women's sexual and relationship satisfaction in long-term relationships.

PubMed

Mark, Kristen P; Herbenick, Debby

2014-04-01

Previous research has consistently found that attraction is important in the formation of relationships though research on attraction in long-term relationships is less well understood. This article examined the predictive value of self-reported attraction to partner and change in attraction to partner on sexual and relationship satisfaction in 176 women in committed heterosexual relationships using online survey methodology. Participants' age ranged from 21 to 56 (M = 34.5) years and their relationship length ranged from 5 to 35 (M = 11.75) years. Hierarchical multiple regression results indicated that change in attraction to partner was the most salient predictor of sexual satisfaction, with current attraction to partner also related to women's sexual satisfaction, accounting for 20 % of the variance. Current attraction to partner was the only significant predictor of women's relationship satisfaction, accounting for 22 % of the variance. Additionally, attraction variables accounted for variance above and beyond the impact of relationship and sexual satisfaction. These findings suggest that self-reported attraction to partner is an important contributor to women's satisfaction outcomes in long-term relationships. Further studies in the area of attraction to partner that include couple dynamics and longitudinal data are encouraged and implications for therapists, clinicians, and educators are discussed.