A proposed polyketide of 11 acetate units, re organized by two intramolecular aldol condensations followed by various modifications which include decarboxylation, eliminations of water and a number of reductions could explain the formation in the C21 backbone of crematoenones. Biosynthesis based on the C21 hydrocarbon is definitely an different pathway, but it looks significantly less possible. Notably, the crematoenones seem to be synthesized de novo, considering that their composition remained frequent in colonies that had been kept from the la boratory on an artificial diet plan of dead insects, honey, and Bhatkar diet plan for as much as 15 months, This contrasts with e. g. herbivorous beetles, which consider up harmful toxins from their host plants with couple of if any modifications, despite the fact that a fungal or microbial origin of crematoenones cannot be ruled out. Interspecific nestmate recognition is mediated by hydrocarbons Amid the 7 colonies that had been chemically characterized, we found a complete of 24 distinct novel compounds.
While Cr. modiglianii exhibits colony particular crematoenone profiles, neither of the two spe cies differentiated between intra and allocolonial crematoenones, but clearly discriminated intracolonial from allocolonial hydrocarbons on the respective aspect ner species. Our experiments hence show that the rec ognition a total noob with the companion species is mediated by cuticular hydrocar bons like it’s recognized from other ant species, rather than the crematoenones. Interestingly, the relative composition varied strongly among Cr. modiglianii colonies, and this variance remained continuous in wild and captive colonies, The crematoenone profile may well hence be really genetically determined. However, since nestmate recognition is mediated through cuticular hydrocarbons, they might also serve as intercourse pheromones like in lots of solitary insects, Hence, differing crematoenone profiles really should not bring about reproductive isolation.
In preliminary ana lyses, we didn’t find genetic selleck chemical differentiation between Cr. modiglianii colonies in accordance to crematoenone profile, offering no proof for cryp tic species in Cr. modiglianii. The black Ca. rufifemur typically, but not usually dif ferentiated concerning nestmate and non nestmate Cr. modiglianii, In an earlier review, this was accurate even for residing Cr. modiglianii. Ca. rufifemur sometimes failed to discriminate nestmate and non nestmate, and we hypothesize that this was because of inter colony variation in chemical distances among Cr. modiglianii, and also to the long chain hydrocarbons in Cr. modiglianii, which may possibly hamper inter colony discrimination. In contrast, the red Ca. rufifemur range did not differentiate in between nestmate and non nestmate Cr. modiglianii treatment options, Note that the Cr.