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ABSTRACT In the Anthropocene, synanthropic insects increasingly exploit human‐modified environments, with chemosensory plasticity enabling them to locate novel resources and habitats. The vector flesh fly Sarcophaga dux poses a particular concern by depositing larvae directly onto food products, such as soy sauce, thereby creating sanitary and economic risks. To identify ecological repellents, we established an integrative pipeline combining behavioral assays, antennal transcriptomics, and receptor‐guided ligand screening. A two‐choice larviposition test identified menthol as a potent deterrent against gravid females. Menthol‐induced antennal transcriptome sequencing yielded 59 018 unigenes, among which 40 odorant receptors (ORs) and 29 odorant‐binding proteins (OBPs) were annotated, revealing SduxOR33a , SduxOBP19c , and SduxOBP56a‐1 as menthol‐responsive chemosensory genes. Using a SduxOR33a:SduxORco heterotetramer as a molecular bait, in silico screening identified isoborneol as a structural analog of menthol exhibiting similar receptor‐binding patterns. Subsequent behavioral assays confirmed that isoborneol significantly reduced larviposition, demonstrating its potential as a sustainable repellent. Collectively, this study establishes an efficient framework that integrates classical and reverse chemical ecology to discover behaviorally active volatiles in non‐model vector insects, providing both mechanistic insights into olfactory plasticity and practical leads for ecological control strategies to safeguard fermented food products.
Zi-shang et al. (Mon,) studied this question.