Title data
Stökl, Johannes ; Strutz, Antonia ; Dafni, Amots ; Svatoš, Aleš ; Doubsky, Jan ; Knaden, Markus ; Sachse, Silke ; Hansson, Bill S. ; Stensmyr, Marcus C.:
A Deceptive Pollination System Targeting Drosophilids through Olfactory Mimicry of Yeast.
In: Current Biology.
Vol. 20
(2010)
Issue 20
.
- pp. 1846-1852.
ISSN 1879-0445
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2010.09.033
Abstract in another language
In deceptive pollination, insects are bamboozled into performing nonrewarded pollination. A prerequisite for the evolutionary stability in such systems is that the plants manage to generate a perfect sensory impression of a desirable object in the insect nervous system [1]. The study of these plants can provide important insights into sensory preference of their visiting insects. Here, we present the first description of a deceptive pollination system that specifically targets drosophilid flies. We show that the examined plant (Arum palaestinum) accomplishes its deception through olfactory mimicry of fermentation, a strategy that represents a novel pollination syndrome. The lily odor is composed of volatiles characteristic of yeast, and produces in Drosophila melanogaster an antennal detection pattern similar to that elicited by a range of fermentation products. By functional imaging, we show that the lily odors target a specific subset of odorant receptors (ORs), which include the most conserved OR genes in the drosophilid olfactome. Furthermore, seven of eight visiting drosophilid species show a congruent olfactory response pattern to the lily, in spite of comprising species pairs separated by ∼40 million years [2], showing that the lily targets a basal function of the fly nose, shared by species with similar ecological preference.
Further data
Item Type: | Article in a journal |
---|---|
Refereed: | Yes |
Additional notes: | BAYCEER147364 |
Institutions of the University: | Faculties > Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Earth Sciences Faculties > Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Earth Sciences > Department of Biology > Chair Animal Ecology II - Evolutionary Animal Ecology > Chair Animal Ecology II - Evolutionary Animal Ecology - Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sandra Steiger Research Institutions Research Institutions > Research Centres Research Institutions > Research Centres > Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research- BayCEER Faculties Faculties > Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Earth Sciences > Department of Biology Faculties > Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Earth Sciences > Department of Biology > Chair Animal Ecology II - Evolutionary Animal Ecology |
Result of work at the UBT: | No |
DDC Subjects: | 500 Science |
Date Deposited: | 15 Apr 2019 11:25 |
Last Modified: | 09 Jun 2022 11:48 |
URI: | https://eref.uni-bayreuth.de/id/eprint/48397 |