Marking pheromones of bumblebees

In the area of male marking pheromones, we study the role of individual components, biosynthetic pathways and pheromone origin. Our first results indicate that pheromones are formed from lipidic precursors. We deal with the composition, storage, mobilisation, transport, and metabolism of lipids in selected species of bumblebees in the connection with the biosynthesis of aliphatic components of marking pheromones of the bumblebee males. The enzymes and transport proteins involved in the lipid metabolism will be characterised. To understand the biochemistry of the pheromone formation, we intend to apply the deuterium- and ¹³C-labelled fatty acids of different chain length into different parts of the bodies of males and follow the fate of the applied compounds. The same labelled precursors will be used for in vitro incubations. Possible shortening or elongation of the chain of the applied precursors will be studied as well as the desaturation of saturated chains. Results are expected to decipher the biosynthetic pathways in which the labial glands constituents are formed, to understand the regulation of their productions and to clarify to which extent the primary and secondary metabolisms are connected in bumblebees.

Infochemicals of termites

In termites, as in other insects, and namely the social ones, the chemical communication is involved in many crucial aspects of their biology. The cryptic life style of termites makes the chemical communication an exclusive mode of information transfer in many domains of individual and social life: from proximate influence on behaviour of individuals and groups to long-term physiological and morphogenetic regulations such as caste determination. After all it was the complex chemical communication of termites that led to introduction of the term "pheromone" - broadly used nowadays for all forms of intraspecific chemical communication.
The general aim of this project is the research of pheromones in model species of the genus Prorhinotermes (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), and their biological interpretation. The first objective is to find the primer pheromones participating on the regulation of termite caste differentiation, i.e. inhibition of neotenic reproductives and soldiers. The second objective is the study of releaser pheromones, namely the alarm pheromone of soldiers, food marking pheromone, and the evaluation of the biological significance of the soldier labial gland secretion.

Infochemicals of other insect species

Part of the team capacity is directed to international cooperations (China, Brasil, Latvia, Chile) with the aim to help with isolations and identifications of sex pheromones of selected insect species economically important in collaborating countries.

Questions connected to the perception of infochemicals are studied in cooperation with Swedish scientists and the Max Planck Institute of Chemical Ecology in Jena. Studies will lead to understanding the molecular logic of olfactory perception using optical imaging of brain activity in model lepidopteran species.

Resolved and interesting projects in detail

Bumble bees I: Scent marking in the male premating behavior of Bombus confusus (Hymenoptera, Apidae)
Bumble bees II: Chemotaxonomy of Bombus lucorum occuring in the Czech Republic
Bumble bees III: Biosynthetic studies on marking pheromones of bumblebee males
Bumble bees IV: Absolute configuration of chiral terpenes in marking pheromones of bumblebees and cuckoo bumblebees
Termites I: Composition of frontal gland secretion in a termite, Prorhinotermes simplex
Termites II: Sexual communication of a termite Prorhinotermes simplex

Our galleries of micro- & macrophotography

Gallery of invertebrate electron microphotography by Jan Šobotník
Longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae, Coleoptera) of the West Palaearctic region by Michal Hoskovec and Martin Rejzek