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Epicuticular lipids induce aggregation in Chagas disease vectors.

Alicia N Lorenzo Figueiras¹, Juan R Girotti, Sergio J Mijailovsky

¹Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de La Plata (CCT La Plata-CONICET-UNLP), Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, calles 60 y 120 1 degrees piso, CP 1900, La Plata, Argentina. mjuarez@isis.unlp.edu.ar.

Parasites & Vectors

|January 29, 2009

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Triatomine bugs aggregate using contact pheromones from their epicuticular lipids. Free fatty acids, particularly octadecanoic and hexacosanoic acids, act as attractants, aiding Chagas disease vector control strategies.

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Area of Science:

Chemical Ecology
Insect Behavior
Vector Biology

Background:

Triatomine bugs transmit Chagas disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi.
Aggregation behavior is crucial for triatomine bug survival, aiding refuge location and predator avoidance.
Aggregation is influenced by thigmotaxis, fecal cues, and contact chemoreception via epicuticular lipids.

Purpose of the Study:

To identify contact aggregation pheromones in the triatomine bug Triatoma infestans.
To determine which epicuticular lipid fractions and fatty acids elicit aggregation behavior.

Main Methods:

Response of T. infestans nymphs to epicuticular lipid extracts and fractions was tested in a binary choice arena.
Filter papers were impregnated with lipid extracts, fractions, or solvent as controls.
Response to individual fatty acids (C16:0, C18:0, C26:0) at varying concentrations was evaluated.

Main Results:

Insects aggregated significantly around papers treated with total epicuticular lipid extracts.
Only the free fatty acid fraction significantly promoted bug aggregation.
Octadecanoic acid (C18:0) and hexacosanoic acid (C26:0) showed significant attractant effects, with C26:0 becoming repellent at higher doses.

Conclusions:

Free fatty acids in epicuticular lipids function as contact aggregation pheromones for T. infestans.
Identification of these pheromones offers potential for developing novel Chagas disease vector control tools.