Insect Odorant Receptors: From Structure and Evolution to Mechanism and Application

Insect odorant receptors (ORs) are pivotal molecular interfaces that translate environmental chemical cues into neuronal electrical impulses, thereby governing essential behaviors such as foraging, mating, oviposition, and predator avoidance. The past three years have witnessed a paradigm shift driven by high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of OR-odorant receptor co-receptor (Orco) heterocomplexes, which definitively established the 1:3 stoichiometry (one odorant-specific OR subunit and three Orco subunits) of the functional ion channel. These structures have revealed the architecture of the ligand-binding pocket and the conformational dynamics underlying channel gating. This structural framework has illuminated long-standing questions regarding the evolution of ORs from ancestral gustatory receptors and their lineage-specific expansion via a "birth-and-death" model, enabling adaptation to diverse ecological niches. Concurrently, the long-debated signal transduction mechanism has been reconciled by evidence of a unified bimodal system, where OR-Orco complexes function as both direct ligand-gated ion channels and activators of an IP3-dependent metabotropic cascade. Here, we integrate these recent breakthroughs-from atomic-level structures and evolutionary genomics to in vivo functional validation-with classical knowledge of OR expression, localization, and diversity. We further synthesize the emerging field of structure-guided applications, including virtual screening for novel semiochemicals and the development of RNAi- and CRISPR-based strategies for pest management. This comprehensive review provides a framework for understanding the molecular logic of insect olfaction and its exploitation for biotechnological innovation.