Departamento de Química, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba-PR, Brazil.
J Chem Ecol. 2012 Jul;38(7):814-24. doi: 10.1007/s10886-012-0147-1. Epub 2012 Jun 7.
Phthia picta is part of a complex of true bugs (Heteroptera) in Brazil that attack tomatoes, being particularly damaging because nymphs and adults feed on both leaves and fruit. Gas chromatography (GC) of aeration extracts of adult males vs. females revealed the presence of a male-specific compound. GC-electroantennographic detector experiments indicated that the antennae of females are highly sensitive to this male-specific compound. GC-mass spectrometry and GC-FTIR analyses suggested a methyl branched hydrocarbon structure for this compound. After synthesis of three different proposed structures, the natural product was indentified as 5,9,17-trimethylhenicosane, which was strongly attractive to females in Y-tube olfactometer bioassays. Analysis of dissected body parts of adults revealed that the pheromone is produced in the lateral accessory glands of the metathoracic scent gland of males only.
皮托图皮塔是巴西攻击番茄的真蝽（半翅目）复合体的一部分，由于若虫和成虫既吃叶子又吃果实，因此特别具有破坏性。对成年雄性与雌性的充气提取物进行气相色谱（GC）分析显示存在一种雄性特异性化合物。GC-触角电位测定实验表明，雌性的触角对这种雄性特异性化合物高度敏感。GC-质谱和 GC-FTIR 分析表明，这种化合物具有支链甲基碳氢化合物结构。在合成了三种不同的假设结构后，确定天然产物为 5,9,17-三甲基二十一烷，它在 Y 型嗅觉计生物测定中对雌性具有很强的吸引力。对成年个体解剖部分的分析表明，这种信息素仅在雄性后胸气味腺的侧附腺中产生。
