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Contact Sex Pheromone Components of the Cowpea Weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus

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Abstract

The cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus, is a major pest of stored pulses. Females of this species produce a contact sex pheromone that elicits copulation behavior in males. Pheromone was extracted from filter-paper shelters taken from cages that housed females. Crude ether extract stimulated copulation in male C. maculatus. Initial fractionation showed behavioral activity in acidic and neutral fractions. Furthermore, bioassay-guided fractionation and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis of active fractions revealed that the active components of the acidic fraction were 2,6-dimethyloctane-1,8-dioic acid and nonanedioic acid. These components along with the hydrocarbon fraction, a mixture of C27–C35 straight chain and methyl branched hydrocarbons, had a synergistic effect on the behavior of males. Glass dummies treated with an authentic pheromone blend induced copulation behavior in males. The potential roles of the contact sex pheromone of C. maculatus are discussed.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to express their gratitude to Drs. Kenji Masuyama and Kaoru Tanaka for their valuable comments and help. We also express our gratitude to Dr. Coby Schal and Elsa Youngsteadt for reviewing the manuscript.

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  1. Satoshi Nojima

    Present address: Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Biofunctional Molecular Analysis, Department of Bioscience, Faculty of Applied Bioscience, Tokyo University of Agriculture, 1-1-1, Sakuragaoka, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 156-8502, Japan

    Satoshi Nojima, Kenji Shimomura & Kanju Ohsawa

  2. Laboratory of Pesticide and Bio-organic Chemistry, Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Tokyo University of Agriculture, 1-1-1, Sakuragaoka, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 156-8502, Japan

    Hiroshi Honda & Izuru Yamamoto

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  1. Satoshi Nojima
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  2. Kenji Shimomura
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  3. Hiroshi Honda
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  4. Izuru Yamamoto
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  5. Kanju Ohsawa
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Correspondence to Satoshi Nojima.

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Nojima, S., Shimomura, K., Honda, H. et al. Contact Sex Pheromone Components of the Cowpea Weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus . J Chem Ecol 33, 923–933 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-007-9266-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-007-9266-5

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