Pyrokinin / Pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) family of peptides found in insects is characterized by a C-terminal 5 amino acid ending, FXPRLamide. Using bioassay and immunocytochemical techniques we demonstrate the presence of pyrokinin/PBAN-like peptides in the central nervous system of Drosophila melanogaster. Pheromonotropic activity was demonstrated in the moths Helicoverpa zea and Helicoverpa armigera using dissected larval nervous systems and adult heads and body of D. melanogaster. Polyclonal antisera against the C-terminal ending of PBAN revealed the location of cell bodies and axons in the central nervous systems of larval and adult flies. Immunoreactive material was detected in at least three groups of neurons in the subesophageal ganglion of 3rd instar larvae, pupae, and adults. The ring gland of both larvae and adults contained immunoreactivity. Adult brain-subesophageal ganglion complex contained additional neurons. The fused ventral ganglia of both larvae and adults contained three pairs of neurons that sent their axons to a neurohemal organ connected to the abdominal nervous system. These results indicate that the D. melanogaster nervous system contains pyrokinin/PBAN-like peptides and that these peptides could be released into the hemolymph.
The ESA 2001 Annual Meeting - 2001: An Entomological Odyssey of ESA