- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The research, “Circabidian Rhythm of Sex Pheromone Reception in a Scarab Beetle,” published in the Jan. 18 edition of Current Biology, marks the first sex pheromone receptor identified in Coleoptera, the order of beetles.
While most insects exhibit a 24-hour circadian rhythm that regulates their behavior and physiology, the large black chafer beetle, Holotrichia parallela, operates on a 48-hour clock, said Leal, a global expert on insect olfaction and communication. A professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, he is a former professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, now the Department of Entomology and Nematology.
“Insects smell with their antennae,” said Leal, who has unraveled the molecular mechanisms of mosquitoes, true bugs, long horned beetles, moths and other insects. “They have a sophisticated olfactory system and can selectively detect minute amounts of odorants.”
The female H. parallela emerges from the soil every other night, after sunset, climbs the canopy of the host plant, and seeks a mate by releasing a sex pheromone. Leal wanted to know if the males are also on a 48-hour rhythm clock, and he wanted to identify the elusive male gene in the pheromone receptor that allows the male to scent the female's pheromone.
The answers: “yes” and “yes.”
“I have been waiting for almost three decades to answer these questions,” Leal said. “I identified the sex pheromone of this beetle species in 1993 while working for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Japan. At that time, I found for the first time a very unusual sex pheromone, which is derived from an amino acid. Now similar sex pheromones have been identified from many species of beetles.”
“Also, we showed that females produce the sex pheromone every other night,” Leal said. “The burning question in biology is what males do about sensing or smelling the female sex pheromone. Back then, we had no idea how insects sense smell. With the advancements in sequencing, we identified all potential receptors and identified which one senses the sex pheromone. COVID happened and delayed our research collaboration. Finally, we found that the receptor is expressed every other day.”
“This is remarkable,” Leal said. “How do they know when it is a 'date night' or a non-calling night? It is still a mystery, but we will find out one day.”
Leal and Yin and their team pointed out that virtually all life on Earth experiences a 24-hour circadian rhythm, which affects almost all behaviors, including sexual activity and mating.
Leal, a native of Brazil, received his Ph.D. in applied biochemistry from the University of Tsukuba, Japan, with subsequent postdoctoral training in entomology and chemical ecology at the National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science and Cornell University, respectively. He was the first non-Japanese person to earn tenure at Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries.
Leal, who joined the UC Davis faculty in 2000, is a newly elected trustee of the Royal Entomological Society, the first UC Davis scientist to be elected a trustee. He chaired the UC Davis Department of Entomology in 2006-2008 before accepting a position in 2008 as professor of biochemistry in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology. His many honors include Fellow of the Entomological Society of America (2009), American Association for the Advancement of Science (2005), and the National Academy of Inventors (2019).
Other co-authors of the Current Biology paper: Yinliang Wang, Huanhuan Dong, Yafei Qu, Jianhui Qin, Kebin Li, Yazhong Cao and Shuai Zhang, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing; Yuxin Zhou and Bingzhong Ren, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, China; and Chen Luo, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences.
The research drew financial support from the National Key R&D Foundation of China; National Natural Science Foundation, China; and the Natural Science Foundation of Beijing.
Resources:
- For This Beetle, ‘Date Night' Comes Every Other Day, Jan. 18, 2024, Andy Fell, UC Davis News and Media Relations
- Walter Leal Elected Trustee of Royal Entomological Society, Sept. 5, 2023
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
That's the title of the Jan. 22nd seminar hosted by the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and presented by William Ja, associate professor, Herbert Wertheim Scripps UF Institute for Biomedical Innovation and Technology in Jupiter, Florida.
The seminar is at 4:10 p.m., in 122 Briggs Hall. It also will be on Zoom. The Zoom link:
https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/95882849672.
"The Ja lab uses the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a model organism for uncovering the genetic and neuronal mechanisms that drive aging, behavior, and disease," Ja says in his abstract. "Recently developed tools allow us to track fly feeding behavior with unparalleled resolution. These tools facilitate the identification of genes and circuits that regulate food intake at diverse time scales, including studies of: 1) meal intake; 2) daily (circadian) feeding rhythms; and 3) compensatory feeding in response to high or low quality food. Our studies of feeding behavior and nutrition also inform aging interventions, including a novel caloric restriction paradigm and an intermittent fasting regime that extends fly life through the stimulation of circadian-regulated autophagy. Overall, our fly studies shed light on basic neurobiological principles that drive animal behavior, providing insights that potentially inform the development of conserved therapeutic strategies."
