A Functional Agonist of Insect Olfactory Receptors: Behavior, Physiology and Structure

Batra, Srishti and Corcoran, Jacob and Zhang, Dan-Dan and Pal, Pramit and K.P., Umesh and Kulkarni, Renuka and Löfstedt, Christer and Sowdhamini, Ramanathan and Olsson, Shannon B. (2019) A Functional Agonist of Insect Olfactory Receptors: Behavior, Physiology and Structure. Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience, 13. ISSN 1662-5102

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Abstract

Chemical signaling is ubiquitous and employs a variety of receptor types to detect the cacophony of molecules relevant for each living organism. Insects, our most diverse taxon, have evolved unique olfactory receptors with as little as 10% sequence identity between receptor types. We have identified a promiscuous volatile, 2-methyltetrahydro-3-furanone (coffee furanone), that elicits chemosensory and behavioral activity across multiple insect orders and receptors. In vivo and in vitro physiology showed that coffee furanone was detected by roughly 80% of the recorded neurons expressing the insect-specific olfactory receptor complex in the antenna of Drosophila melanogaster, at concentrations similar to other known, and less promiscuous, ligands. Neurons expressing specialized receptors, other chemoreceptor types, or mutants lacking the complex entirely did not respond to this compound. This indicates that coffee furanone is a promiscuous ligand for the insect olfactory receptor complex itself and did not induce non-specific cellular responses. In addition, we present homology modeling and docking studies with selected olfactory receptors that suggest conserved interaction regions for both coffee furanone and known ligands. Apart from its physiological activity, this known food additive elicits a behavioral response for several insects, including mosquitoes, flies, and cockroaches. A broad-scale behaviorally active molecule non-toxic to humans thus has significant implications for health and agriculture. Coffee furanone serves as a unique tool to unlock molecular, physiological, and behavioral relationships across this diverse receptor family and animal taxa.

Item Type: Article
Subjects: Research Asian Plos > Medical Science
Depositing User: Unnamed user with email support@research.asianplos.com
Date Deposited: 27 May 2023 06:59
Last Modified: 24 Oct 2024 04:08
URI: http://abstract.stmdigitallibrary.com/id/eprint/957

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