Center of Plant Sciences, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Piazza Martiri della Libertà 33, Pisa, 56127, Italy.
Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Piazza Università 1, Bolzano, 39100, Italy.
J Chem Ecol. 2023 Aug;49(7-8):369-383. doi: 10.1007/s10886-023-01428-z. Epub 2023 Apr 24.
In insects, cuticular lipids prevent water loss and act as semiochemicals. Because of their ecological function, the profile change across the insects' sex and development offers insight into insect biology and possible tools for pest management. Here, the first work on cecidomyiid cuticular extracts is proposed considering Dasineura oleae (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) males and females at different adult ages (0-12 h, 12-24 h, 24-36 h) and distinct sexual conditions (virgin and mated). A set of 49 compounds were recorded (12 alkanes, 1 monomethyl alkane, 11 fatty acids, 4 esters, 1 aldehyde, 1 allylbenzene, 1 amine, 1 flavonoid, 1 ketone, 1 phenol, 1 steradiene, 1 sterol, 1 terpene, 1 triterpene and 11 unknown compounds), and 18 of them showed significant differences between groups. Among alkanes, hexacosane (nC26) exhibited a decreasing trend from the youngest to the oldest females, while pentacosane (nC25) and nonacosane (nC29) showed a decreasing trend from 0 to 12 h to 12-24 h virgin females. In addition, nonadecane (nC19) was significantly more abundant in the youngest males compared to older males and females. The alkanes nC25, nC26 and nC29 have been reported to be age-related also in other dipterans, while nC19 has been described as gender-specific chemical cue for platygastrid parasitoids. Further behavioural trials and analyses are required to assign the specific ecological roles to the characterized compounds. Our results may contribute to develop new low-impact control strategies relying on the manipulation of D. oleae's chemical communication (e.g. disruption of mating or species recognition). HIGHLIGHTS: • Cuticular hydrocarbons are often involved in dipteran intraspecific communication. • We explored the cuticular profile of D. oleae at different age, sex, mating condition. • Five alkanes and one mono-methyl alkane showed differences among groups. • Linoleic acid is the most abundant compound in virgins, absent in mated insects. • Eleven compounds disappear in mated insects, but were present in all virgins.
在昆虫中，表皮脂质可防止水分流失，并作为半化学物质发挥作用。由于其生态功能，昆虫性别和发育过程中的特征变化为昆虫生物学提供了深入的了解，并为害虫管理提供了可能的工具。在这里，首次对叶瘿蚊科（双翅目：瘿蚊科）雄虫和雌虫在不同的成虫年龄（0-12 小时、12-24 小时、24-36 小时）和不同的性条件（处女和交配）下的表皮提取物进行了研究。共记录了 49 种化合物（12 种烷烃、1 种单甲基烷烃、11 种脂肪酸、4 种酯、1 种醛、1 种丙烯基苯、1 种胺、1 种类黄酮、1 种酮、1 种苯酚、1 种甾二烯、1 种甾醇、1 种萜烯、1 种三萜和 11 种未知化合物），其中 18 种化合物在不同组之间存在显著差异。在烷烃中，二十六烷（nC26）从最年轻的雌虫到最年长的雌虫呈下降趋势，而二十五烷（nC25）和十九烷（nC29）则从 0 小时到 12 小时到 12-24 小时处女雌虫呈下降趋势。此外，在最年轻的雄虫中，十九烷（nC19）的丰度明显高于年长的雄虫和雌虫。在其他双翅目昆虫中，nC25、nC26 和 nC29 已被报道与年龄有关，而 nC19 则被描述为扁形虫寄生蜂特有的性别化学线索。需要进一步进行行为试验和分析，以确定所鉴定化合物的特定生态作用。我们的研究结果可能有助于开发新的低影响控制策略，依靠操纵 D. oleae 的化学通讯（例如，干扰交配或物种识别）。要点：· 表皮碳氢化合物通常参与双翅目昆虫的种内通讯。· 我们在不同的年龄、性别、交配条件下探索了 D. oleae 的表皮特征。· 五种烷烃和一种单甲基烷烃在组间存在差异。· 亚油酸是处女虫中最丰富的化合物，在交配昆虫中不存在。· 十一种化合物在交配昆虫中消失，但在所有处女虫中都存在。
