| Title: | Chemical identification of an aggregation pheromone in the termite Reticulitermes speratus |
| Author(s): | Mitaka Y; Matsuyama S; Mizumoto N; Matsuura K; Akino T; |
| Address: | "Applied Entomology Laboratory, Department of Bioresource Field Sciences, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Kyoto, 616-8354, Japan. ymitaka02@gmail.com. Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8572, Japan. School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Arizona, AZ, 85287-9425, USA. Laboratory of Insect Ecology, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan. Applied Entomology Laboratory, Department of Bioresource Field Sciences, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Kyoto, 616-8354, Japan" |
| DOI: | 10.1038/s41598-020-64388-4 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 2045-2322 (Electronic) 2045-2322 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Social behaviours in termites are regulated by sophisticated chemical communication systems. The majority of subterranean termites continuously forage for new wood resources to expand their nesting areas; an aggregation pheromone is presumed to regulate this process. However, the chemical components of this pheromone have never been determined. We identified the chemical properties of the aggregation pheromone that signals nestmate presence and induces arrest in the termite Reticulitermes speratus. The results of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses and bioassays indicated that R. speratus worker release the pheromone to their nesting site. The pheromone consists of an aromatic compound (2-phenylundecane), cuticular hydrocarbons (pentacosane and heptacosane), fatty acids (palmitic acid and trans-vaccenic acid), and cholesterol; the pheromone induces long-term aggregation at new nesting and feeding sites. Although 2-phenylundecane alone attracted workers, the combination of all six compounds showed greater arrestant activity than 2-phenylundecane alone. This suggests that 2-phenylundecane functions as an attractant, whereas the remaining five components function as arrestants. Our results indicate that foraging worker termites produce a multi-component aggregation pheromone by combining a volatile hydrocarbon and non-volatile lipids with cuticular hydrocarbons. This pheromone enables rapid, long-lasting aggregation of termite workers, which contributes to efficient feeding and colonisation of new wood. Our work furthers the understanding of chemical communication systems underlying social assembly in social insects" |
| Keywords: | "Alkanes/chemistry Animals Behavior, Animal Biological Assay Cholesterol/chemistry Chromatography, Gas Ecology Fatty Acids/chemistry Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Hydrocarbons Isoptera/*chemistry Oleic Acids/chemistry Pheromones/*chemistry Polyenes/;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineMitaka, Yuki Matsuyama, Shigeru Mizumoto, Nobuaki Matsuura, Kenji Akino, Toshiharu eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2020/05/06 Sci Rep. 2020 May 4; 10(1):7424. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-64388-4" |
