Variation in Behavioral Responses of Multiple Populations and Strains of Tribolium castaneum and T. confusum to Food and Sex Pheromone Volatiles

Stored grain insect pests pose major threats to food supplies across the globe. Understanding how chemical cues attract these insects to mates and food sources and identifying the genetic determinants underlying behavioral responses to odorants could lead to the improvement of integrated pest management protocols. We are using highthroughput behavioral screens to identify variations in behavioral responses to food odors and sex pheromones in different populations and strains of Tribolium castaneum (red flour beetle) and T. confusum (confused flour beetle) using a Y-maze choice experiment, a wind tunnel assay, and a diffusion assay with video analysis. Analyses of these closely related species and strains provides information on the diversity and variation in behavioral responses to these volatiles and allow us to use population genetics approaches to identify alleles linked with behavioral response to food odors and volatiles. These results lay the ground work for further research in assessing functional genomics of sensory systems in stored product pests via the use of RNAi knock-down techniques combined with behavioral assays and electroantennogram analysis. Further, RNAi techniques have been proposed as an emerging technology in insect pest management. Targeting genes associated with recognizing and responding to odorants may be key to implementing this technique to control populations by interfering with the ability of the beetles to locate food and mates.