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Abstract:
Insects detect their hosts or mates primarily through olfaction, and olfactory receptors (ORs)
are at the core of odorant detection. Each species has evolved a unique repertoire of ORs
whose functional properties are expected to meet its ecological needs, though little is known
about the molecular basis of olfaction outside Diptera. Here we report a pioneer functional
analysis of a large array of ORs in a lepidopteran, the herbivorous pest Spodoptera littoralis.
We demonstrate that most ORs are narrowly tuned to ubiquitous plant volatiles at low,
relevant odorant titres. Our phylogenetic analysis highlights a basic conservation of function
within the receptor repertoire of Lepidoptera, across the expansive evolutionary radiation of
different major clades. Our study provides a reference for further studies of olfactory
mechanisms in Lepidoptera, a historically crucial insect order in olfactory research.
