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Insects
Special Issues
Advances in Chemical Ecology of Plant–Insect Interactions
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Advances in Chemical Ecology of Plant–Insect Interactions

A special issue of Insects (ISSN 2075-4450). This special issue belongs to the section "Insect Pest and Vector Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2024 | Viewed by 4222

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Sergio Angeli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Sciences, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy
Interests: agricultural and forest entomology; ecological interactions between plants and insects; insect olfaction; semiochemicals; insect rearing; volatile organic compound characterization; sensory proteins; botanical insecticides; integrated pest management and organic pest control
Prof. Gianfranco Anfora

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Center Agriculture Food Environment (C3A), University of Trento, Trento, Italy
Interests: agricultural entomology; insect chemical ecology; multitrophic interactions; semiochemicals; integrated pest management; biological control; invasive alien species
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Giacinto S. Germinara

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural Sciences, Food, Natural Resources and Engineering (DAFNE), University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
Interests: chemical ecology; insect pheromones; allelochemicals; extraction methods; electrophysiology; chemical analysis (GC-EAD, GC-MS-EAD); behavioral bioassays; insect–plant interactions; essential oil and plant extracts; stored-product insect pests; agricultural and forest pests; insect monitoring; mating disruption; attract and kill; mass trapping; integrated pest management; invasive alien species
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In nature, herbivory-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) as well as many other semiochemicals are important chemical cues for regulating population ecology and population dynamics, particularly within insect species, as well as plant–insect interactions. The characterization of these compounds, in terms of their chemical structures and ecological functions, unravels new chemical languages, shaping evolution and ecology since geological times. Moreover, the acquired knowledge about their release and perception can help in developing novel strategies in pest control, alternative to the use of synthetic pesticides, therefore encouraging organic farming and a more sustainable agriculture, as requested in Europe by the “EU biodiversity” and “Farm to Fork” strategies. Semiochemicals, including pheromones, kairomones, allomones and synomones, can be used as monitoring and control tools (i.e., mating disruption, mass trapping, attract and kill, push and pull) to decrease pest populations, as well as increase crop defense and protection.

This Special Issue welcomes original research on the characterization of HIPVs, pheromones, kairomones and other semiochemicals which mediate intra- and inter-specific communication between arthropods and agricultural plant species. Manuscripts may focus on chemical (GC-MS, GC-FID, PTR-MS, etc.) and electroantennographic (EAG, GC-EAD, GC-MS-EAD) characterization of volatile compounds, as well as on behavioral and field studies and the development of new applications in monitoring and/or control of agricultural, forest and stored-product pests.

Prof. Sergio Angeli
Prof. Gianfranco Anfora
Prof. Dr. Giacinto S. Germinara
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Insects is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • insect olfaction

  • insect–plant interactions
  • semiochemicals
  • pheromones
  • kairomones
  • allomones
  • electroantennography
  • olfactometry
  • biopesticides
  • trapping
  • population dynamics
  • pest damages
  • organic farming
  • integrated pest manage

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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22 pages, 15343 KiB  
Article
A Female-Biased Chemosensory Protein PxutCSP19 in the Antennae of Papilio xuthus Tuned to Host Volatiles and Insecticides
by Ningna Yin, Dan Shen, Yinlan Liang, Pengfei Wang, Yonghe Li and Naiyong Liu
Insects 2024, 15(7), 501; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15070501 - 5 Jul 2024
Viewed by 776
Abstract
Chemosensory protein (CSP) genes significantly enriched in the female antennae are potential molecular candidates for mediating female oviposition behaviors. In this study, we presented the interaction mechanisms of a female-antenna-biased PxutCSP19 in Papilio xuthus to 47 host volatiles, four biopesticides and 24 synthetic [...] Read more.
Chemosensory protein (CSP) genes significantly enriched in the female antennae are potential molecular candidates for mediating female oviposition behaviors. In this study, we presented the interaction mechanisms of a female-antenna-biased PxutCSP19 in Papilio xuthus to 47 host volatiles, four biopesticides and 24 synthetic insecticides. Using a bioinformatics-based homology search, 22 genes orthologous to PxutCSP19 were identified from 22 other Papilio butterflies with high sequence identities to each other (73.20~98.72%). Multiple alignment analyses revealed a particularly extended N-terminus of Papilio CSP19s (an average of 154 residues) compared to insects’ typical CSPs (approximately 120 residues). The expression profiles indicated that PxutCSP19 was significantly enriched in the female antennae, with a 31.81-fold difference relative to the male antennae. In ligand-binding assays, PxutCSP19 could strongly bind six host odorants with high affinities, ranging from dissociation constant (Ki) values of 20.44 ± 0.64 μM to 22.71 ± 0.73 μM. Notably, this protein was tuned to a monoterpenoid alcohol, linalool, which generally existed in the Rutaceae plants and elicited electrophysiological and behavioral activities of the swallowtail butterfly. On the other hand, PxutCSP19 was also capable of binding eight insecticides with stronger binding abilities (Ki < 12 μM) compared to host odorants. When an extended N-terminal region of PxutCSP19 was truncated into two different proteins, they did not significantly affect the binding of PxutCSP19 to ligands with high affinities, suggesting that this extended N-terminal sequences were not involved in the specificity of ligand recognition. Altogether, our study sheds light on the putative roles of PxutCSP19 enriched in the female antennae of P. xuthus in the perception of host volatiles and the sequestering of insecticides, and it complements the knowledge of butterfly CSPs in olfaction and insecticide resistance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Chemical Ecology of Plant–Insect Interactions)
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12 pages, 2154 KiB  
Article
Host Volatiles Potentially Drive Two Evolutionarily Related Weevils to Select Different Grains
by Shaohua Lu, Lingfang Zhang, Yujie Lu, Mingshun Chen and Zhengyan Wang
Insects 2024, 15(5), 300; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15050300 - 23 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1023
Abstract
The Sitophilus zeamais (maize weevil) and Sitophilus oryzae (rice weevil) are two insect pests that have caused huge economic losses to stored grains worldwide. It is urgent to develop an environmentally friendly strategy for the control of these destructive pests. Here, the olfactory-mediated [...] Read more.
The Sitophilus zeamais (maize weevil) and Sitophilus oryzae (rice weevil) are two insect pests that have caused huge economic losses to stored grains worldwide. It is urgent to develop an environmentally friendly strategy for the control of these destructive pests. Here, the olfactory-mediated selection preference of the two weevil species to three stored grains was analyzed, which should help establish a pull–push system in managing them. Bioassays showed that maize weevil adults prefer to select maize, followed by paddy and wheat, while rice weevil adults mainly migrate towards wheat. Volatile analyses revealed that 2-ethylhexanol, piperitone, and (+)-Δ-cadiene are the major components in volatiles from both maize and wheat, but the abundance of these chemicals is much lower in maize than that in wheat. The volatile limonene was only detected in paddy. Y-tube bioassays suggest that 2-ethylhexanol, piperitone, and (+)-Δ-cadiene were all attractive to both weevils, whereas limonene was attractive only to rice weevils. Overall, maize weevil appeared more sensitive to the tested volatiles based on having much lower effective concentrations of these volatiles needed to attract them. The differences in volatile profiles among the grains and the sensitivity of the two species towards these volatiles may explain the behavioral differences between maize and rice weevils in selecting host grains. The differences in sensitivity of maize and rice weevils towards host volatile components with abundance differences are likely determinants driving the two insect species to migrate towards different host grains. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Chemical Ecology of Plant–Insect Interactions)
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Review

