Electrophysiology and behavior feedback of diamondback moth,Plutella xylostella, to volatile secondary metabolites emitted by Chinese cabbage

The volatiles, absorbed by Porapak Q and eluted by hexane, from Chinese cabbage, Brassica campestris chinesis (L.) Makino. var. communis Tsen et Lee, have been identified as allyl isothiocyanate, Z-3-hexenyl acetate, 3,7-dimethyl-1,3,6-octatriene, 2,5-hexanediol, Z-3-hexen-1-ol, nonanol, b-myrcene, a-pinene, E-2-hexen-1-ol, D-limonene, Z-3-hexenyl propanoate, linalool, geraniol, E-4-hexen-1-ol, Z-3-hexenyl isovalerate, a-terpinene, b-caryophyllene, 3-carene and a-caryophyllene, by their mass spectra and retention times in comparison with authentic samples. The first five chemicals are the main components. All components can elicite electroantennogram (EAG) responses of diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella, in which allyl isothiocyanate and C₆ alcohols and esters, i.e. Z-3-hexen-1-ol, E-2-hexen-1-ol, E-4-hexen-1-ol, Z-3-hexenyl isovalerate and 2,5-hexanediol elicite stronger EAG responses than other components, and EAG responses of female moths to them are slightly larger than those of male moths. However, EAG responses elicited by terpenes are smaller, and EAG responses from females to terpenes are smaller than those from males, but b-myrcene can evoke stronger EAG responses from both females and males. Volatiles from intact Chinese cabbage, allyl isothiocyanate, 2,5-hexanediol and Z-3-hexenyl isovalerate intensely cause DBM directional flying and landing in wind tunnel, in which volatiles from intact Chinese cabbage have the strongest activity, and the next is allyl isothiocyanate. Allyl isothiocyanate is more attractive to females than to males a bit. As for a-terpinene and other subordinate components, EAG and wind tunnel test make sure they have weak activity.     

光肩星天牛对糖槭挥发物的EAG及嗅觉行为反应

[目的]分析影响光肩星天牛定位寄主的糖槭挥发物成分,解析挥发物在光肩星天牛搜寻和定位寄主过程中的作用,为光肩星天牛的综合防控提供依据.[方法]利用热脱附气质联用法(thermal desorption gas chromatog-raphy-mass spectrometry,TCT-GC-MS)分析鉴定糖槭挥发物组分...     

Genetic variation in a human odorant receptor alters odour perception

Human olfactory perception differs enormously between individuals, with large reported perceptual variations in the intensity and pleasantness of a given odour. For instance, androstenone (5alpha-androst-16-en-3-one), an odorous steroid derived from testosterone, is variously perceived by different individuals as offensive ("sweaty, urinous"), pleasant ("sweet, floral") or odourless. Similar variation in odour perception has been observed for several other odours. The mechanistic basis of variation in odour perception between individuals is unknown. We investigated whether genetic variation in human odorant receptor genes accounts in part for variation in odour perception between individuals. Here we show that a human odorant receptor, OR7D4, is selectively activated in vitro by androstenone and the related odorous steroid androstadienone (androsta-4,16-dien-3-one) and does not respond to a panel of 64 other odours and two solvents. A common variant of this receptor (OR7D4 WM) contains two non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), resulting in two amino acid substitutions (R88W, T133M; hence 'RT') that severely impair function in vitro. Human subjects with RT/WM or WM/WM genotypes as a group were less sensitive to androstenone and androstadienone and found both odours less unpleasant than the RT/RT group. Genotypic variation in OR7D4 accounts for a significant proportion of the valence (pleasantness or unpleasantness) and intensity variance in perception of these steroidal odours. Our results demonstrate the first link between the function of a human odorant receptor in vitro and odour perception.     

