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Isolation of a Pyrazine Alarm Pheromone Component from the Fire Ant, Solenopsis invicta

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Abstract

Alarm pheromones in social insects are an essential part of a complex of pheromone interactions that contribute to the maintenance of colony integrity and sociality. The alarm pheromones of ants were among the first examples of animal pheromones identified, primarily because of the large amount of chemical produced and the distinctive responses of ants to the pheromone. However, the alarm pheromone of the fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, eluded identification for over four decades. We identified 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine as an alarm pheromone component of S. invicta. Worker fire ants detect the pyrazine alarm pheromone at 30 pg/ml, which is comparable to alarm pheromone sensitivities reported for other ant species. The source of this alarm pheromone are the mandibular glands, which, in fire ants, are not well developed and contain only about 300 pg of the compound, much less than the microgram quantities of alarm pheromones reported for several other ant species. Female and male sexuals and workers produce the pyrazine, which suggests that it may be involved in fire ant mating flight initiation, as well as the typical worker alarm response. This is the first report of 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine from a Solenopsis species and the first example of this alkaloid functioning as an alarm pheromone.

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Acknowledgements

We thank M. Custer, T. Krueger, and D. Milne for technical support, and Drs. S Allan and S. D. Porter for critically reviewing the manuscript. We are grateful to Dr. Buttery for graciously providing synthetic samples of the two pyrazines.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CMAVE, ARS, USDA, 1600 SW 23rd Drive, Gainesville, FL, 32608, USA

    Robert K. Vander Meer & Man-Yeon Choi

  2. USDA, APHIS, PPQ, 8100 NW 15th PL, Gainesville, FL, 32606, USA

    Catherine A. Preston

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  1. Robert K. Vander Meer
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  2. Catherine A. Preston
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  3. Man-Yeon Choi
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Correspondence to Robert K. Vander Meer.

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Vander Meer, R.K., Preston, C.A. & Choi, MY. Isolation of a Pyrazine Alarm Pheromone Component from the Fire Ant, Solenopsis invicta . J Chem Ecol 36, 163–170 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-010-9743-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-010-9743-0

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