Scientists map key enzymes behind locust swarming pheromone production

A team of zoologists, molecular engineers and pest control specialists at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, working with a small team of colleagues from Peking University, has identified some of the enzymes and precursor compounds involved in the biosynthesis of 4VA in locusts. In their study, published in the journal Nature, the group conducted genetic deactivation on sample locusts to find the precursors to the biosynthesis of 4VA, a pheromone that induces swarming in the insects.