title: Soldier defense secretions of malaysian free-ranging termite of the genusLacessititermes (Isoptera, Nasutitermitinae).
abstract: Soldiers of free-ranging termites of the genusLacessititermes (Isoptera, Nasutitermitinae) secrete from their frontal glands a mixture of monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and diterpenes.Lacessititermes ransoneti, L. laborator, andL. species A produce species-specific secretions, the composition being most complex forL. laborator. Apart from known mono- and dihydroxytrinervitadienes, the following new diterpenes were isolated and tentatively assigned as trinervita-1(15),8(19)-dien-2β,3α,9α,14α-tetraol 2,3,14-O-triacetate, trinervita-1(15),8(19)-dien-2β,3α,9β,14α-tetraol 2,3,14-O-triacetate, 2β,3α,9α, 14α-tetraacetoxy-1 (15), 8(19)-trinervitadiene, and 2β,3α,11α,13α-tetraacetoxy-1(15),8(19)-trinervitadiene. Data on intragenus chemical variations were subjected to canonical discriminant analysis and genetic distances among the species were calculated to depict intragenus identities and affinities.
authors.affiliation: Chemistry Department, University of Malaysia, 59100, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Goh
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Chuah
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vadiveloo
authors.forename: Y P
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Tho