title: Phenotypic plasticity in sex pheromone production in Bicyclus anynana butterflies.
abstract: Phenotypic plasticity refers to the environmental control of phenotypes. Cues experienced during development (developmental plasticity) or during adulthood (acclimatization) can both affect adult phenotypes. Phenotypic plasticity has been described in many traits but examples of developmental plasticity in physiological traits, in particular, remain scarce. We examined developmental plasticity and acclimatization in pheromone production in the butterfly Bicyclus anynana in response to rearing temperature. B. anynana lives in the African tropics where warm rearing temperatures of the wet season produce active males that court and females that choose, whereas cooler temperatures of the dry season lead to choosy less active males and courting females. We hypothesized that if male pheromone production is costly, it should be reduced in the dry season form. After describing the ultrastructure of pheromone producing cells, we showed that dry season males produced significantly less sex pheromones than wet season males, partly due to acclimatization and partly due to developmental plasticity. Variation in levels of one of the compounds is associated with differential regulation of a pheromone biosynthetic enzyme gene. This plasticity might be an adaptation to minimize pheromone production costs during the stressful dry season.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, 14 Science Drive 4, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore.|Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, 118173, Singapore.
authors.forename: Emilie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dion
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, 14 Science Drive 4, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore.|Yale-NUS College, 6 College Avenue East, 138614, Singapore.
authors.forename: Antónia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monteiro
authors.affiliation: Pacific Biosciences Research Center, 1993 East West Road, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA.
authors.forename: Joanne Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Yew
mesh_terms: D000064:Acclimatization / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D002080:Butterflies / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D012724:Sex Attractants / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D012724:Sex Attractants