Eur. J. Entomol. 107 (3): 461-463, 2010 | DOI: 10.14411/eje.2010.053

A comparison of the amino acid profiles of the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, and the social aphid species, Pemphigus spyrothecae (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

Nathan PIKE
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK; e-mail: nathan.pike.1998@pem.cam.ac.uk

The relative proportions of free amino acids as well as the amino acid compositions of hydrolysed unprecipitated peptides and hydrolysed whole carcasses were quantified for two aphid species: the gall-dwelling social aphid Pemphigus spyrothecae and the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum. The whole-tissue amino acid profiles of the two taxonomically distant species had a surprisingly high level of correspondence. In contrast, when comparing the A. pisum profiles obtained in the current study to those obtained in an earlier study, major differences were identified. It is concluded that there are good prospects for developing an artificial diet for P. spyrothecae. There may also exist considerable scope for tailoring the existing diets of A. pisum to suit specialised populations which develop poorly on the standard diet. The amino acid profile of P. spyrothecae is the first such profile that has been reported for a gall-forming aphid.

Keywords: Hemiptera, Aphididae, Pemphigus spyrothecae, Acyrthosiphon pisum, artificial diet, soldier aphid, plant gall, amino acid profile, high performance liquid chromatography

Received: June 24, 2009; Revised: March 5, 2010; Accepted: March 5, 2010; Published: July 20, 2010  Show citation

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PIKE, N. (2010). A comparison of the amino acid profiles of the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, and the social aphid species, Pemphigus spyrothecae (Hemiptera: Aphididae). EJE, 107(3), 461-463. doi: 10.14411/eje.2010.053
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