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19 October 2022 Effect of a Probiotic-Enriched Diet on Sexual Competitiveness, Pheromone Emission, and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of Sterile and Fertile Anastrepha ludens (Diptera: Tephritidae)
Luis A. Caravantes-Villatoro, Pablo Liedo, Karina Guillén-Navarro, Julio C. Rojas
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Abstract

The sterile insect technique has been used for the eradication or control of numerous tephritid fruit flies. However, mass-rearing and sterilization can affect the microbiota and sexual performance of male tephritid fruit flies. Despite the addition of postteneral protein food which contributes to the enhancement of the sexual performance of mass-reared males, in some cases, they are less competitive than their wild counterparts. Alternatively, the addition of probiotics may improve the sexual performance of mass-reared sterile males. In this study, we evaluated the effect of a postteneral Lactobacillus casei-enriched diet on the sexual competitivity, pheromone emission, and cuticular hydrocarbons of mass-reared sterile and fertile Anastrepha ludens (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae) males. Flies were fed either with sugar, standard diet (sugar and protein, 3:1), sugar + probiotic, or standard diet + probiotic. The addition of the probiotic improved the sexual competitivity of fertile and sterile males that were devoid of protein but led to a negative effect on males fed with a standard diet. As compared to males that were fed with the standard diet + probiotic/only sugar, the males fed with the standard diet or those fed on sugar + probiotic displayed a higher number of mating instances. Sterile males that fed on sugar + probiotic had a higher relative amount of anastrephine, epianastrephine, n-methyl octacosane, and 2-methyl triacontane than those fed on sugar only. Overall, these compounds were common in the treatments where males had the best sexual performance. Our results suggest that the probiotics offer nutritional advantages to males whose food lacks protein.

© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Luis A. Caravantes-Villatoro, Pablo Liedo, Karina Guillén-Navarro, and Julio C. Rojas "Effect of a Probiotic-Enriched Diet on Sexual Competitiveness, Pheromone Emission, and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of Sterile and Fertile Anastrepha ludens (Diptera: Tephritidae)," Journal of Economic Entomology 115(5), 1490-1498, (19 October 2022). https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toac105
Received: 28 March 2022; Accepted: 11 June 2022; Published: 19 October 2022
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KEYWORDS
Lactobacillus casei
Mexican fruit fly
postteneral diet
sterile insect technique
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