Identification of guava volatile compounds capable of stimulating Anastrepha fraterculus male sexual competitiveness

FERNÁNDEZ PC; SEGURA D; BACHMAN G; BELLIARD SA; VERA MT

Virtual

Congreso; THE 6TH CONGRESS OF THE LATIN AMERICAN ASSOCIATION CHEMICAL ECOLOGY - VI ALAEQ2021; 2021

THE LATIN AMERICAN ASSOCIATION CHEMICAL ECOLOGY

In some tephritid fruit flies, exposure to volatile compounds from some plants increase male sexual success. This phenomenon has been used to boost sterile males? sexual competitiveness in the framework of the sterile insect technique (SIT). Previous studies revealed that males of Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae) exposed to volatiles from guava (Psidium guava) fruit (GF) and guava essential oil (GEO) exhibit intensified courtship behavior and have greater copulatory success relative to unexposed males. Similar results were achieved through Huingán (Schinus polygamus) essential oil or lemon (Citrus limon) essential oil exposure. To identify the responsible compounds involved in these effects, we compared the volatile chemical profiles of GF, GEO, Huingán essential oil and lemon essential oil. We identified five common compounds: (E) -b-Ocimene, (Z) -b-Ocimene, Limonene, b-Caryophyllene and a-Humulene. We used the electroantennographic detection (EAD) technique to verify that males were able to detect all the identified compounds and to build dose-response curves between 0.01µg/µl and 100µg/µl for each compound. Furthermore, we confirmed a stimulating effect on the courtship behavior of males for each of these compounds, which were assayed on a wide dose range of exposures (1-100µg/µl). However, we found that the concentration that maximized the effect on courtship behavior differed among compounds by several orders of magnitude. Our results may contribute to the ongoing development of the SIT in this species.