Apolar ecdysteroid esters in adult female crickets, Gryllus bimaculatus

Six hours after injection of 0.5 microCi 3H-ecdysone into the hemocoele of adult female crickets, several labelled compounds could be separated from hemolymph and tissues by silicic acid column chromatography, TLC, and HPLC. The amount of conjugated, polar ecdysteroids was low in all tissues, whereas apolar metabolites were predominant in all tissues. The apolar compound A2, which is the most abundant in quantity, could be hydrolyzed by porcine liver esterase, yielding ecdysone and various long chain fatty acids. This represents a new class of apolar ecdysteroid conjugates not yet found in other insects.