Leucoptera sinuella is a leaf-miner moth present in several regions in the world, which has been recently introduced into Chile. The larvae feed exclusively on the leaves of poplar and willow trees, and the damage caused by the feeding behavior poses a threat to the wood-producing industry. Besides, L. sinuella larvae invade nearby orchards for pupation, causing rejections in Chilean fresh fruit for export. Here we report the identification of the female-produced sex pheromone of L. sinuella as a first step towards the development of pheromone-based methods for pest management of this species. First, we analyzed hexane extracts of the abdominal glands of virgin females by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry and identified the major compound in these extracts to be 3,7-dimethylpentadecane, while minor compounds in the extracts proved to be 3,7-dimethyltetradecane and 7-methylpentadecane. Structure assignments were carried out by comparison of retention times and mass spectra of the natural products with those of authentic reference samples. Second, we conducted field tests, which showed that traps baited with synthetic 3,7-dimethylpentadecane were significantly attractive to males in a dose-dependent response. Our results also showed that a mixture of 3,7-dimethylpentadecane, 3,7-dimethyltetradecane, and 7-methylpentadecane in proportions similar to those found in gland extracts was the most attractive lure.

中文翻译：

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3,7-Dimethylpentadecane：一种新的性信息素成分，来自中华绒螯蟹（鳞翅目：Lyonetiidae）。

Leucoptera sinuella是一种在全球多个地区存在的食叶蛾，最近已被引入智利。幼虫仅以杨树和柳树的叶子为食，并且由于进食行为造成的损害对木材生产业构成威胁。此外，中华绒螯蟹幼虫入侵附近的果园进行化p，导致智利新鲜水果被拒绝出口。在这里，我们报告对女性产的L. sinuella性信息素的鉴定作为开发基于信息素的该物种有害生物管理方法的第一步。首先，我们通过气相色谱-质谱联用仪分析了处女雌性腹腺的己烷提取物，并确定了这些提取物中的主要化合物为3,7-二甲基十五烷，而提取物中的次要化合物被证明为3,7-二甲基十四烷。和7-甲基十五烷 通过比较天然产物与真实参比样品的保留时间和质谱图进行结构分配。其次，我们进行了田间试验，结果表明，用合成的3,7-二甲基十五烷诱饵的诱集剂对雄性有明显的剂量依赖性反应。我们的结果还表明，将3,7-二甲基十五烷，3,7-二甲基十四烷的混合物