Homofarnesals: female sex attractant pheromone components of the southern cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus chinensis.
The southern cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus chinensis (Coleoptera: Bruchidae), is a major pest of stored legumes in warm temperate and tropical climates. The female sex attractant pheromone was extracted from filter-paper shelters taken from containers that housed virgin females. The extracts were purified by various chromatographic techniques, and the biologically active components in the fractions were screened by gas chromatographic-electroantennographic detection analysis with male antennae. Two compounds that elicited electrophysiological responses were isolated, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, and micro-chemical analyses suggested that the active compounds were homofarnesals, (2Z,6E)- and (2E,6E)-7-ethyl-3,11-dimethyl-2,6,10-dodecatrienals. Males of C. chinensis were significantly attracted to filter paper discs loaded with the synthetic compounds at 0.01-0.1 ng compared to solvent control in a Y-tube olfactometer assay. These pheromone components represent unique chemical structures within the genus Callosobruchus.
Shimomura
Kenji
K
Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Applied Bioscience, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo 156-8502, Japan. k3shimom@nodai.ac.jp
Nojima
Satoshi
S
Yajima
Shunsuke
S
Ohsawa
Kanju
K
D000818:Animals; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005204:Farnesol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012724:Sex Attractants / Q000502:physiology*; D048889:Weevils / Q000502:physiology*
D012724:Sex Attractants; D005204:Farnesol; C084519:farnesal