JXB Advance Access first published online on February 16, 2009
This version published online on February 16, 2009
Journal of Experimental Botany, doi:10.1093/jxb/erp015
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© 2009 The Author(s).
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/uk/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
This paper is available online free of all access charges (see http://jxb.oxfordjournals.org/open_access.html for further details)
RESEARCH PAPER |
Attacks by a piercing-sucking insect (Myzus persicae Sultzer) or a chewing insect (Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say) on potato plants (Solanum tuberosum L.) induce differential changes in volatile compound release and oxylipin synthesis
1Plant Biology Unit, Gembloux Agricultural University, Passage des déportés 2, B-5030 Gembloux, Belgium
2Functional and Evolutionary Entomology Unit, Gembloux Agricultural University, Passage des déportés 2, B-5030 Gembloux, Belgium
3Department of Plant Biochemistry, Albrecht-von-Haller Institute of Plant Sciences, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 11, D-37077 Göttingen, Germany
4General and Organic Chemistry Unit, Gembloux Agricultural University, Passage des déportés 2, B-5030 Gembloux, Belgium
* To whom correspondence should be addressed: E-mail: fauconnier.ml{at}fsagx.ac.be
Plant defensive strategies bring into play blends of compounds dependent on the type of attacker and coming from different synthesis pathways. Interest in the field is mainly focused on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and jasmonic acid (JA). By contrast, little is known about the oxidized polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), such as PUFA-hydroperoxides, PUFA-hydroxides, or PUFA-ketones. PUFA-hydroperoxides and their derivatives might be involved in stress response and show antimicrobial activities. Hydroperoxides are also precursors of JA and some volatile compounds. In this paper, the differential biochemical response of a plant against insects with distinct feeding behaviours is characterized not only in terms of VOC signature and JA profile but also in terms of their precursors synthesized through the lipoxygenase (LOX)-pathway at the early stage of the plant response. For this purpose, two leading pests of potato with distinct feeding behaviours were used: the Colorado Potato Beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say), a chewing herbivore, and the Green Peach Aphid (Myzus persicae Sulzer), a piercing-sucking insect. The volatile signatures identified clearly differ in function with the feeding behaviour of the attacker and the aphid, which causes the smaller damages, triggers the emission of a higher number of volatiles. In addition, 9-LOX products, which are usually associated with defence against pathogens, were exclusively activated by aphid attack. Furthermore, a correlation between volatiles and JA accumulation and the evolution of their precursors was determined. Finally, the role of the insect itself on the plant response after insect infestation was highlighted.
Key words: Fatty acid hydroperoxides, insect attack, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, mechanical wounding, Myzus persicae, volatile organic compounds
Received 29 October 2008; Revised 12 December 2008 Accepted 22 December 2008