五角枫挥发物的提取鉴定及黄斑星天牛对主要组分的触角电位反应

在确定新疆伊犁地区黄斑星天牛成虫嗜食寄主的基础上,利用GC-MS技术鉴定五角枫嫩枝和叶片的挥发物组分,并利用触角电位反应测定成虫对主要挥发物的电生理活性.研究结果表明,在多寄主植物混栽区,黄斑星天牛成虫更偏好取食五角枫的嫩枝补充营养,更喜好在旱柳和复叶槭枝干上刻槽产卵.从五角枫挥发物中共鉴定到34种化合物,其中萜烯类和酯类物质是主要组分,相对含量分别占挥发物组成的70.49%和23.94%.(Z)-β-罗勒烯、桧烯、β-石竹烯、α-水芹烯和乙酸-顺-3-己烯酯在挥发物组成中所占的比例较高,分别达21.07%、19.59%、7.35%、13.58%和12.99%.在10 mg·mL~(-1)质量浓度下,雌虫对β-石竹烯的EAG反应显著高于其他供试气味物质,雄虫对乙酸乙酯和α-蒎烯的EAG反应最为强烈,雄虫对α-蒎烯和乙酸乙酯的EAG反应显著高于雌虫;雌虫对β-石竹烯和2-甲基丁酸-顺-3-己烯酯的EAG反应显著高于雄虫.本试验在黄斑星天牛成虫感受信息化学物质的角度分析了成虫偏好五角枫的原因,对利用化学生态手段调控该虫的危害具有一定的理论指导意义.     

EAG and behavioral responses of Helicoverpa armigera males to volatiles from poplar leaves and their combinations with sex pheromone

Electroantennogram (EAG) evaluation of selected compounds from wilted leaves of black poplar, Populus nigra, showed that phenyl acetaldehyde, methyl salicylate, (E)-2-hexenal elicited strong responses from male antennae of Helicoverpa armigera. When mixed with sex pheromone (Ph), some volatiles, e.g. phenyl acetaldehyde, benzyl alcohol, phenylethanol, methylsalicylate, linalool, benzaldehyde, (Z)-3-hexenol, (Z)-3-hexenylacetate, (Z)-6-nonenol, cineole, (E)-2-hexenal, and geraniol elicited stronger responses from male antennae than Ph alone. Wind tunnel bioassay demonstrated that various volatiles could either enhance or inhibit the effect of synthetic sex pheromone. (E)-2-hexenal, (Z)-3-hexenol and linalool in combination with Ph could not induce any male to land on source at all, whereas phenyl acetaldehyde, benzaldehyde, (Z)-6-nonenol and salicylaldehyde combined with Ph enhanced male response rates by 58.63%, 50.33%, 51.85% and 127.78%, respectively, compared to Ph alone. These results suggested that some volatiles shouldmodify sex pheromone caused behavior and that some of them could possibly be used as a tool for disrupting mating or for enhancing the effect of synthetic sex pheromone in the field.     

日本双棘长蠹成虫对8种植物挥发物的EAG和行为反应

为了寻找新型的防治日本双棘长蠹(Sinoxylon japonicum Lesne)的植物源引诱剂,分别测定了成虫对8种植物挥发物的EAG和行为反应.EAG测定结果表明:1.00 mol/L的愈创木酚和邻苯二甲酸二甲酯均能引起日本双棘长蠹较强的EAG反应(p≤0.05)."Y"型嗅觉仪测定结果表明:1.00 mol/L的愈创木酚对日本双棘长蠹成虫的引诱效果最好,选择率达到57%;1.00 mol/L的邻苯二甲酸二甲酯对日本双棘长蠹成虫具有较好的驱避作用.其他挥发物对日本双棘长蠹均无明显的定向作用.     

Neuron-type-specific signals for reward and punishment in the ventral tegmental area

Dopamine has a central role in motivation and reward. Dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) signal the discrepancy between expected and actual rewards (that is, reward prediction error), but how they compute such signals is unknown. We recorded the activity of VTA neurons while mice associated different odour cues with appetitive and aversive outcomes. We found three types of neuron based on responses to odours and outcomes: approximately half of the neurons (type I, 52%) showed phasic excitation after reward-predicting odours and rewards in a manner consistent with reward prediction error coding; the other half of neurons showed persistent activity during the delay between odour and outcome that was modulated positively (type II, 31%) or negatively (type III, 18%) by the value of outcomes. Whereas the activity of type I neurons was sensitive to actual outcomes (that is, when the reward was delivered as expected compared to when it was unexpectedly omitted), the activity of type II and type III neurons was determined predominantly by reward-predicting odours. We 'tagged' dopaminergic and GABAergic neurons with the light-sensitive protein channelrhodopsin-2 and identified them based on their responses to optical stimulation while recording. All identified dopaminergic neurons were of type I and all GABAergic neurons were of type II. These results show that VTA GABAergic neurons signal expected reward, a key variable for dopaminergic neurons to calculate reward prediction error.     

