| Title: | Gall midge Baldratia salicorniae Kieffer (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) infestation on Salicornia europaea L. induces the production of specialized metabolites with biotechnological potential |
| Author(s): | Ameixa O; Rebelo J; Silva H; Pinto D; |
| Address: | "Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal. Electronic address: olga.ameixa@ua.pt. Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal; LAQV-REQUIMTE & Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal. Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal. LAQV-REQUIMTE & Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.phytochem.2022.113207 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1873-3700 (Electronic) 0031-9422 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Saltmarsh plants have several defense mechanisms against threatening abiotic conditions, such as salinity, inundation, or exposure to intense radiation, less is known regarding response to insect pests attack. Salicornia europaea L. plant stands are produced as cash crops in Portuguese coastal areas. In 2017, these crops suffered significant attacks from a gall midge fly (Baldratia salicorniae Kieffer), reducing its economic value. To understand how this attack influenced S. europaea chemical composition, infested and non-infested branches were collected, and their extracts were analysed by GS-MS and UHPLC-MS. Results revealed that different degrees of infestations displayed different chemical composition. Several compounds were for the first time identified in S. europaea, such as, arachidic acid, alpha-tocopherol, henicos-1-ene, and squalene. Most evident results were the reduced amount of alkanes in the infested conditions, which seems to be a direct consequence of insect infestation. Several compounds identified in the infested branches are known to have negative effects on insect larvae by reducing larval growth (linoleic acid) or increasing insect mortality (oleic acid). Halophyte plants production is increasing and it is accompanied by the urge to develop early control strategies against potential pests. These strategies may include ecological friendly solutions such as endogenous production of specialized metabolites to retrieve plant self-defences. Further, our results showed that B. salicorniae herbivory also induced the production of higher number of specialized metabolites with important known biological activities. In years in which high infestations reduce organoleptic qualities for fresh consumption plants can be used in biorefinery industries for metabolite extraction" |
| Keywords: | Animals *Chenopodiaceae *Diptera/physiology Larva Salinity Salt-Tolerant Plants Amaranthaceae Glasswort Halophytes Insect pests Plant galls Salicornia europaea L.Saline agriculture Specialized metabolites; |
| Notes: | "MedlineAmeixa, Olga M C C Rebelo, Joao Silva, Helena Pinto, Diana C G A eng England 2022/04/24 Phytochemistry. 2022 Aug; 200:113207. doi: 10.1016/j.phytochem.2022.113207. Epub 2022 Apr 20" |
