Article
Neurosciences
Nobuaki K. Tanaka, Takashi Hirao, Hikaru Chida, Aki Ejima
Summary: The study revealed that the courtship behavior in male fruit flies is mediated by specific neurons, which respond to multimodal sensory stimuli and lead to a fixed sequence of behaviors. Furthermore, male flies are able to suppress or promote their courtship actions by receiving specific olfactory stimuli through neurons when in contact with females.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Agronomy
Zhen Tian, Ruichi Li, Shichang Cheng, Tong Zhou, Jiyuan Liu
Summary: In this study, (Z)-11-hexadecenal (Z11-16: Ald) was identified as an attractant for early-instar larvae of M. separata, and the role of MsepGOBP2 in the detection of Z11-16: Ald was confirmed. These findings could contribute to the development of olfaction-based methods for controlling M. separata in the larval stage.
PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Agronomy
Peng He, Yun-Feng Ma, Mei-Mei Wang, Hong Wang, Youssef Dewer, Nesreen M. Abd El-Ghany, Guang-Lei Chen, Gui-Qing Yang, Fan Zhang, Ming He
Summary: The German cockroach is one of the most severe pests in urban and rural areas with a powerful olfactory system. The study found that Orco plays a pivotal role in both sex pheromone and food-seeking olfactory processes, providing a potential genetic technique for pest control. The RNA interference effect on Orco showed significant behavioral changes in response to volatile sex pheromone and food resources.
PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Paul Vandroux, Zibo Li, Remi Capoduro, Marie-Christine Francois, Michel Renou, Nicolas Montagne, Emmanuelle Jacquin-Joly
Summary: Mate finding in moths relies on female-emitted sex pheromones, and plant volatiles can also influence their perception. Previous studies have shown that certain plant volatiles can activate the pheromone-specific detection pathway in moth species such as Agrotis ipsilon. However, the underlying mechanisms are still unknown. In this study, researchers identified a receptor protein specific to the pheromone component (Z)7-12:OAc but not activated by plant volatiles, suggesting the presence of an unknown second odorant receptor protein that responds to plant volatiles in (Z)7-12:OAc-sensitive neurons of A. ipsilon.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Masumi Ueno, Masami Nakata, Yoshiki Kaneko, Masafumi Iwami, Seika Takayanagi-Kiya, Taketoshi Kiya
Summary: Sexual dimorphisms of the silkmoth brain are regulated by the fruitless (fru) gene. Fru is highly expressed in the male larval testis and the adult female brain. Knockout experiments revealed the importance of fru in survival, testis development, and adult sexual behavior.
INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Cell Biology
Roberto Tirindelli
Summary: Communication is crucial for species survival and reproduction, with most terrestrial species relying on olfactory signals to convey information. The vomeronasal organ plays a significant role in pheromone coding, identifying gender, social ranking, and health status to establish hierarchies and determine reproductive strategies.
CELL AND TISSUE RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Vignesh Venkateswaran, Ibrahim Alali, Anjana P. Unni, Jerrit Weissflog, Rayko Halitschke, Bill S. Hansson, Markus Knaden
Summary: Increasing concentrations of oxidant pollutants like ozone can negatively impact insect olfactory behavior and result in the enrichment of oxidation products, affecting their behavioral choices.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2023)
Article
Mathematical & Computational Biology
Cesar A. Hernandez-Reyes, Shumpei Fukushima, Shunsuke Shigaki, Daisuke Kurabayashi, Takeshi Sakurai, Ryohei Kanzaki, Hideki Sezutsu
Summary: Insects exhibit basic behaviors such as food and mate searching by locating odor sources under turbulent odor plumes with a small number of neurons. Among insects, silk moths have been studied for their clear motor response to olfactory input. The study modeled silk moth olfactory search trajectories as a probabilistic learning agent with a belief of possible source locations, revealing that maneuvers mismatching the programmed behavior are related to larger entropy decrease, suggesting a balance between exploration and exploitation of olfactory information.
FRONTIERS IN COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Salik R. Dahal, Jacob L. Lewellen, Shine Ayyappan, Bharat P. Chaudhary, Viswanath Nukala, Smita Mohanty
Summary: This study reports the high-resolution NMR structure of a pheromone-binding protein (PBP) from Ostrinia furnacalis (Asian corn borer) at pH 6.5. The protein consists of six alpha helices and a large hydrophobic pocket. Interestingly, the C-terminus of the protein folds into an alpha helix at pH 6.5. The protein exhibits nanomolar affinity towards both pheromone isomers, and specific amino acid residues were identified to be involved in the interaction with the isomers.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nicholas C. Aflitto, Abigail G. Dittmar, Todd A. Ugine, Jennifer S. Thaler
Summary: Through dissecting adult male bugs and analyzing the chemical composition, it was found that the release behavior of the spined shoulder bug is related to male age, gland development, and sexual maturity. The developmental trend of reproductive glands and the number of semiochemical releases increased with age, while the sexual composition did not affect the release behavior. These findings have important implications for understanding the timing of olfactory cues perception in other organisms, such as prey.
