Otte Tobias, Hilker Monika, Geiselhardt Sven
Dahlem Centre of Plant Sciences, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Haderslebener Str. 9, 12163, Berlin, Germany.
J Chem Ecol. 2015 Jan;41(1):32-43. doi: 10.1007/s10886-014-0535-9. Epub 2014 Dec 18.
The cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profile of the mustard leaf beetle Phaedon cochleariae is known to mediate mate recognition and is dependent on food plant species; beetles previously were shown to prefer mates that fed on the same plant species and which have a similar CHC pattern. In order to elucidate whether the pattern of ingested fatty acids affects the CHC pattern of P. cochleariae adults, we fed beetles: (a) with two different host plant species differing in fatty acid profile; and (b) artificial diets differing mainly in their composition of mono-, di-, and triunsaturated fatty acids. Analyses of the beetles' CHCs revealed that ingestion of different fatty acid blends results in quantitative effects on the beetle's straight-chain and methyl-branched CHCs. Interestingly, CHC patterns of males and females were affected differently by ingestion of fatty acids. In contrast to the effect on mating caused by feeding on different host plant species, beetles that were fed with different artificial diets, leading to different beetle CHC profiles, did not exhibit mating preference. We suggest that the occurrence of CHC-dependent assortative mating in P. cochleariae does not depend on the dietary fatty acids offered to the beetles in this study, but on other food constituents that affect CHC biosynthesis.
已知芥菜叶甲（Phaedon cochleariae）的表皮碳氢化合物（CHC）谱介导配偶识别，且依赖于取食的植物种类；此前研究表明，该甲虫更喜欢与取食相同植物种类且具有相似CHC模式的个体交配。为了阐明摄入的脂肪酸模式是否会影响芥菜叶甲成虫的CHC模式，我们用以下食物喂养甲虫：（a）两种脂肪酸组成不同的寄主植物；（b）主要在单不饱和脂肪酸、多不饱和脂肪酸和饱和脂肪酸组成上有所差异的人工饲料。对甲虫CHC的分析表明，摄入不同的脂肪酸混合物会对甲虫的直链和甲基支链CHC产生定量影响。有趣的是，摄入脂肪酸对雄性和雌性甲虫CHC模式的影响不同。与取食不同寄主植物种类导致的交配影响不同，用不同人工饲料喂养的甲虫，其CHC谱不同，但并未表现出交配偏好。我们认为，芥菜叶甲中依赖CHC的选型交配现象并不取决于本研究中提供给甲虫的膳食脂肪酸，而是取决于影响CHC生物合成的其他食物成分。
