Journal of Chemical Ecology (2014) 40, 387-395

Glenn P. Svensson, Eylem Akman Gündüz, Natalia Sjöberg, Erik Hedenström, Jean-Marc Lassance, Hong-Lei Wang, Christer Löfstedt and Olle Anderbrant (2014)
Identification, synthesis, and behavioral activity of 5,11-dimethylpentacosane, a novel sex pheromone component of the greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella (L.)
Journal of Chemical Ecology 40 (4), 387-395
Abstract: The greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella (L.), is a serious and widespread pest of the honeybee, Apis mellifera L. In contrast to most moths, for which long-range mate finding is mediated by female-produced sex pheromones, G. mellonella males attract conspecific females over long distances by emitting large amounts of a characteristic scent in combination with bursts of ultrasonic calls. The male scent for this species was previously identified as a blend of nonanal and undecanal. When these compounds were bioassayed, characteristic short-range sexual behavior, including wing fanning, was triggered in conspecific females, but the aldehyde blend failed to elicit attraction over longer distances. We identified, via analysis and synthesis, a third male-specific compound, 5,11-dimethylpentacosane. We show that it acts as a behavioral synergist to the aldehydes. In wind tunnel experiments, very few female moths responded to the aldehyde blend or to 5,11-dimethylpentacosane tested separately, but consistently showed orientation and source contact when a combination of all three compounds was applied. The level of attraction to the three-component mixture was still lower than that to male extract, indicating that the composition of compounds in the synthetic blend is suboptimal, or that additional pheromone components of G. mellonella are yet to be identified. The identification of 5,11-dimethylpentacosane is an important step for the development of an efficient long-range attractant that will be integrated with other environmentally safe strategies to reduce damage to beehives caused by wax moths.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Glenn P. Svensson, Olle Anderbrant, Erik Hedenström, Eylem Akman Gündüz, Jean-Marc Lassance

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
pheromones/attractants/traps

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Galleria mellonella		Turkey
	Galleria mellonella		Egypt