Sensillar esterase

Fig. 10 TLC plate showing degradation of (R)- and (S)-japonilure (upper spots) by esterases from the legs (Leg) and antennae (Ant) of the Japanese beetle. The corresponding hydroxy-acids appear as lower bands. Note the slower degradation of the behavioral antagonist, (S)-japonilure, by sensillar esterase(s) from the antennae. Neither (R)- nor (S)-japonilure is degraded in control experiments (data not shown) under the same conditions, i.e., with the compounds incubated in buffer without Japanese beetle tissue extracts...

Vogt R. G., Riddiford L. M. and Prestwich G. D. (1985) Kinetic properties of a sex pheromone-degrading enzyme the sensillar esterase of Antheraea polyphemus. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 82, 8827-8831. 

Pophof B. (1998) Inhibitors of sensillar esterase reversibly block the responses of moth pheromone receptor cells. J. Comp. Physiol. A 183, 153-164. 

These findii suggest diat esterases found in legs (and possibly other non ol ctoiy tissues) are not specific, but sensillar esterases nuiy have evolved for the specific degradation of pheromones. Work in progress in my lab is aimed at testing die hypodiesis that PDEs are not only involved in inactivation of chemical signals, but also in chiral discrimination. 

---