Biosensors
Background
Conditioning Microplitis croceipes to novel chemical compounds
The chemical detection ability in dogs has been long harnessed for use in, for example, search and rescue, and detection of a multitude of illegal chemical substances. Insect antennae rival this extreme sensitivity to (volatile) chemical substances. Combined with the remarkable ability of some insects to respond to novel odors through associative learning, this has recently resulted in increased interest in the use of insects for chemical detection purposes.
In close collaboration with the groups of Joe Lewis and Glen Rains (USDA-ARS) we have pioneered the use of parasitic wasps in a range of applications such as food safety, homeland security, health and agricultural production.
We were able to demonstrate that female wasps show specific food-associated and host-associated behaviors when exposed to a previously conditioned odor in the PPT range. The conditioned response is highly specific as trained wasps can distinguish between structurally related compounds based on the chain length, the position and type of the functional group. A portable device (wasp hound ®) has been developed that utilizes conditioned insects to detect materials of interest.
Collaborators
- Glen Rains, USDA-ARS Tifton GA USA
Publications
- Olson DM et al. (2003) Parasitic wasps learn and report diverse chemicals with unique conditionable behaviors. Chemical Senses 28:545-549
- Wäckers FL, Bonifay C, Lewis WJ (2002) Conditioning of appetitive behavior in the Hymenopteran parasitoid Microplitis croceipes. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 103:135-138