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13 pages, 1474 KiB  
Review
Ethylene: A Modulator of the Phytohormone-Mediated Insect Herbivory Network in Plants
by Leonel Tarcisio da Cristina Bungala, Chanung Park, José Eulário Lampi Dique, Ramaraj Sathasivam, Su Young Shin and Sang Un Park
Insects 2024, 15(6), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15060404 - 1 Jun 2024
Viewed by 601
Abstract
Plants have evolved to establish insect herbivory defences by modulating their metabolism, growth, and development. Precise networks of phytohormones are essential to induce those herbivory defences. Gaseous phytohormone ET plays an important role in forming herbivory defences. Its role in insect herbivory is [...] Read more.
Plants have evolved to establish insect herbivory defences by modulating their metabolism, growth, and development. Precise networks of phytohormones are essential to induce those herbivory defences. Gaseous phytohormone ET plays an important role in forming herbivory defences. Its role in insect herbivory is not fully understood, but previous studies have shown that it can both positively and negatively regulate herbivory. This review presents recent findings on crosstalk between ET and other phytohormones in herbivory responses. Additionally, the use of exogenous ETH treatment to induce ET in response to herbivory is discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Chemical Ecology of Plant–Insect Interactions)
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Other

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7 pages, 528 KiB  
Brief Report
Olfactory Preferences of Sitophilus zeamais to Cereal- and Legume-Based Pasta
by Pasquale Trematerra, Giacinto Salvatore Germinara and Marco Colacci
Insects 2024, 15(3), 167; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15030167 - 29 Feb 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1073
Abstract
We compared the attractiveness of five commercially available Italian macaroni pastas of different shapes (penne, casarecce, and fusilli) made from cereals and/or legumes [100% Triticum durum; 100% Cicer arietinum; 100% Lens esculenta; 50% Triticum durum + 50% Cicer arietinum; [...] Read more.
We compared the attractiveness of five commercially available Italian macaroni pastas of different shapes (penne, casarecce, and fusilli) made from cereals and/or legumes [100% Triticum durum; 100% Cicer arietinum; 100% Lens esculenta; 50% Triticum durum + 50% Cicer arietinum; 60% Triticum durum + 40% Lens esculenta] to adults of Sitophilus zeamais (L.). A multiple-choice walking bioassay showed that S. zeamais adults were more attracted to cereal than legume pastas. The modified Flit-Track M2 trap devices baited with pasta made with 100% T. durum captured an average of 61.4% of the adults released into the olfactometric arena after 7 days. Of the insects tested, pasta made with 100% C. arietinum trapped 3.8%, pasta made with 100% L. esculenta trapped 2.7%, pasta made with 50% T. durum + 50% C. arietinum trapped 4.3%, and pasta made with 60% T. durum + 40% L. esculenta trapped 4.2%. When individually compared, 79.6% of S. zeamais adults chose the Triticum durum pasta. Orientation to 100% Cicer pasta or 100% Lens pasta was not observed. In the choice test, only 37% and 25% were attracted to Triticum and Cicer pastas or Triticum and Lens pasta, respectively. Our results confirm that the low attractiveness of legume pasta is mainly due to the lack of attractant stimuli rather than the emission of repellent compounds. From a practical perspective, it is also interesting to note how mixed pasta decreases the risk of S. zeamais infestation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Chemical Ecology of Plant–Insect Interactions)
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