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Lei Shang, Zi-Cong Li, Ke Tian, Bin Yang, Gui-Rong Wang, Ke-Jian Lin
Summary: In this study, 60 candidate odorant receptors, including eight pheromone receptors, were identified by antennal transcriptome analysis. It was found that GmolOR2 responds to the main sex pheromones Z8-12:OAc and E8-12:OAc, and knockdown of GmolOR2 significantly reduces the males' sensitivity to the main pheromones.
JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Entomology
Georgios A. Kyritsis, Panagiota Koskinioti, Kostas Bourtzis, Nikos T. Papadopoulos
Summary: The study demonstrates that Wolbachia infection reduces male sexual signaling rates in both protein-fed and protein-deprived conditions. The negative effect of Wolbachia infection is more pronounced in protein-fed males, particularly at younger ages, suggesting a regulation of male sexual maturity by the bacterium. Wolbachia infection also alters the daily pattern of sexual signaling.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yusuke Shiota, Takeshi Sakurai, Noriyasu Ando, Stephan Shuichi Haupt, Hidefumi Mitsuno, Takaaki Daimon, Ryohei Kanzaki
Summary: The study found that a loss of pheromone binding protein in male moths led to a decrease in temporal sensory resolution, affecting their behavior and efficiency in locating females and pheromone sources. Therefore, high temporal olfactory and behavioral resolutions, shaped by the protein, are crucial for tracking pheromone plumes and efficiently locating females.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Mourad Jaffar-Bandjee, Florent Figon, Paul Clemencon, Jean-Baptiste Renard, Jerome Casas
Summary: Aerosols have been overlooked in studies on olfaction due to their complexity, but they have the ability to interact with odor molecules, especially pheromones. In experiments with male moths, it was found that aerosols consistently interact with pheromones and moths react better in low aerosol-concentration conditions. The study proposes hypotheses on the competition between odor molecules and aerosols for the olfactory pores and suggests that aerosols may have a positive impact on communication depending on their physico-chemical properties.
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shimaa A. M. Ebrahim, Hany K. M. Dweck, Brian L. Weiss, John R. Carlson
Summary: Tsetse flies engage in chemical communication through volatile pheromones, specifically methyl palmitoleate, which elicits strong behavioral responses. This compound induces G. morsitans males to mount females of another species, Glossina fuscipes. Infection with African trypanosomes alters the flies' chemical profile and mating behavior, indicating the potential usefulness of identifying volatile attractants in tsetse flies for reducing disease spread.
Article
Biophysics
Hidefumi Mitsuno, Takeshi Sakurai, Shigehiro Namiki, Hiroyuki Mitsuhashi, Ryohei Kanzaki
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2015)
Article
Neurosciences
Masashi Tabuchi, Li Dong, Shigeki Inoue, Shigehiro Namiki, Takeshi Sakurai, Kei Nakatani, Ryohei Kanzaki
JOURNAL OF NEUROPHYSIOLOGY
(2015)
Review
Physiology
Shigehiro Namiki, Ryohei Kanzaki
FRONTIERS IN PHYSIOLOGY
(2016)
Article
Biology
Shigehiro Namiki, Ryohei Kanzaki
CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE
(2016)
Article
Entomology
Takuya Nirazawa, Takeshi Fujii, Yoichi Seki, Shigehiro Namiki, Tomoki Kazawa, Ryohei Kanzaki, Yukio Ishikawa
JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Neurosciences
Catherine R. von Reyn, Aljoscha Nern, W. Ryan Williamson, Patrick Breads, Ming Wu, Shigehiro Namiki, Gwyneth M. Card
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shigehiro Namiki, Tsuguru Fujii, Toru Shimada, Ryohei Kanzaki
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2017)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shigehiro Namiki, Satoshi Wada, Ryohei Kanzaki
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2018)
Article
Biology
Jessica Cande, Shigehiro Namiki, Jirui Qiu, Wyatt Korff, Gwyneth M. Card, Joshua W. Shaevitz, David L. Stern, Gordon J. Berman
Article
Biology
Shigehiro Namiki, Michael H. Dickinson, Allan M. Wong, Wyatt Korff, Gwyneth M. Card
Article
Cell Biology
Shigehiro Namiki, Ryohei Kanzaki
CELL AND TISSUE RESEARCH
(2018)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ricardo Zacarias, Shigehiro Namiki, Gwyneth M. Card, Maria Luisa Vasconcelos, Marta A. Moita
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2018)
Article
Neurosciences
Jan M. Ache, Shigehiro Namiki, Allen Lee, Kristin Branson, Gwyneth M. Card
NATURE NEUROSCIENCE
(2019)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shigehiro Namiki, Ryohei Kanzaki
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2019)
Article
Neurosciences
Robert Court, Shigehiro Namiki, J. Douglas Armstrong, Jana Borner, Gwyneth Card, Marta Costa, Michael Dickinson, Carsten Duch, Wyatt Korff, Richard Mann, David Merritt, Rod K. Murphey, Andrew M. Seeds, Troy Shirangi, Julie H. Simpson, James W. Truman, John C. Tuthill, Darren W. Williams, David Shepherd