Octopamine and tyramine modulate pheromone-sensitive olfactory sensilla of the hawkmoth Manduca sexta in a time-dependent manner.

In moths octopamine improved pheromone-dependent mate search time dependently. In the nocturnal hawkmoth Manduca sexta long-term tip recordings of trichoid sensilla were performed to investigate whether biogenic amines modulate pheromone transduction time dependently. At three Zeitgebertimes octopamine, tyramine and the octopamine antagonist epinastine were applied during non-adapting pheromone-stimulation. At ZT 8-11, during the photophase, when sensilla were adapted, octopamine and to a lesser extent tyramine increased the bombykal-dependent sensillar potential amplitude and initial action potential (AP) frequency. In addition, during the photophase, when sensilla are less able to resolve pheromone pulses, octopamine rendered pheromone responses more phasic and sensitive, and raised the spontaneous AP frequency. During the late scotophase, at ZT 22-1, when the antenna appeared maximally sensitized for pheromone pulse detection and endogenous octopamine levels are high, exogenously applied octopamine was ineffective. Epinastine blocked the pheromone-dependent AP response at ZT 8-11 and slightly affected it at ZT 22-1, while it had no effect on the sensillar potential amplitude. Epinastine decreased the spontaneous AP activity during photophase and scotophase and rendered pheromone responses more tonic in the scotophase. We hypothesize that the presence of octopamine in the antenna is obligatory for the detection of intermittent pheromone pulses at all Zeitgebertimes.