Plant Memory and Defense Responses to Herbivory
Author Information
Author(s): William Stork, Celia Diezel, Rayko Halitschke, Ivan Gális, Ian T. Baldwin
Primary Institution: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology
Hypothesis
How do repeated herbivore attacks influence jasmonic acid (JA) accumulation and plant defense mechanisms?
Conclusion
Repeated herbivore attacks lead to complex changes in jasmonic acid accumulation and plant defense responses, highlighting the role of plant memory.
Supporting Evidence
- The jasmonic acid burst was found to be robust despite environmental variations.
- Repeated herbivore attacks altered the patterns of jasmonic acid accumulation.
- Larvae of Manduca sexta were repelled by the jasmonic acid bursts.
- Leaf vasculature constrained the spread of jasmonic acid within leaves.
- Conjugation efficiency of jasmonic acid varied among different leaf sectors.
Takeaway
When plants are eaten by bugs, they remember it and get better at defending themselves the next time, even if the bugs come back more than once.
Methodology
The study involved eliciting jasmonic acid bursts in Nicotiana attenuata plants through mechanical wounding and analyzing the resulting biochemical responses over time.
Potential Biases
Potential biases may arise from the controlled experimental conditions that differ from natural environments.
Limitations
The study primarily focused on a single plant species and may not generalize to other species or ecological contexts.
Participant Demographics
The study involved a native population of Nicotiana attenuata plants from the Great Basin Desert.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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