Ja received his chemistry degree at UC Berkeley, working with Richard Mathies and Alex Glazer on DNA sequencing technologies. He pursued doctoral studies at the California Institute of Technology with Rich Roberts, utilizing mRNA display technology to identify modulators of G protein signaling. Ja remained at Cal Tech as a postdoctoral scholar to work with Seymour Benzer on developing longevity ‘drugs' in Drosophila. His laboratory focuses on aging and nutrition, animal behavior, and host-microbiome interactions.
Seminar coordinator is Brian Johnson, associate professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. For Zoom technical issues, he may be reached at brnjohnson@ucdavis.edu. More information on the seminars is here
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The Bohart Museum of Entomology recently hosted an evening open house to engage and inform UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology biologists on how to streamline their efforts at all stages of their research, from collecting insects and arachnids to using the Bohart specimens.
More than two dozen scientists, including UC Davis undergraduates, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, researchers, associates and faculty, attended. They gathered information on:
- Making wet, dry or cryo collections
- Donating, borrowing or sampling museum specimens from the Bohart or from collections around the world
- Prepare specimens and formatting labels
- Field collecting (equipment, permits, storing, regionally and internationally)
- Identifications services
- Language for grants, and budget development
- Science communication: public outreach, and broader impacts
UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum, led the event. Entomologist Jeff Smith, who curates the lepidoptera collection, offered a pinning demonstration. (See one of his previous videos.) Others assisting were other Bohart staff and associates, including the laboratory of arachnologist Jason Bond, the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, and associate dean, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
The Bohart Museum has an online playlist of 11 short videos on "How to Make an Insect Collection." It was the brainchild of UC Davis distinguished professor James R. Carey, who led a class of entomology students 13 years ago to create tightly scripted clips, with an emphasis on brevity, simplicity and low cost.
The entire series can be viewed in less than 10 minutes. The clips range in length from 32 seconds to 77 seconds. UC Davis forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey provided the introductory narration for each clip. See Bohart web page for more information on insect collecting and links to the videos.
- Hand Collecting
- Using an Aspirator
- Ground Collecting
- Aquatic Collecting
- Using Nets
- How to Kill Insects
- Pinning
- How to Point Mount
- Labeling
- Spreading
- Storage and Display
The Bohart Museum, founded in 1946, houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens. The insect museum is open to the public Mondays through Thursdays, from 8 a.m. to noon, and from 1 to 5 p.m. For more information contact bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or telephone (530) 752-0493.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Kaya, who joined the UC Davis faculty in 1976 and retired in 2010, has known Lynn and her husband, Robert "Bob," for more than four decades. Both the Kimseys received their bachelor and doctoral degrees in entomology from UC Davis.
"I never had Lynn in a classroom situation, but she was always helpful in helping others ID insects," Kaya said. He and Lynn worked on a McKnight Foundation potato grant project in Peru for four years. He remembers Bob as a "super student in my insect pathology class."
Lynn, then Lynn Siri, received her bachelor's degree in 1975 and her doctorate in 1979, while Bob received his bachelor's degree in 1977 and his doctorate in 1984. Lynn joined the UC Davis faculty in 1989 and has directed the Bohart Museum since 1990. Bob, a forensic entomologist, joined the UC Davis faculty in 1984 as a lecturer. Both plan to retire this year.
Harry Kaya is internationally recognized for his contributions to insect pathology and insect nematology, which include more than 250 peer-reviewed publications. He co-authored an insect pathology book in 1993; co-edited another insect pathology book in 2012; and co-edited five books in several disciplines including forest entomology, entomopathogenic nematology, and invertebrate pathology.
He was named a fellow of the Entomological Society of America (ESA) in 2007.
At the seminar, co-organizer Lynn Lebeck, then executive director of the Association of Natural Biocontrol Producers, praised him as a top-notch researcher and as "a warm human being." She recalled the "many years of fun times and great research experiences with him." (See news story)
Kaya co-founded the journal Biological Control, and served as the co-editor of the first and second editions of Field Manual of Techniques in Invertebrate Pathology, Application and Evaluation of Pathogens for Control of Insects and other Invertebrate Pests.
Born and raised in Honolulu, Harry received his bachelor's degree in entomology in 1962 from the College of Tropical Agriculture, University of Hawaii (UH). He served in the U.S. Army, and after being discharged as a first lieutenant, earned his master's degree in entomology from UH in 1964, specializing in insect ecology. In 1970, UC Berkeley awarded him his doctoral degree in entomology. with research in insect pathology.
