Preprint Brief Report Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Repellent Effect of Volatile Fatty Acids on Lesser Mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus)

Bartosz Baran
* ORCID logo ,
Michał Krzyżowski
,
Mikołaj Cup
,
Jakub Janiec
,
Mateusz Grabowski
,
Jacek Francikowski
ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 30 January 2018 / Approved: 30 January 2018 / Online: 30 January 2018 (14:46:51 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Baran, B.; Krzyżowski, M.; Cup, M.; Janiec, J.; Grabowski, M.; Francikowski, J. Repellent Effect of Volatile Fatty Acids on Lesser Mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus). Insects 2018, 9, 35. Baran, B.; Krzyżowski, M.; Cup, M.; Janiec, J.; Grabowski, M.; Francikowski, J. Repellent Effect of Volatile Fatty Acids on Lesser Mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus). Insects 2018, 9, 35.

Abstract

Volatile fatty acids (VFAs) are a group of common metabolites with a potential of universal infochemicals dedicated to transferring of information between higher organisms and bacteria either from microbiome or external environment. VFAs are common substances among various insect orders, there are numerous studies exploring their influence on the behavior of different insect species. In relation to papers published by J. E. McFarlane, we assess the effects of formic, acetic, propionic, butyric, valeric acids on spatial preference of common stored food grain products, and poultry industry pest – lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus). We present novel method of continuous, simultaneous assessment of site preference as well as travelled distance in constant-flow olfactometer. All tested VFAs except valeric had a significant repellent effect with formic acid being effective in the lowest concentration. Additionally, VFAs significantly altered distance travelled by insects. Obtained results indicate a potential role of VFAs in the olfactory guided behavior of A. diaperinus, we speculate that reaction to the presence if VFAs may deviate form specificity of species’ original habitat.

Keywords

volatile fatty acids; Alphitobius diaperinus; locomotor activity; repellency

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Insect Science

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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