Male Jeffrey pine beetle, Dendroctonus jeffreyi, synthesizes the pheromone component frontalin in anterior midgut tissue

• Published in: Insect biochemistry and molecular biology Vol. 32; no. 11; pp. 1525 - 1532
• Main Authors: Hall, G.M., Tittiger, C., Blomquist, G.J., Andrews, G.L., Mastick, G.S., Barkawi, L.S., Bengoa, C., Seybold, S.J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01-11-2002
• Subjects: 3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase; Acetates - metabolism; Animals; Anterior midgut; Bark beetle; Bridged Bicyclo Compounds, Heterocyclic - metabolism; Coleoptera - anatomy & histology; Coleoptera - genetics; Coleoptera - physiology; Dendroctonus jeffreyi; Digestive System Physiological Phenomena; Frontalin; Isoprenoid; Organ Specificity; Pheromone biosynthesis; Pheromones - biosynthesis; Pinus - parasitology; Bark beetle; Pheromone biosynthesis; Anterior midgut; Frontalin; Isoprenoid; 3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase; Dendroctonus jeffreyi
• ISSN: 0965-1748; 1879-0240
• DOI: 10.1016/S0965-1748(02)00073-5

The male Jeffrey pine beetle,
Dendroctonus jeffreyi Hopkins (Coleoptera: Scolytidae), produces the bicyclic ketal frontalin as part of a complex semiochemical blend. A key regulated enzyme in the mevalonate pathway, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMG-R), showed high transcript levels in the anterior midgut of male Jeffrey pine beetles by in situ hybridization.
HMG-R expression in this area of the alimentary canal was related to male emergence, where emerged males demonstrated significant up-regulation of
HMG-R transcript and pre-emerged males showed only basal levels. Pre-emerged males were induced to express high levels of
HMG-R transcript by treatment with juvenile hormone (JH) III. Additionally, isolated anterior midgut tissue from JH III-treated males converted radiolabeled acetate to frontalin, as assayed by radio-HPLC, providing strong evidence that this is the site of frontalin production in male beetles.