Support for (Z)-11-hexadecanal as a pheromone antagonist in Ostrinia nubilalis: flight tunnel and single sensillum studies with a New York population.
The flight-tunnel response of male Z-strain European corn borer moths (ECB), Ostrinia nubilalis, from a population in New York State (USA), was significantly antagonized by addition of 1% (Z)-11-hexadecanal (Z11-16:Ald) to their sex pheromone (a 97:3 mix of (Z)- and (E)-11-tetradecenyl acetate [Z/E11-14:OAc]). The level of antagonism was equivalent to that observed for the previously identified ECB antagonist, (Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:OAc), and supports a recent report showing that Z11-16:Ald, a minor pheromone component of the Noctuid moth, Sesamia nonagrioides, caused antagonism of ECB pheromone communication in sympatric populations in the Iberian Peninsula. Single-sensillum recordings from ECB antennae, which included cross-adaptation experiments, showed that the same olfactory receptor neuron processing Z9-14:OAc inputs was responsible for detecting Z11-16:Ald, and that this neuron was not responsive to two other aldehydes, (Z)-9-tetradecanal (Z9-14:Ald) and (Z)-9-hexadecanal (Z9-16:Ald), found in other moth sex pheromones. Our results show that the antagonism is not confined to one geographic region, is specific for Z11-16:Ald, and that antagonist pathways might have the potential for processing a number of structurally similar compounds.
Linn
Charles E
CE
Department of Entomology, Barton Lab, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Cornell University, Geneva, New York 14456, USA. CE1@cornell.edu
Domingue
Michael J
MJ
Musto
Callie J
CJ
Baker
Thomas C
TC
Roelofs
Wendell L
WL
D000447:Aldehydes / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005426:Flight, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D009036:Moths / Q000502:physiology*; D009518:New York; D018034:Olfactory Receptor Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010675:Pheromones / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*
D000447:Aldehydes; D010675:Pheromones; C061128:11-hexadecenal