Pheromone power

The cost of treating crops is growing at a rapid rate. It is estimated to reach nearly 17.5 billion by 2022. And due to climate change, insect pests are on the rise, costing the US agriculture sector up to $700 million annually and resulting in up to 80% crop yield damage.

Some of the most aggressive pests of agriculture are insect larvae. Semiochemicals ‘(signal substances’) are emitted by insects for communication. The most widely known of these are sex pheromones, produced by virgin females to attract mates of the same species.

Building on the success of the Polytechnic University of Valencia’s project “SexyPlant” in which they produced insect sex-pheromones in plants, in project SUSPHIRE, a team of European scientists aims to use synthetic biology to produce insect sex pheromones in plants and fungi. The new research will identify and validate key biosynthetic enzymes for the bioproduction of the superfamily insect group Coccoidea pheromones.

The biologically-produced pheromones can be used to control insect pests, according to an article on infosurhoy.com. Dispensing pheromones in plant production environments is used to disrupt mating in the target insect species and prevent breeding, thereby providing a highly species-specific control method. This is a sustainable alternative to conventional pesticides, the use of which is progressively being restricted due to concerns about their non-specificity and negative impacts on biodiversity.