<p>Insects and teenagers have quite a lot in common – they are constantly grooming themselves to attract the opposite sex, a study has found. <br /><br />According to scientists, the personal hygiene procedure is vital in keeping their sensory organs ship-shape, allowing them to identify members of the opposite sex, the Daily Mail reported. <br /><br />Grooming - specifically antennae cleaning - removes environmental pollutants and chemicals produced by the insects themselves. <br /><br />Leaving them dirty effectively blinds insects to their surroundings preventing them from picking up the odour of members of the opposite sex - or finding food or sensing danger. <br /><br />The findings could also explain why certain types of insecticides work more effectively than others. <br /><br />Cockroaches clean their antennae by using forelegs to place the antennae in their mouths - they then methodically clean every segment from base to tip.<br /><br />When American cockroaches were prevented from grooming the surface of one antenna - by having it glued back - a shiny substance collected. Powerful microscopes revealed large amounts of the substance gathered on pores that guide smells to odour-sensing cells. <br /><br />Much less appeared on groomed antennae, according to the findings. Professor Coby Schal said: “It’s intuitive insects remove foreign substances from their antennae - but it’s not necessarily intuitive they groom to remove their ‘own’ substances.” <br /><br />Analysis showed the substance was comprised of waxy fats called cuticular lipids secreted by insects to regulate water loss. </p>.<p>The researchers also found ungroomed antennae collected almost four times more of the lipids and significantly more environmental contaminants than clean ones. <br /><br />And they were less responsive to odours and sex pheromones - chemicals released by all living organisms to attract mates.<br /><br />The researchers observed similar phenomena in three additional species which uses different antennal grooming methods - the German cockroach, the carpenter ant and the housefly. Flies and ants seem to rub their legs over their antennae to remove chemicals - with ants then ingesting the material. <br /><br />The findings are published online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. <br /></p>
<p>Insects and teenagers have quite a lot in common – they are constantly grooming themselves to attract the opposite sex, a study has found. <br /><br />According to scientists, the personal hygiene procedure is vital in keeping their sensory organs ship-shape, allowing them to identify members of the opposite sex, the Daily Mail reported. <br /><br />Grooming - specifically antennae cleaning - removes environmental pollutants and chemicals produced by the insects themselves. <br /><br />Leaving them dirty effectively blinds insects to their surroundings preventing them from picking up the odour of members of the opposite sex - or finding food or sensing danger. <br /><br />The findings could also explain why certain types of insecticides work more effectively than others. <br /><br />Cockroaches clean their antennae by using forelegs to place the antennae in their mouths - they then methodically clean every segment from base to tip.<br /><br />When American cockroaches were prevented from grooming the surface of one antenna - by having it glued back - a shiny substance collected. Powerful microscopes revealed large amounts of the substance gathered on pores that guide smells to odour-sensing cells. <br /><br />Much less appeared on groomed antennae, according to the findings. Professor Coby Schal said: “It’s intuitive insects remove foreign substances from their antennae - but it’s not necessarily intuitive they groom to remove their ‘own’ substances.” <br /><br />Analysis showed the substance was comprised of waxy fats called cuticular lipids secreted by insects to regulate water loss. </p>.<p>The researchers also found ungroomed antennae collected almost four times more of the lipids and significantly more environmental contaminants than clean ones. <br /><br />And they were less responsive to odours and sex pheromones - chemicals released by all living organisms to attract mates.<br /><br />The researchers observed similar phenomena in three additional species which uses different antennal grooming methods - the German cockroach, the carpenter ant and the housefly. Flies and ants seem to rub their legs over their antennae to remove chemicals - with ants then ingesting the material. <br /><br />The findings are published online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. <br /></p>