Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 6, 2026
Author Spotlight: Examining Volatile Sex Pheromone Influence on Male C. elegans Behavior
Published on: August 9, 2024
Sex pheromone of tomato pestScrobipalpuloides absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)
A Svatoš1, A B Attygalle, G N Jham
1Baker Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Cornell University, 14853, Ithaca, N.Y..
Abstract:
The sex attractant ofScrobipalpuloides absoluta females is a 90:10 mixture of (3E,8Z,11Z)-3,8,11-tetradecatrien-1-yl acetate and (3E,8Z)-3,8-tetradecadien-1-yl acetate. Tetradecadienyl acetates bearing 8Z,11Z; 3E,8Z; and 3E,11Z double bonds were synthesized by stereospecific procedures; the mass spectral and gas chromatographic properties of the 3E,8Z isomer were found to be congruent with those of the tetradecadienyl acetate fromS. absoluta. In wind tunnel bioassays, a 10:1 mixture of synthetic (3E,8Z,11Z)-3,8,11-tetradecatrien-1-yl acetate and (3E,8Z)-3,8-tetradecadien-1-yl acetate was highly attractive toS. absoluta males. Interestingly, the presence of (8Z,11Z)-8,11-tetradecadien-1-yl acetate (10%) inhibited the response to (3E,8Z,11Z)-3,8,11-tetradecatrien-1-yl acetate completely.