From 1971 to 1976, Kaya worked as an entomologist at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in New Haven and conducted research on biological control of forest insects. In 1976, he joined the UC Davis faculty as an assistant professor, attaining the rank of full professor in 1984. He became a distinguished professor of entomology in 2008.
Kaya chaired the Department of Nematology from 1994 to 2001. He also served as an officer in the Society of Invertebrate Pathology (treasurer, 1990–1994, vice-president, 2000–2002, and president-elect 2002–2004), and was one of the founding editors of the journal Biological Control.
Highly honored by his peers, Kaya received the 1998 C. W. Woodworth Award, the highest honor presented by the Pacific Branch, ESA. In 2000, he received the 2000 Recognition Award in Entomology from ESA and Fellow of the Society of Nematologists. The Society for Invertebrate Pathology and UH also presented him with several awards.
In honoring him as a Fellow, ESA posted this on its website: "Kaya has mentored many graduate students and post-doctoral researchers who have proceeded to establish their own careers and excel in research and teaching. His laboratory hosted and trained many visiting scientists from other countries who have become leaders in research with entomopathogenic nematodes upon their return to their own countries. These include scientists from Korea, Thailand, Turkey, Mexico, Ukraine, and Peru. Kaya maintains a strong relationship with many of them and he had research projects with scientists from Korea and Turkey."
Kaya's first four PhD students--Raquel Alatorre, Arnold Hara, Phyllis Hotchkin {Weintraub) and Robin Goblin-Davis--are all retired from their faculty and research positions. Arnold Hara died Nov. 18, 2022.
Kaya resides in Davis with his wife, Joanna. He enjoys spending time with his grandchildren and gardening, and used to fish with colleague Les Ehler (1946-2016). "No fishing since Les passed away," he related.
One of his granddaughters, Madelyn Lee, a freshman at UC Riverside, may follow in his footsteps. "She has always been interested in the biological sciences and has become an active member of the Entomology Club at Riverside. She is thinking about being an entomology major."
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The open house, themed "Social Wasps," is free and family friendly. Parking is also free.
Kimsey defines social wasps as "wasps that live together and cooperate in a colony, with female workers and a queen; only the queen has babies."
What drew her to study social wasps? "I just like stinging things in general and their anatomy and social behavior are really interesting."
Kimsey lists some of the common myths about social wasps as:
- They are often seen as malevolent beings out to get you and will chase you
- That they serve no purpose except to annoy us
- If you're allergic to bee stings you'll be allergic to wasp stings
- A copper penny place on a sting will make it go away
The public should know that social wasps "provide valuable ecosystem services; do pest control, and assist in nutrient recycling and pollination," she said.
"There are about 2,000 described species of social wasps worldwide," Kimsey said, and probably around 500 species undescribed.
The Bohart Museum has approximately 50,000 vespids in its collection, "and clearly the most popular is the Northern giant hornet, Vespa mandarinia," she said. The press dubbed it "Murder hornet." The Entomological Society of America recently changed its common name, "the Asian giant hornet," to "northern giant hornet."
The hornet, considered the world's largest hornet, is native to Asia. It was first detected in the Pacific Northwest in 2019, and with nests found in 2021.
Kimsey is a recognized authority on insect biodiversity, systematics and biogeography of parasitic wasps, urban entomology, civil forensic entomology, and arthropod-related industrial hygiene. She holds bachelor and doctoral degrees from UC Davis. She joined UC Davis entomology faculty in 1989, and has served as director of the Bohart Museum since 1990.
She plans to retire this year, but not from research and public service.
Kimsey served as president of the International Society of Hymenopterists from 2002-2004, and as a member of the board of directors of the Natural Science Collections Alliance in 2000 and 2001. The Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of Ameica (PBESA) singled her out for its highest honor, the C. W. Woodworth Award, in 2020. She received the PBESA Systematics, Evolution, and Biodiversity Award in 2014 and was a member of 'The Bee Team' that won the PBESA Outstanding Team Award in 2013. The UC Davis Academic Senate honored her with its Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award in 2016 in recognition of her outstanding work. She received the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CA&ES) Exceptional Faculty Award in 2023.
The Bohart Museum also houses a live "petting zoo" (Madagascar hissing cockroaches, stick insects, tarantulas and more), and an insect-themed gift shop.
For more information, contact the Bohart Museum at bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or access the website at https://bohart.ucdavis.edu