Responses of Glossina pallidipes and Glossina morsitans morsitans tsetse flies to analogues of δ-octalactone and selected blends

• Increasing the chain length of δ-octalactone structure from C3 to C4 significantly enhanced repellency of G. pallidipes and G. m. morsitans.
• Increasing the ring size of δ-octalactone structure from six to seven members changed the activity against G. pallidipes and G. m. morsitans from repellency to attraction.
• There was synergistic effect on blending δ-octalactone or δ-nonalactone with 4-methylguaiacol on repellency of G. pallidipes and G. m. morsitans.

Previous studies have shown that δ-octalactone is an important component of the tsetse-refractory waterbuck (Kobus defassa) repellent odour blend. In the present study, structure-activity comparison was undertaken to determine the effects of the length of the side chain and ring size of the lactone on adult Glossina pallidipes and Glossina morsitans morsitans. The responses of the flies to each compound were studied in a two-choice wind tunnel. Increasing the chain length from C3 (δ-octalactone) to C4 (δ-nonalactone) enhanced repellency to both species (G. pallidipes from 60.0 to 72.0%, and G. m. morsitans from 61.3 to 72.6%), while increasing the ring size from six (δ-octalactone) to seven members (ε-nonalactone) changed the activity from repellency to attraction that was comparable to that of the phenolic blend associated with fermented cow urine (p > 0.05). Blending δ-nonalactone with 4-methylguaiacol (known tsetse repellent) significantly (p < 0.05) raised repellency to 86.7 and 91.7% against G. pallidipes and G. m. morsitans respectively. Follow-up Latin Square Designed field studies (Shimba hills in coastal areas in Kenya) with G. pallidipes populations confirmed the higher repellence of δ-nonalactone (with/without 4-methylguaiacol) compared to δ-octalactone (also, with/without 4-methylguaiacol). The results show that subtle structural changes of olfactory signals can significantly change their interactions with olfactory receptor neurons, and either shift their potency, or change their activity from repellence to attraction. Our results also lay down useful groundwork in the development of more effective control of tsetse by ‘push’, ‘pull’ and ‘push-pull’ tsetse control tactics.

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