Sex Pheromone Biosynthesis Pathways of the Pine Caterpillar Moth, Dendrolimus punctuates

Major components of D. punctatus sex-pheromone were identified as the mono-unsaturated (Z)-5-dodecenol and the di-unsaturated (Z,E)-5,7-
dodecadienol (Zhao et al., 1993). This species thus most probably utilizes two desaturases with various substrate specificities that contribute to this unusual Lasiocampidae-specific pheromone signature.
Based on incorporation of labelled fatty acids, Zhao et al. (2004) proposed several biosynthetic routes potentially leading to the D. punctatus sex-pheromone components. Production of both compounds involves chain elongation of 16:Acid to 18:Acid, followed by its subsequent desaturation by a Delta11-desaturase. The (Z)-5-dodecenol compound is produced by 3 cycles of chain-shortening reactions starting from Z11-18:Acid and finally followed by a reduction step. In contrast, the production of (Z,E)-5,7-dodecadeniol requires a second desaturation step, which could occur on distinct unsaturated fatty acid substrates. This work aims at resolving the biosynthetic route leading to the conjugated compound by using molecular tools and
functional assays and will bring novel elements for understanding Lasiocampidae and moth pheromone evolution .