Biochemistry and Endocrine Regulation of Insect Pheromone

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9630916 Blomquist The goal of the proposed work is to gain a detailed understanding of the biochemical processes by which ovarian-produced ecdysteroids regulate sex pheromone production in the housefly, Musca domestica L. NSF-funded work on this project has elucidated the site of pheromone synthesis, the metabolic pathways used in pheromone production, the mechanism of Z9-23:Hy formation and the role of 20hydroxyecdysone in pheromone production. Three distinct types of hormones regulate pheromone production in insects: a neurosecretory peptide (PBAN) in many Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies), juvenile hormones in Dictyoptera (cockroaches) and Coleoptera (beetles), and ecdysteroids in the Diptera (including the housefly). In none of these systems is there a clear understanding of the specific enzyme activities that are hormonally altered to result in pheromone production. In the housefly, strong evidence has been obtained that ecdysteroids affect fatty acylCoA elongation activity, and not the chain length specificity of the steps that convert the fatty acyl-CoA to fatty aldehyde and then to hydrocarbon. Studies are proposed to examine how ecdysteroids induce the synthesis of the major sex pheromone components. This work will provide the basis of an in-depth understanding of the biochemistry and endocrine regulation of dipteran sex pheromones and provide a model for the regulation of hydrocarbon synthesis in the Insecta. A detailed understanding of the biochemistry and regulation of sex pheromone production in insects is required to take full advantage of pheromones in insect control.