Sex Pheromone of the Japanese Cockroach, Periplaneta japonica KARNY (Dictyoptera : Blattidae)

The sex pheromone of the Japanese cockroach, Periplaneta japonica, was purified from about 5, 000 unmated females and the isolated pheromone was subjected to instrumental analyses. The pheromone, which we have called periplanone-J, revealed a strong pheromone activity toward males of the Japanese cockroach and the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana. From spectral analyses and comparison of sex pheromone activity between P. japonica and P. americana, a tentative structure of periplanone-J was proposed as (1R, 6E, 8S)-1(14)-epoxy-5(15), 6-germacradien-10-one.