Scolytidae pheromone biosynthesis

Wiygul et al. (1982) reported the site of pheromone biosynthesis in male boll weevils as the fat body. To date this is the only insect where the fat body has been proposed as a site for pheromone biosynthesis, and it is an obvious contradiction that in most species of the closely related Scolytidae, isoprenoid pheromone biosynthesis has been reported to occur in the alimentary canal (see section 6.6.2). Wiygul et al. (1982) observed that the level of pheromone production... 

Ivarsson P., Schlyter F. and Birgersson G. (1993) Demonstration of de novo pheromone biosynthesis in Ips duplicatus (Coleoptera Scolytidae) inhibition of ipsdienol and E-myrcenol production by compactin. Insect Biochem. Molec. Biol. 23, 655-662. 

Lu F. (1999) Origin and endocrine regulation of pheromone biosynthesis in the pine bark beetles, Ips pini (Say) and Ips paraconfusus Lanier (Coleoptera Scolytidae). PhD thesis. Univ. of Reno, Nevada, 152 pp. 

Tillman J. A., Holbrook G. L., Dallara P. L., Schal C., Wood D. L., Blomquist G. J. and Seybold S. J. (1998) Endocrine regulation of de novo aggregation pheromone biosynthesis in the pine engraver, Ips pini (Say) (Coleoptera Scolytidae). Insect Biochem. Molec. Biol. 28, 705-715. 

Tittiger C., Blomquist G. J., Ivarsson P., Borgeson C. E. and Seybold S. J. (1999) Juvenile hormone regulation of HMG-R gene expression in the bark beetle, Ips paraconfusus (Coleoptera Scolytidae) implications for male aggregation pheromone biosynthesis. Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 55, 121-127. 

Coleoptera Scolytidae) implications for male aggregation pheromone biosynthesis. Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 55, 121-127. 

Hg. (7). Isoprcnoid biosynthetic pathway leading through mevalonate to hemiterpeuaid (C5) and monoteipenoid (CIO) pheromones in Scolytidae. The biosynthesis is regulated by juvenile hormone TIT. Abbreviation HMG-CoA, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CuA. Adapted from ref. [98]. 

TILLMAN, J.A., LU, F., STAEHLE, L., DONALDSON, Z DWINELL, S.C., TITTIGER, C., HALL, G.M., STORER, A.J., BLOMQUIST, G.J., SEYBOLD, S.J., Juvenile hormone regulates de novo isoprenoid aggregation pheromone biosynthesis in pine bark beetles, Ips spp. (Coleoptera Scolytidae), through transcriptional control of HMG-CoA reductase, J. Chem. Ecol, 2004,30, 2335-2358. 

KEELING, C.I., BLOMQUIST, G.J., TITTIGER, C., Coordinated gene expression for pheromone biosynthesis in the pine engraver beetle, Ips pini (Coleoptera Scolytidae). Naturwissenschaften, 2004, 91, 324-328. 

Figure 6.10 De novo biosynthesis of isoprenoid pheromone components by bark and ambrosia beetles through the mevalonate biosynthetic pathway. The end products are hemiterpenoid and monoterpenoid pheromone products common throughout the Scolytidae and Platypodidae (Figure 6.9A). The biosynthesis is regulated by juvenile hormone III (JH III), which is a sesquiterpenoid product of the same pathway. The stereochemistry of JH III is indicated as described in Schooley and Baker (1985). Although insects do not biosynthesize sterols de novo, they do produce a variety of derivatives of isopentenyl diphosphate, geranyl diphosphate, and farnesyl diphosphate. Figure adapted from Seybold and Tittiger (2003).

Ivarsson P. and Birgersson G. (1995) Regulation and biosynthesis of pheromone components in the double spined bark beetle Ips duplicatus (Coleoptera Scolytidae). J. Insect Physiol. 41, 843-849. 

LanneB. S., IvarssonP., Johnson P., Bergstrom G. and Wassgren A. B. (1989) Biosynthesis of 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol, a pheromone component of Ips typographus (Coleoptera Scolytidae). Insect Biochem. 19, 163-168. 

SEYBOLD, S.J., QUILICI, D.R., TILLMAN, J.A., VANDERWEL, D., WOOD, D.L., BLOMQUIST, G.J., De novo biosynthesis of the aggregation pheromone components ipsenol and ipsdienol by the pine bark beetles Ips paraconfusus Lanier and Ips pini (Say) (Coleoptera Scolytidae), Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 1995, 92, 8393-8397. 

---