Functional evolution of Lepidoptera olfactory receptors revealed by deorphanization of a moth repertoire

Sammanfattning

Insects detect their hosts or mates primarily through olfaction, and olfactory receptors (ORs) are at the core of odorant detection. Each species has evolved a unique repertoire of ORs whose functional properties are expected to meet its ecological needs, though little is known about the molecular basis of olfaction outside Diptera. Here we report a pioneer functional analysis of a large array of ORs in a lepidopteran, the herbivorous pest Spodoptera littoralis. We demonstrate that most ORs are narrowly tuned to ubiquitous plant volatiles at low, relevant odorant titres. Our phylogenetic analysis highlights a basic conservation of function within the receptor repertoire of Lepidoptera, across the expansive evolutionary radiation of different major clades. Our study provides a reference for further studies of olfactory mechanisms in Lepidoptera, a historically crucial insect order in olfactory research.

Nyckelord

Chemical ecology; Entomology; Olfactory receptors; Phylogenetics

Publicerad i

Nature Communications
2017, volym: 8, artikelnummer: 15709

SLU författare

• Walker, William

  • Institutionen för växtskyddsbiologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

• Steiner, Claudia

  • Institutionen för växtskyddsbiologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    
  • Sorbonne Université

• Binyameen, Muhammad

  • Institutionen för växtskyddsbiologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    
  • Bahauddin Zakariya University

• Schlyter, Fredrik

  • Institutionen för växtskyddsbiologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

• Anderson, Peter

  • Institutionen för växtskyddsbiologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

• Larsson, Mattias

  • Institutionen för växtskyddsbiologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

UKÄ forskningsämne

Ekologi
Evolutionsbiologi

Publikationens identifierare

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms15709

Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/83742