Sex pheromone of a coccoid insect with sexual and asexual lineages: fate of an ancestrally essential sexual signal in parthenogenetic females
| Autor: | Ryoko T. Ichiki, Chie Moromizato, Kenji Mori, Jun Tabata |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2017 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
0301 basic medicine Male media_common.quotation_subject Population Biomedical Engineering Biophysics Zoology Bioengineering Insect Biology 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Biochemistry Biomaterials Hemiptera 03 medical and health sciences Botany Life Sciences–Chemistry interface Animals Sex Attractants education media_common education.field_of_study Sex Characteristics Parthenogenesis Reproductive isolation Biological Evolution Sexual reproduction Sexual dimorphism 030104 developmental biology Sex pheromone Pheromone Female Biotechnology |
| Zdroj: | Journal of the Royal Society, Interface. 14(128) |
| ISSN: | 1742-5662 |
| Popis: | Sex pheromones play a central role in intersexual communication for reproduction in many organisms. Particularly in insects, reproductive isolation that leads to speciation is often achieved by shifts of pheromone chemistries. However, the divergence and evolution of pheromones remain largely unknown. This study reveals a unique evolutionary consequence for terpenoid pheromones in coccoid insects. Coccoids, such as mealybugs, show clear sexual dimorphism: males are dwarf and short-lived, whereas females are wingless and almost immobile. Female pheromones are therefore indispensable for males to navigate for sexual reproduction, but some females can reproduce asexually. Interestingly, a derived asexual lineage that reproduces by parthenogenesis coexists with its ancestral lineage that reproduces sexually in a population of the pineapple mealybug, Dysmicoccus brevipes . Here, we isolated, characterized and synthesized a novel monoterpene, (−)-( anti -1,2-dimethyl-3-methylenecyclopentyl)acetaldehyde, as a pheromone of the sexual females of D . brevipes . This monoterpene aldehyde, with an irregular linkage of isoprene units, is notable, because all mealybug pheromones previously reported are carboxylic esters of terpenols. This compound was, however, never produced by the asexual females. As a consequence of acquiring parthenogenetic reproduction, the asexual females appear to have abandoned the production of the sex pheromone, which had been essential to attracting males in their ancestors. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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