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Antennal lobe projection destinations of Helicoverpa zea male olfactory receptor neurons responsive to heliothine sex pheromone components

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Abstract

We used single sensillum recordings to define male Helicoverpa zea olfactory receptor neuron physiology followed by cobalt staining to trace the axons to destination glomeruli of the antennal lobe. Receptor neurons in type A sensilla that respond to the major pheromone component, (Z)-11-hexadecenal, projected axons to the cumulus of the macroglomerular complex (MGC). In approximately 40% of these sensilla a second receptor neuron was stained that projected consistently to a specific glomerulus residing in a previously unrecognized glomerular complex with six other glomeruli stationed immediately posterior to the MGC. Cobalt staining corroborated by calcium imaging showed that receptor neurons in type C sensilla sensitive to (Z)-9-hexadecenal projected to the dorsomedial posterior glomerulus of the MGC, whereas the co-compartmentalized antagonist-sensitive neurons projected to the dorsomedial anterior glomerulus. We also discovered that the olfactory receptor neurons in type B sensilla exhibit the same axonal projections as those in type C sensilla. Thus, it seems that type B sensilla are anatomically type C with regard to the projection destinations of the two receptor neurons, but physiologically one of the receptor neurons is now unresponsive to everything except (Z)-9-tetradecenal, and the other responds to none of the pheromone-related odorants tested.

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Abbreviations

AL:

Antennal lobe

DMA:

Dorsomedial anterior

DMP:

Dorsomedial posterior

MGC:

Macroglomerular complex

ORN :

Olfactory receptor neuron

PCx:

Posterior complex

Z9-14:Ald:

(Z)-9-tetradecenal

Z9-16:Ald:

(Z)-9-hexadecenal

Z11-16:Ac:

(Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate

Z11-16:Ald:

(Z)-11-hexadecenal

Z11-16:OH:

(Z) -11-hexadecenol

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Acknowledgements

This research was funded in part by NSF grant # IBN 9910783 to T.C.B. We thank Dr. Sam Ochieng for the practical advice. We also thank Jennifer Harris, Jae-Hyung Yu, and Ho Kwon for rearing H. zea.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Entomology, Chemical Ecology Lab, Penn State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    Seong-Gyu Lee, Julie L. Todd & Thomas C. Baker

  2. Division of Chemical Ecology, Department of Crop Science, SLU, P.O. Box 44, 23053, Alnarp, Sweden

    Mikael A. Carlsson & Bill S. Hansson

Authors
  1. Seong-Gyu Lee
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  2. Mikael A. Carlsson
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  3. Bill S. Hansson
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  4. Julie L. Todd
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  5. Thomas C. Baker
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Correspondence to Thomas C. Baker.

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Lee, SG., Carlsson, M.A., Hansson, B.S. et al. Antennal lobe projection destinations of Helicoverpa zea male olfactory receptor neurons responsive to heliothine sex pheromone components. J Comp Physiol A 192, 351–363 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-005-0071-8

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