柳蓝叶甲对几种植物气味的触角电位反应

测定了柳蓝叶甲(Plagiodera versicolora)对寄主植物杨树(Populus sp.)、柳树(Salix sp.)和非寄主植物苦楝树(Melia azedarach)叶片气味的触角电位反应。结果表明：柳蓝叶甲对杨树叶片气味的触角电位反应随日龄的增加而增强;对寄主植物杨树、柳树和非寄主植物苦楝树的叶片气味均有较强的触角电位反应;对非寄主植物苦楝树叶气味的触角电位反应显著大于对寄主植物柳树叶片的反应。利用嗅觉仪的测定结果表明,柳蓝叶甲对非寄主植物苦楝树叶片气味的EAG反应与其选择行为反应之间表现出负相关关系。     

Odour-plume dynamics influence the brain's olfactory code

The neural computations used to represent olfactory information in the brain have long been investigated. Recent studies in the insect antennal lobe suggest that precise temporal and/or spatial patterns of activity underlie the recognition and discrimination of different odours, and that these patterns may be strengthened by associative learning. It remains unknown, however, whether these activity patterns persist when odour intensity varies rapidly and unpredictably, as often occurs in nature. Here we show that with naturally intermittent odour stimulation, spike patterns recorded from moth antennal-lobe output neurons varied predictably with the fine-scale temporal dynamics and intensity of the odour. These data support the hypothesis that olfactory circuits compensate for contextual variations in the stimulus pattern with high temporal precision. The timing of output neuron activity is constantly modulated to reflect ongoing changes in stimulus intensity and dynamics that occur on a millisecond timescale.     

Loss-of-function mutations in sodium channel Nav1.7 cause anosmia

Loss of function of the gene SCN9A, encoding the voltage-gated sodium channel Na(v)1.7, causes a congenital inability to experience pain in humans. Here we show that Na(v)1.7 is not only necessary for pain sensation but is also an essential requirement for odour perception in both mice and humans. We examined human patients with loss-of-function mutations in SCN9A and show that they are unable to sense odours. To establish the essential role of Na(v)1.7 in odour perception, we generated conditional null mice in which Na(v)1.7 was removed from all olfactory sensory neurons. In the absence of Na(v)1.7, these neurons still produce odour-evoked action potentials but fail to initiate synaptic signalling from their axon terminals at the first synapse in the olfactory system. The mutant mice no longer display vital, odour-guided behaviours such as innate odour recognition and avoidance, short-term odour learning, and maternal pup retrieval. Our study creates a mouse model of congenital general anosmia and provides new strategies to explore the genetic basis of the human sense of smell.     

布氏田鼠的嗅觉通讯Ⅰ：非繁殖期的种内识别

通过对观察箱内处于非繁殖期的成年布氏田鼠嗅觉通讯，特别是种内识别的研究表明：布氏田鼠对带有鼠味的底物和清洁底物有分辨能力，并能够辨别自身气味和陌生个体气味，但对群体气味和不同性别的陌生个体气味在探究时间上没有表现出差异。     

Host recognition by the tobacco hornworm is mediated by a host plant compound

It is generally believed that animals make decisions about the selection of mates, kin or food on the basis of pre-constructed recognition templates. These templates can be innate or acquired through experience. An example of an acquired template is the feeding preference exhibited by larvae of the moth, Manduca sexta. Naive hatchlings will feed and grow successfully on many different plants or artificial diets, but once they have fed on a natural host they become specialist feeders. Here we show that the induced feeding preference of M. sexta involves the formation of a template to a steroidal glycoside, indioside D, that is present in solanaceous foliage. This compound is both necessary and sufficient to maintain the induced feeding preference. The induction of host plant specificity is at least partly due to a tuning of taste receptors to indioside D. The taste receptors of larvae fed on host plants show an enhanced response to indioside D as compared with other plant compounds tested.     

