| Title: | Herbivory-induced volatiles function as defenses increasing fitness of the native plant Nicotiana attenuata in nature |
| Author(s): | Schuman MC; Barthel K; Baldwin IT; |
| Address: | "Department of Molecular Ecology , Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology , Jena , Germany" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 2050-084X (Electronic) 2050-084X (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "From an herbivore's first bite, plants release herbivory-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) which can attract enemies of herbivores. However, other animals and competing plants can intercept HIPVs for their own use, and it remains unclear whether HIPVs serve as an indirect defense by increasing fitness for the emitting plant. In a 2-year field study, HIPV-emitting N. attenuata plants produced twice as many buds and flowers as HIPV-silenced plants, but only when native Geocoris spp. predators reduced herbivore loads (by 50%) on HIPV-emitters. In concert with HIPVs, plants also employ antidigestive trypsin protease inhibitors (TPIs), but TPI-producing plants were not fitter than TPI-silenced plants. TPIs weakened a specialist herbivore's behavioral evasive responses to simulated Geocoris spp. attack, indicating that TPIs function against specialists by enhancing indirect defense.DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.00007.001" |
| Keywords: | Animals Flowers/growth & development Genetic Fitness/physiology Hemiptera/*drug effects/pathogenicity/physiology Herbivory/*drug effects/physiology Larva/parasitology Manduca/parasitology Plant Leaves/*immunology/metabolism Tobacco/*immunology/metabolism; |
| Notes: | "MedlineSchuman, Meredith C Barthel, Kathleen Baldwin, Ian T eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2012/10/16 Elife. 2012 Oct 15; 1:e00007. doi: 10.7554/eLife.00007" |
