| Title: | The scent of wolves: pyrazine analogs induce avoidance and vigilance behaviors in prey |
| Author(s): | Osada K; Miyazono S; Kashiwayanagi M; |
| Address: | "Division of Physiology, Department of Oral Biology, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido Ishikari-Tobetsu, Japan. Department of Sensory Physiology, Asahikawa Medical University Asahikawa, Japan" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1662-4548 (Print) 1662-453X (Electronic) 1662-453X (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The common gray wolf (Canis lupus) is an apex predator located at the top of the food chain in the Northern Hemisphere. It preys on rodents, rabbits, ungulates, and many other kinds of mammal. However, the behavioral evidence for, and the chemical basis of, the fear-inducing impact of wolf urine on prey are unclear. Recently, the pyrazine analogs 2, 6-dimethylpyrazine, 2, 3, 5-trimethylpyrazine and 3-ethyl-2, 5-dimethyl pyrazine were identified as kairomones in the urine of wolves. When mice were confronted with a mixture of purified pyrazine analogs, vigilance behaviors, including freezing and excitation of neurons at the accessory olfactory bulb, were markedly increased. Additionally, the odor of the pyrazine cocktail effectively suppressed the approach of deer to a feeding area, and for those close to the feeding area elicited fear-related behaviors such as the 'tail-flag,' 'flight,' and 'jump' actions. In this review, we discuss the transfer of chemical information from wolf to prey through the novel kairomones identified in wolf urine and also compare the characteristics of wolf kairomones with other predator-produced kairomones that affect rodents" |
| Keywords: | Hokkaido deer fear kairomone pyrazine analogs wolf; |
| Notes: | "PubMed-not-MEDLINEOsada, Kazumi Miyazono, Sadaharu Kashiwayanagi, Makoto eng Review Switzerland 2015/10/27 Front Neurosci. 2015 Oct 7; 9:363. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2015.00363. eCollection 2015" |
