What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to understand how odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) in Harmonia axyridis mediate attraction to herbivore-infested plants.

April 1, 2026

Odorant-Binding Protein Interactions with Herbivore-Induced Volatiles Drive Behavioral Attraction of Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) to Tuta Absoluta-Infested Tomato Plant

Key Points

This research aims to understand how odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) in Harmonia axyridis mediate attraction to herbivore-infested plants.
Conducted Y-tube bioassays to measure attraction to infested tomatoes.
Performed molecular docking to assess OBP-HIPV interactions and binding energies.
Carried out molecular dynamics simulations for stability analysis of OBP complexes.
Utilized competitive binding assays to determine dissociation constants (Kd) of OBP-ligand interactions.
Significant attraction of H. axyridis to Tuta absoluta-infested plants was observed (χ² = 13.72, P < 0.05).
Strong HaxyOBP-HIPV interactions were identified with binding energies reaching -7.6 kl mol-1.
Stable complexes formed during simulations exhibited RMSD values between 0.15-0.30 nm.
Dissociation constants for the ligands ranged from 6.45 to 14.58 μM, indicating micromolar affinities.

Abstract

Tuta absoluta severely constrains global tomato production. We investigated the behavioral attraction of Harmonia axyridis to infested plants and the molecular basis of herbivore-induced plant volatile (HIPV) recognition. Y-tube bioassays showed statistically significant attraction of H. axyridis to the infested plant (χ2 = 13.72, P -1 and ligand efficiencies of more than 0.30 kl mol-1 per heavy atom. HaxyOBP13, HaxyOBP19, and HaxyOBP23 were found to have the most stable complexes with 1,3-cyclohexadiene-1-carboxaldehyde, 2,6,6-trimethyl, 1-methyl-3-(1-methylethyl), and beta-phellandrene during 100 ns molecular dynamics simulations, maintaining RMSD values within 0.15-0.30 nm. The competitive binding assays confirmed micromolar affinities, with dissociation constants (Kd) ranging between 6.45 and 14.58 μM. These behavioral, computational, and biochemical findings define important OBPs that mediate the perception of HIPV in H. axyridis, which forms the basis of volatile-mediated improvement of biological control measures against T. absoluta.

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