INRA, UMR 1272 INRA-UPMC Physiologie de l'Insecte: Signalisation et Communication, Route de Saint-Cyr, F-78026 Versailles Cedex, France.
Nat Commun. 2012;3:1047. doi: 10.1038/ncomms2050.
Sex pheromones are released by adults of a species to elicit a sexual interaction with the other sex of the same species. Here we report an unexpected effect of a moth sex pheromone on the caterpillars of the same species. We demonstrate that larvae of the cotton leafworm Spodoptera littoralis are attracted by the moth sex pheromone and that this phenomenon is independent of sex determination. In addition, we show that the olfactory sensilla carried by the caterpillar antennae are sensitive to the pheromone and that the caterpillar sensilla express pheromone-binding proteins that are used by adult antennae to bind pheromone components. Finally, we demonstrate that the larvae are preferentially attracted to a food source when it contains the sex pheromone main component. A possible interpretation of these results is that the sex pheromone is used to promote food search in caterpillars, opening potential new routes for insect pest management.
性信息素是由一个物种的成虫释放出来的，以引起与该物种的异性之间的性相互作用。在这里，我们报告了一种蛾子性信息素对同一物种的毛毛虫的意外影响。我们证明，棉铃虫 Spodoptera littoralis 的幼虫被蛾的性信息素吸引，而这种现象与性别决定无关。此外，我们还表明，毛毛虫触角上携带的嗅觉感觉器对信息素敏感，并且毛毛虫感觉器表达的信息素结合蛋白被成虫触角用来结合信息素成分。最后，我们证明幼虫更喜欢在含有性信息素主要成分的食物源中被吸引。对这些结果的一种可能解释是，性信息素被用来促进毛毛虫寻找食物，为昆虫害虫管理开辟了新的潜在途径。