Ultra-prolonged activation of CO2-sensing neurons disorients mosquitoes

Carbon dioxide (CO(2)) present in exhaled air is the most important sensory cue for female blood-feeding mosquitoes, causing activation of long-distance host-seeking flight, navigation towards the vertebrate host and, in the case of Aedes aegypti, increased sensitivity to skin odours. The CO(2) detection machinery is therefore an ideal target to disrupt host seeking. Here we use electrophysiological assays to identify a volatile odorant that causes an unusual, ultra-prolonged activation of CO(2)-detecting neurons in three major disease-transmitting mosquitoes: Anopheles gambiae, Culex quinquefasciatus and A. aegypti. Importantly, ultra-prolonged activation of these neurons severely compromises their ability subsequently to detect CO(2) for several minutes. We also identify odours that strongly inhibit CO(2)-sensitive neurons as candidates for use in disruption of host-seeking behaviour, as well as an odour that evokes CO(2)-like activity and thus has potential use as a lure in trapping devices. Analysis of responses to panels of structurally related odours across the three mosquitoes and Drosophila, which have related CO(2)-receptor proteins, reveals a pattern of inhibition that is often conserved. We use video tracking in wind-tunnel experiments to demonstrate that the novel ultra-prolonged activators can completely disrupt CO(2)-mediated activation as well as source-finding behaviour in Aedes mosquitoes, even after the odour is no longer present. Lastly, semi-field studies demonstrate that use of ultra-prolonged activators disrupts CO(2)-mediated hut entry behaviour of Culex mosquitoes. The three classes of CO(2)-response-modifying odours offer powerful instruments for developing new generations of insect repellents and lures, which even in small quantities can interfere with the ability of mosquitoes to seek humans.     

A natural polymorphism alters odour and DEET sensitivity in an insect odorant receptor

Blood-feeding insects such as mosquitoes are efficient vectors of human infectious diseases because they are strongly attracted by body heat, carbon dioxide and odours produced by their vertebrate hosts. Insect repellents containing DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide) are highly effective, but the mechanism by which this chemical wards off biting insects remains controversial despite decades of investigation. DEET seems to act both at close range as a contact chemorepellent, by affecting insect gustatory receptors, and at long range, by affecting the olfactory system. Two opposing mechanisms for the observed behavioural effects of DEET in the gas phase have been proposed: that DEET interferes with the olfactory system to block host odour recognition and that DEET actively repels insects by activating olfactory neurons that elicit avoidance behaviour. Here we show that DEET functions as a modulator of the odour-gated ion channel formed by the insect odorant receptor complex. The functional insect odorant receptor complex consists of a common co-receptor, ORCO (ref. 15) (formerly called OR83B; ref. 16), and one or more variable odorant receptor subunits that confer odour selectivity. DEET acts on this complex to potentiate or inhibit odour-evoked activity or to inhibit odour-evoked suppression of spontaneous activity. This modulation depends on the specific odorant receptor and the concentration and identity of the odour ligand. We identify a single amino-acid polymorphism in the second transmembrane domain of receptor OR59B in a Drosophila melanogaster strain from Brazil that renders OR59B insensitive to inhibition by the odour ligand and modulation by DEET. Our data indicate that natural variation can modify the sensitivity of an odour-specific insect odorant receptor to odour ligands and DEET. Furthermore, they support the hypothesis that DEET acts as a molecular 'confusant' that scrambles the insect odour code, and provide a compelling explanation for the broad-spectrum efficacy of DEET against multiple insect species.     

