Influence of lectins on female sex pheromone reception byHeterodera schachtii (Nematoda: Heteroderidae) males.

A bioassay was developed in which the chemotactic behavior of males of the sugarbeet cyst nematodeHeterodera schachtii towards the female sex pheromone can be observed and documented at any time. The standardized test, performed under sterile conditions, gives reproducible results within 1-2 hr. Incubation of males with the lectins fromCanavalia ensiformis, Triticum vulgare, Arachis hypogaea, Helix pomatia, andLimax flavus did not affect chemotactic attraction to the sex pheromone. Supplementing the bioassay medium with the lectin fromC. ensiformis also had no effect.C. ensiformis lectin binding to the surface of the exudate produced by the secretory gland cell of the amphids, the main chemoreceptors, did not inhibit the passage of fluorochrome fluorescein isothiocyanate into the amphidial canals, where the receptor dendrites are localized. Amphidial exudate synthesis was enhanced during pheromone reception.