Figure 1. Origin of the insect odorant receptor gene family.

The number of ORs and OR co-receptors (Orcos) for all species of the insect and other hexapod orders analyzed was mapped on the hexapod phylogeny sensu (Misof et al., 2014). ORs are present in all insects but absent from non-insect hexapod genomes, and thus likely represent an evolutionary novelty for the Class Insecta. Orco is present in all but Archaeognatha, an ancestrally wingless (apterygote) insect order. This suggests two scenarios including either the loss of Orco in Archaeognatha or an Orco origin following the evolution of ORs (as indicated). The genomes of all neopteran insects analyzed to date encode ORs, ranging from 10 ORs in head lice (Kirkness et al., 2010) to more than 300 ORs in ants (Smith et al., 2011a, 2011b).