Caste- and environment-associated differential expression of olfactory receptors in pest ants.

ABSTRACT: As human society continues to grow and evolve, so does the need for effective pest management strategies. Olfactory-mediated control methods, such as attractant and repellent compounds, are a proposed strategy for mitigating the damaging effects of some insect pests, most notably ants, that rely on olfaction for communication. To develop such compounds, it is first important to comprehensively understand the target species' olfactory transcriptome in order to guide future targeted functional characterization of relevant olfactory proteins. Here, we perform bulk RNA-seq analysis of antennae from three notable pest ant species, Camponotus floridanus, Atta sexdens, and Atta cephalotes. Specifically, we highlight the expression profiles of olfactory receptor genes, as they may serve as potenti

SUBMITTER: Sieber KR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12375091 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature