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Variation in herbivory-induced volatiles among cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) varieties has consequences for the attraction of carnivorous natural enemies.

ABSTRACT: In response to herbivory by arthropods, plants emit herbivory-induced volatiles that attract carnivorous enemies of the inducing herbivores. Here, we compared the attractiveness of eight cucumber varieties (Cucumis sativus L.) to Phytoseiulus persimilis predatory mites after infestation of the plants with herbivorous spider mites (Tetranychus urticae) under greenhouse conditions. Attractiveness differed considerably, with the most attractive variety attracting twice as many predators as the least attractive variety. Chemical analysis of the volatiles released by the infested plants revealed significant differences among varieties, both in quantity and quality of the emitted blends. Comparison of the attractiveness of the varieties with the amounts of volatiles emitted indicated that the quality (composition) of the blend is more important for attraction than the amount of volatiles emitted. The amount of (E)-?-ocimene, (E,E)-TMTT, and two other, yet unidentified compounds correlated positively with the attraction of predatory mites. Quantities of four compounds negatively correlated with carnivore attraction, among them methyl salicylate, which is known to attract the predatory mite P. persimilis. The emission of methyl salicylate correlated with an unknown compound that had a negative correlation with carnivore attraction and hence could be masking the attractiveness of methyl salicylate. The results imply that the foraging success of natural enemies of pests can be enhanced by breeding for crop varieties that release specific volatiles.

SUBMITTER: Kappers IF

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3043237 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Variation in herbivory-induced volatiles among cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) varieties has consequences for the attraction of carnivorous natural enemies.

Kappers Iris F IF Hoogerbrugge Hans H Bouwmeester Harro J HJ Dicke Marcel M

Journal of chemical ecology 20110120 2

In response to herbivory by arthropods, plants emit herbivory-induced volatiles that attract carnivorous enemies of the inducing herbivores. Here, we compared the attractiveness of eight cucumber varieties (Cucumis sativus L.) to Phytoseiulus persimilis predatory mites after infestation of the plants with herbivorous spider mites (Tetranychus urticae) under greenhouse conditions. Attractiveness differed considerably, with the most attractive variety attracting twice as many predators as the leas ...[more]

PMID: 21249432

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Project description:BackgroundPowdery mildew (PM) causing fungi are well-known pathogens, infecting over 10.000 plant species, including the economically important crop cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). Loss-of-function mutations in clade V MLO genes have previously been shown to lead to recessively inherited broad-spectrum resistance to PM in several species. In cucumber, one clade V MLO homolog (CsaMLO8) was previously identified as being a susceptibility factor to PM. Two other closely related homologs (CsaMLO1 and CsaMLO11) were found, but their function was not yet unravelled.MethodsCsaMLO1 and CsaMLO11 were cloned from cucumber and overexpressed in a tomato mlo mutant. The transcript abundances of all three CsaMLO genes in different cucumber tissues were quantified using qRT-PCR and RNA-seq, with and without inoculation with the cucumber PM fungus Podosphaera xanthii. Allelic variation of CsaMLO1 and CsaMLO11 was screened in silico in sequenced cucumber germplasm.ResultsHeterologous overexpression of all three CsaMLO genes in the tomato mlo mutant restored susceptibility to PM caused by Oidium neolycopersici, albeit to a different extent: whereas overexpression of CsaMLO1 or CsaMLO8 completely restored susceptibility, overexpression of CsaMLO11 was only partially able to restore PM susceptibility. Furthermore, it was observed by qRT-PCR and RNA-seq that CsaMLO8 was significantly higher expressed in non-inoculated cucumber compared to the other two MLO genes. However, inoculation with P. xanthii led to upregulation of CsaMLO1, but not to upregulation of CsaMLO8 or CsaMLO11.ConclusionsBoth CsaMLO1 and CsaMLO11 are functional susceptibility genes, although we conclude that based on the transcript abundance CsaMLO8 is probably the major clade V MLO gene in cucumber regarding providing susceptibility to PM. Potential loss-of-function mutations in CsaMLO1 and CsaMLO11 have not been identified. The generation and analysis of such mutants are interesting subjects for further investigation.

Dataset Information

Variation in herbivory-induced volatiles among cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) varieties has consequences for the attraction of carnivorous natural enemies.

Publications

Variation in herbivory-induced volatiles among cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) varieties has consequences for the attraction of carnivorous natural enemies.

Similar Datasets

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