Lima Jean Carlos Dos Santos, Bailez Omar, Guerrero Jonathan Rodriguez, Arêdes Anália, Canela Maria Cristina, Viana-Bailez Ana Maria
Entomology and Phytopathology Laboratory, State University of Northern Rio de Janeiro (UENF), Campos Dos Goytacazes, RJ, Brazil.
Behavioral Ecology Laboratory (LABECO), Mato Grosso do Sul State University, Dourados, MS, Brazil.
Neotrop Entomol. 2025 Mar 19;54(1):48. doi: 10.1007/s13744-025-01258-6.
Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) protect insects from dehydration and pathogen attack and participate in interindividual communication. In social insects, the CHC profile serves as a chemical identification system that communicates information on nest membership, life stage, caste, and fertility. It is known that factors such as diet composition, temperature, and humidity may affect the cuticular profile of leaf-cutting ants under laboratory conditions, hindering intercolony recognition. This study aimed to determine whether the CHC profile of leaf-cutting ants under natural conditions is influenced by the dominant type of vegetation. Atta sexdens (Linnaeus,1758) foraging workers were collected at different times of the year from nests located in a eucalyptus plantation and an Atlantic Forest site. Cuticular extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The CHC profiles of ants collected from both sites were compared qualitatively and quantitatively by discriminant analysis. In total, 17 compounds were detected in A. sexdens cuticles (n-C16 to n-C31), including 15 compounds in ants from the eucalyptus plantation and 13 compounds in ants from the Atlantic Forest. Of the 17 compounds, 8 were methylated CHCs, 3 were linear alkanes, 3 were unsaturated hydrocarbons, and 3 could not be identified. Ants collected from different sites contained unique cuticular compounds but did not differ in the relative concentrations of common compounds. Qualitative differences in CHC profile between ants inhabiting different environments can be explained by differences in diet composition. Furthermore, quantitative variations in CHCs throughout the year can be partially attributed to physiological responses to seasonal climatic conditions.
表皮碳氢化合物（CHCs）可保护昆虫免受脱水和病原体攻击，并参与个体间的通讯。在社会性昆虫中，CHC谱作为一种化学识别系统，传达有关巢穴成员、生命阶段、品级和繁殖力的信息。已知饮食组成、温度和湿度等因素在实验室条件下可能会影响切叶蚁的表皮特征，从而阻碍群体间的识别。本研究旨在确定在自然条件下切叶蚁的CHC谱是否受优势植被类型的影响。在一年中的不同时间，从位于桉树林地和大西洋森林地区的巢穴中采集了Atta sexdens（Linnaeus，1758）觅食工蚁。通过气相色谱-质谱联用仪分析表皮提取物。通过判别分析对从两个地点采集的蚂蚁的CHC谱进行定性和定量比较。在Atta sexdens的表皮中共检测到17种化合物（正十六烷至正三十一烷），其中桉树林地的蚂蚁中有15种化合物，大西洋森林的蚂蚁中有13种化合物。在这17种化合物中，8种是甲基化的CHC，3种是直链烷烃，3种是不饱和烃，3种无法鉴定。从不同地点采集的蚂蚁含有独特的表皮化合物，但常见化合物的相对浓度没有差异。栖息在不同环境中的蚂蚁之间CHC谱的定性差异可以用饮食组成的差异来解释。此外，全年CHC的定量变化可部分归因于对季节性气候条件的生理反应。
