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Resumen Myzus persicae es considerado la tercera plaga de importancia económica de varios cultivos en Chile. Su variabilidad genética es influenciada por la disponibilidad del hospedante primario. Este insecto ha adquirido resistencia a la mayoría de los insecticidas utilizados para su control. El presente trabajo tuvo como objetivo evaluar la diversidad genética y la presencia de mecanismos de resistencia de M. persicae en cultivos como duraznero y pimentón. El estudio se realizó en doce localidades: seis en la región de O'Higgins y seis en la región del Maule en Chile central. Para evaluar la diversidad genética neutral, se utilizaron siete marcadores microsatélites, y la identificación de mecanismos se realizó mediante ensayos de discriminación alélica. La mayor diversidad genética se presentó en poblaciones del duraznero > 0,80 en promedio. En pimentón y arvenses, esta diversidad fue 0,36 en promedio. La frecuencia de individuos con mecanismos de resistencia fue baja y en forma predominantemente heterocigota en los hospedantes evaluados, lo que sugiere que la forma de reproducción sexual del áfido influye en los niveles de resistencia a insecticida. La presencia de mecanismos de resistencia en M. persicae depende del hospedante, región geográfica y momento de muestreo en el que son evaluados. Existe suficiente evidencia de que las poblaciones de M. persicae están compuestas por muy pocos grupos genéticos, presentando diferentes dinámicas de resistencia a insecticidas en la misma temporada agrícola. Abstract Myzus persicae is considered the third pest of economic importance in Chile affecting several crops. Its genetic variability is influenced by the availability of the primary host. M. persicae has acquired resistance to most of the insecticides used for its control. The current work aimed to evaluate the genetic diversity and the presence of resistance mechanisms of M. persicae in crops, such as peach and sweet pepper. The study was carried out in twelve localities, six in the O'Higgins region and six in the Maule region of central Chile. Monthly collections were performed on the crops and their associated weeds. To evaluate the neutral genetic diversity, seven microsatellite markers were used, and the identification of mechanisms was performed by allelic discrimination tests. According to the results, the highest genetic diversity (> 0.80 on average) was found in peach populations. In sweet pepper and associated weeds, this diversity was 0.36 on average. The frequency of individuals with resistance mechanisms was low and predominantly heterozygous in the hosts assessed, suggesting that the sexual reproduction form of the aphid influences the levels of resistance to the insecticide. The presence of resistance mechanisms in M. persicae depends on the host, the geographical region, and the time in which they are evaluated. There is sufficient evidence that the populations of M. persicae are comprised of extremely few genetic groups, presenting different resistance dynamics to insecticides in the same agricultural season.

Background Mate finding and recognition in animals evolves during niche adaptation and involves social signals and habitat cues. Drosophila melanogaster and related species are known to be attracted to fermenting fruit for feeding and egg-laying, which poses the question of whether species-specific fly odours contribute to long-range premating communication. Results We have discovered an olfactory channel in D. melanogaster with a dual affinity to sex and food odorants. Female flies release a pheromone, (Z)-4-undecenal (Z4-11Al), that elicits flight attraction in both sexes. Its biosynthetic precursor is the cuticular hydrocarbon (Z,Z)-7,11-heptacosadiene (7,11-HD), which is known to afford reproductive isolation between the sibling species D. melanogaster and D. simulans during courtship. Twin olfactory receptors, Or69aB and Or69aA, are tuned to Z4-11Al and food odorants, respectively. They are co-expressed in the same olfactory sensory neurons, and feed into a neural circuit mediating species-specific, long-range communication; however, the close relative D. simulans, which shares food resources with D. melanogaster, does not respond to Z4-11Al. Conclusion The Or69aA and Or69aB isoforms have adopted dual olfactory traits. The underlying gene yields a collaboration between natural and sexual selection, which has the potential to drive speciation.

Odors are essential in mediating insect reproductive behavior. Environmental odors help insects locate suitable feeding or egg-laying sites and avoid suboptimal hosts or dangerous habitats. Sex pheromones, on the other hand, are responsible for mate finding and elicit courtship and mating. Although pheromones elicit stereotypical behaviors on their own, they are embedded in a background of environmental odors in nature. Using the cotton leafworm, Spodoptera littoralis, and the common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, I studied the effect of blending environmentally relevant odors with pheromones on insect behavior. For the cotton leafworm, we first developed an attractive cotton volatile blend. We next used this blend to determine the physiological effect of DMNT, a strong behavioral antagonist, on the cotton leafworm olfactory system. I then blended the individual volatiles and volatile blends with an incomplete and complete pheromone. The combination of cotton volatiles and the complete pheromone elicits attraction. Deviations from this optimum, either by changing the pheromone composition or the cotton volatile blend strongly reduces male S. littoralis attraction. I then used the fruit fly to study the effect of food (vinegar) and habitat (yeast) volatiles on fly attraction towards pheromones. Starvation affects attraction towards a blend of vinegar and a male produced pheromone in a sexually dimorphic way. We next describe a novel female fruit fly pheromone and the odorant receptor involved in its perception. Finally, we show that vinegar and yeast volatiles interact in a different manner with male and female produced pheromones, suggesting that although vinegar is a good feeding cue, even in the presence of pheromones, it is not an appropriate mate finding cue. My findings suggest that pheromones and host volatiles function as a single unit that mediates insect behavior, rather than as individual components. As such the olfactory cues that mediate mate finding in insects are under both natural and sexual selection simultaneously, which has strong implications for insect speciation and evolution.

Background Plants under herbivore attack release volatiles that attract natural enemies, and herbivores in turn avoid such plants. Whilst herbivore-induced plant volatile blends appeared to reduce the attractiveness of host plants to herbivores, the volatiles that are key in this process and particularly the way in which deterrence is coded in the olfactory system are largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that herbivore-induced cotton volatiles suppress orientation of the moth Spodoptera littoralis to host plants and mates. Results We found that (E)-4,8-dimethyl-1,3,7-nonatriene (DMNT), an induced volatile, is key in herbivore deterrence: DMNT suppressed plant odour- and pheromone-induced behaviours. We then dissected the neurophysiological basis of this interaction. DMNT-responding glomeruli were also activated by other plant compounds, suggesting that S. littoralis possesses no segregated olfactory circuit dedicated exclusively to DMNT. Instead, DMNT suppressed responses to the main pheromone component, (Z)-9-(E)-11-tetradecenyl acetate, and primarily to (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, a host plant attractant. Conclusion Our study shows that olfactory sensory inhibition, which has previously been reported without reference to an animal’s ecology, can be at the core of coding of ecologically relevant odours. As DMNT attracts natural enemies and deters herbivores, it may be useful in the development or enhancement of push-pull strategies for sustainable agriculture. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12915-015-0188-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.