贵州松桃某电解锰企业锰渣重金属污染特征及对植物生长的毒性效应

为综合评估电解锰渣重金属污染特征及任意堆弃对周边植物生长造成的危害,以贵州松桃某电解锰企业锰渣为研究对象,对渣样的重金属元素组成、含量及锰形态进行了分析测试,同时在实验室模拟研究了电解锰渣、浸出液及浸出残渣对白菜、油菜、黑麦草和紫花苜蓿种子的发芽势、发芽率、根长、芽长、鲜重、干重、发芽指数及活力指数的影响。结果表明:电解锰渣及其浸出液重金属主要为Mn,分别为28 000 mg·kg~(-1)、82.00 mg·L~(-1);电解锰渣及浸出液对植物根伸长的抑制效应明显大于对种子发芽的影响,对根伸长的抑制率达42.5%以上,甚至达到100.0%。     

“黑麦草-水稻”草田轮作系统的根际效应Ⅰ.接种稻田土壤微生物对黑麦草生长和氮素营养的影响

研究在水田冬种黑麦草（Ｌｏｌｉｕｍｍｕｌｔｉｆｌｏｒｕｍ）对后作水稻的作用机理，通过水培试验，探讨了接种和不接种南亚热带稻田土壤微生物条件下黑麦草品种樱早生和早生丰的生长发育和氮素营养．结果表明，稻田土壤微生物参与并促进了黑麦草的物质生产过程，证明了在冬闲水田栽培黑麦草使后作水稻增产的现象与黑麦草的根际活性是有关的     

Molecular identification of asymmetric somatic hybrids between wheat and Italian ryegrass

Sexual incompatibility between common wheat and Italian ryegrass was an obstacle for transferring useful traits from italian ryegrass to wheat. In order to use those desirable genetic resources to improve wheat and to create new cytoplasmic germplasm, the protoplasts of wheat and Italian ryegrass were successfully electrofused and the somatic hybrid plants were regenerated. Examination with 6 restriction enzymes, 13 probes including 9 mtDNA probes (H454, Pst24, B30, Pro I, 490, B342, pHJ2-7-1, B376, 7), 3 cpDNA probes (pHvc p1, pHvc p5 and pHvc p8) and one nuclear DNA probe-- pTA71 (rDNA) in total 73 enzyme/ probe combinations revealed rich polymorphism between the fusion partners. RFLP analysis indicated that approximately 93.4% of the regenerated plants were true somatic hybrids. AFLP analysis implied that the somatic hybrids were highly asymmetric. The RFLP analysis using mt- and cpDNA specific probes also demonstrated the non-coexistence of mitochondria and chloroplasts from the fusion partners in the somatic hybrid cells.     

Hebbian STDP in mushroom bodies facilitates the synchronous flow of olfactory information in locusts

Odour representations in insects undergo progressive transformations and decorrelation from the receptor array to the presumed site of odour learning, the mushroom body. There, odours are represented by sparse assemblies of Kenyon cells in a large population. Using intracellular recordings in vivo, we examined transmission and plasticity at the synapse made by Kenyon cells onto downstream targets in locusts. We find that these individual synapses are excitatory and undergo hebbian spike-timing dependent plasticity (STDP) on a +/-25 ms timescale. When placed in the context of odour-evoked Kenyon cell activity (a 20-Hz oscillatory population discharge), this form of STDP enhances the synchronization of the Kenyon cells' targets and thus helps preserve the propagation of the odour-specific codes through the olfactory system.     

城市污水处理厂硫化氢恶臭气体的发生及源控制

城市污水处理厂散发的硫化氢,臭阅低,可与不饱和酮反应生成其它恶臭物质,不仅严重影响周围居民的生活质量,还会腐蚀污水厂的混凝土和金属构筑物,降低处理效率,并且对污水处理厂的工作人员具有毒害作用。随着公众环保意识的提高,控制与消除城市污水处理厂硫化氢的恶臭污染已成为各国环保科研人员的研究热点之一。控制污水处理厂恶臭污染的传统方法是末端治理,即在硫化氢生成之后进行消除,与末端治理相比,预防性控制法最突出的优点在于防患于未然,抑制硫化氢生成,从源头上解决了污水处理厂硫化氢的污染问题。本文重点介绍了预防生化硫化氢生成的措施,最后提出了一些尚待解决的问题,展望了未来技术的发展方向。