Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK.
Curr Biol. 2017 Aug 7;27(15):R739-R743. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.039.
The reality of invisible chemical signals, pheromones, between members of the same species was recognized long before they could be identified. Charles Darwin proposed that the breeding season sexual smells of male crocodiles, goats and other animals, too, could have evolved by sexual selection of the smelliest males through female choice. But it's not just sex. We now know that pheromones are used by species all across the animal kingdom, in every habitat, and in a wide range of biological contexts, from trail, alarm, and queen pheromones in social insects to the mammary pheromone produced by mother rabbits. Pheromones have provided fascinating examples of signal evolution. In some model organisms, such as moths, Drosophila, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Mus musculus, a complete signaling system can be genetically dissected, from the enzymes producing pheromones, perception by chemosensory receptors, through to the neural circuits processing the signals.
同种生物之间存在无形的化学信号——信息素，这一事实早在其被发现之前就已被人们所认识。查尔斯·达尔文（Charles Darwin）提出，雄性鳄鱼、山羊和其他动物的繁殖季节的性气味，也可能是通过雌性对气味最浓的雄性的性选择而进化而来的。但这不仅仅是关于性。我们现在知道，信息素在动物王国的各个物种中都有使用，在各种生境中，以及在广泛的生物背景下，从社会性昆虫中的踪迹、警报和蜂王信息素，到母兔产生的乳腺信息素。信息素为信号进化提供了引人入胜的例子。在一些模式生物中，如蛾类、果蝇、秀丽隐杆线虫和小家鼠，从产生信息素的酶，到通过化学感觉受体的感知，再到处理信号的神经回路，一个完整的信号系统可以通过遗传学进行剖析。
