Molecular messengers among insects.
Molecular messengers among insects.
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昆虫之间的分子信使。
DOI：
10.1111/j.1749-6632.1986.tb48035.x
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发表时间：
1986
影响因子：
5.2
通讯作者：
Meinwald,J
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Meinwald,J
化学通讯在所有生物体的生命中起着关键作用。在细胞间传递信息的分子可以像二氧化碳一样简单，也可以像胰岛素一样复杂。在本文中，我们将不关心涉及核酸、蛋白质或许多”初级”代谢物网络的无处不在和普遍迷人的信息传递过程。我们目前也不会担心高度保守的内部信使分子、激素和神经递质。相反，我们的主要主题将是一些最近的研究，涉及相对较小的、外部化的分子信使（从进化意义上讲，这些信使可能被认为是更广泛研究和更好理解的激素和神经递质的前身）。1-3为什么要挑选昆虫进行化学通讯研究？这类动物的巨大成功，加上观察到这种壮观的成功部分归因于它们作为有机化学家的技能，提供了一个强大的动力。大约有80万种昆虫被描述，直到几年前，估计地球上可能有几百万种昆虫。最近，这一估计已经经历了一个戏剧性的向上修正：对热带雨林动物群的研究现在使昆虫物种的估计数量达到约2000种。三千万！[4]这种多样性无疑表明，昆虫非常适合它们所过的各种生活，因此我们可以从它们身上学到很多生物有机化学也就不足为奇了。
Chemical communication plays a key role in the lives of all organisms. Molecules which carry information at the intercellular level may be as simple as carbon dioxide or as complex as insulin. We will not be concerned in this paper with the ubiquitous and universally fascinating information transfer processes involving the nucleic acids, the proteins, or the many networks of" primary" metabolites. Nor will we be concerned for the moment with the highly conserved internal messenger molecules, the hormones and neurotransmitters. Rather, our primary topic will be some recent studies involving relatively small, externalized molecular messengers (which, in an evolutionary sense, may be considered as the forerunners of the more widely studied and better understood hormones and neurotransmitters). 1-3Why should insects be singled out for research on chemical communication? The enormous success of this class of animals, combined with the observation that this spectacular success is attributable in part to their skills as organic chemists, provides one strong motivation. About 800,000 insect species have been described, and up until a few years ago, it was estimated that there are probably a few million insect species on earth. Most recently, this estimate has undergone a dramatic upward revision: studies of the fauna of tropical rain forests now bring the estimated number of insect species to ca. 30 million! 4 This diversity surely suggests that insects are well fitted for the various lives they lead, and it is not surprising that there is much bioorganic chemistry we can learn from them.