DEET is the most widely used active ingredient in insect repellents and offers protection against insect bites. We previously reported that DEET suppresses the feeding behavior of Drosophila, which is guided by gustatory receptors (GRs) in bitter-sensing gustatory receptor neurons. Here, we sought to identify new candidates using egg-laying assays. Upon screening all GR mutants, GR89a was identified as a potential DEET receptor. Gr89a mutants exhibited reduced oviposition avoidance, feeding avoidance, and electrophysiological responses compared to Gr32a, Gr33a, and Gr66a mutants. However, GR89a was found to modulate DEET avoidance, as demonstrated by genetic and RNA interference assays. Furthermore, we found that DEET ingestion severely affected larval and pupal development and survival, and therefore may act as an effective larvicide.

避蚊胺是驱虫剂中使用最广泛的活性成分，可防止昆虫叮咬。我们之前报道过避蚊胺抑制果蝇的摄食行为，果蝇的摄食行为由苦味味觉受体神经元中的味觉受体 (GRs) 引导。在这里，我们试图使用产卵分析来确定新的候选者。在筛选所有 GR 突变体后，GR89a 被鉴定为潜在的避蚊胺受体。与Gr32a、Gr33a和Gr66a相比，Gr89a突变体表现出减少的产卵回避、进食回避和电生理反应突变体。然而，发现 GR89a 可以调节避蚊胺的避免，如遗传和 RNA 干扰测定所示。此外，我们发现摄入避蚊胺会严重影响幼虫和蛹的发育和存活，因此可能是一种有效的杀幼虫剂。