Regulation of pheromone production

The role of the nervous system in pheromone biosynthesis in moths is not clearly understood. Christensen and co-workers [208-211] proposed that the neurotransmitter octopamine may be involved as an intermediate messenger during the stimulation of sex pheromone production in H. virescens. These workers suggested that octopamine was involved in the regulation of pheromone production and that PBAN s role lies in the stimulation of octopamine release at nerve endings. However, contradicting results concerning octopa-mine-stimulated pheromone production were reported in the same species as well as other moth species [163,172,212-214]. 

It appears that, in beetles, pheromone production is regulated by JH III, despite the variations in biosynthetic pathways. JH apparently regulates pheromone production in beetles that utilize both fatty acid and isoprenoid biosynthetic pathways [8,98]. Environmental and physiological factors will in turn regulate production of JH. The endocrine regulation of pheromone production in the beetles has been best studied with regard to the bark beetles. 

The biosynthesis and endocrine regulation of pheromone production in beetles has been reviewed [33, 34]. Nevertheless, some more general pathways will be briefly discussed here. As corresponding structures are widespread among insects [2], the examples shown here are selected mostly from taxa other than beetles. Structures representing beetle pheromones will be shown in the context of the discussion of the corresponding species. 

Schal, C. and Smith, A. F. (1990). Neuroendocrine regulation of pheromone production in cockroaches. In Cockroaches as Models for Neurobiology Applications in Biomedical Research, eds. I. Huber, E. P. Masler and B. R. Rao, pp. 179-200. Boca Raton, EL CRC Press. 

Schal, C., Burns, E. L., Gadot, M., Chase, J. and Blomquist, G. J. (1991). Biochemistry and regulation of pheromone production in Blattella germanica (L.) (Dictyoptera, Blattellidae). Insect Biochemistry 21 73-79. 

Vanderwel D. and Oehlschlager A. C. (1987) Biosynthesis of pheromones and endocrine regulation of pheromone production in Coleoptera. In Pheromone Biochemistry, eds G. J. Blomquist and G. D. Prestwich, pp. 175-215. Academic Press, Orlando, FL. Villet R. H. (1974) Involvement of amino and sylfhydryl groups in olfactory transduction in silkmoths. Nature 248, 707-709. 

Foster S. P. and Roelofs W. L. (1994) Regulation of pheromone production in virgin and mated females of two tortricid moths. Arch. Insect Biochem. Physiol. 25, 271-285. 

Raina A. K., Kempe, T. G. and Jaffe H. (1991) Pheromone biosynthesis-activating neuropeptide Regulation of pheromone production in moths. In Insect Neuropeptides Chemistry, Biology and Action, eds J. J. Menn, T. J. Kelly and E. P. Masler, pp. 100-109. American Chemical Society, Washington, DC. 

Thyagaraja B. S. and Raina, A. K. (1994) Regulation of pheromone production in the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, and development of an in vitro bioassay. J. Insect Physiol. 40, 969-974. 

Biosynthesis and endocrine regulation of pheromone production in the Coleoptera... 

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