title: The use of the lactone motif in chemical communication.
abstract: A wide variety of organisms communicate via the chemical channel using small molecules. A structural feature quite often found is the lactone motif. In the present paper, the current knowledge on such lactones will be described, concentrating on the structure, chemistry, function, biosynthesis and synthesis of these compounds. Lactone semiochemicals from insects, vertebrates and bacteria, which this article will focus on, are particularly well investigated. In addition, some ideas on the advantageous use of lactones as volatile signals, which promoted their evolutionary development, will be discussed.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany. stefan.schulz@tu-bs.de.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.forename: Susann
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hötling
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria; D007313:Insecta; D007783:Lactones / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D015394:Molecular Structure; D014714:Vertebrates
chemical_list: D007783:Lactones