title: Identification of feeding stimulants for boll weevils from cotton buds and anthers.
abstract: Column chromatography of the pentane extract of freeze-dried cotton buds or anthers yielded a wax-sterol ester fraction that exhibited potent feeding stimulant activity for the cotton boll weevil. The waxes of the wax-sterol ester mixture were responsible for the feeding activity. Saponification of the wax-sterol ester fraction yielded about 15% alcohols and 85% sterols. A C18∶1 alcohol, dihydrophytol, phytol, and geranylgeraniol constituted 15, 36, 26, and 23%, respectively, of the total alcohols, implicating certain of their long-chain esters as feeding stimulants. Several esters of dihydrophytol, phytol, and geranylgeraniol were identified among the waxes by GC-MS. Certain phytol, geranylgeraniol, and oleyl alcohol esters containing C12 to C26 acid moieties were synthesized and were found to induce high feeding stimulant activity in the cotton boll weevil.
authors: Boll Weevil Research Lab., Agricultural Research Service USDA, P.O. Box 5367, 39762, Mississippi State, Mississippi.
authors: G H
authors: GH
authors: McKibben
authors: M J
authors: MJ
authors: Thompson
authors: W L
authors: WL
authors: Parrott
authors: A C
authors: AC
authors: Thompson
authors: W R
authors: WR
authors: Lusby