Dataset Information

Early transcriptome analyses of Z-3-Hexenol-treated zea mays revealed distinct transcriptional networks and anti-herbivore defense potential of green leaf volatiles.

ABSTRACT: Green leaf volatiles (GLV), which are rapidly emitted by plants in response to insect herbivore damage, are now established as volatile defense signals. Receiving plants utilize these molecules to prime their defenses and respond faster and stronger when actually attacked. To further characterize the biological activity of these compounds we performed a microarray analysis of global gene expression. The focus of this project was to identify early transcriptional events elicited by Z-3-hexenol (Z-3-HOL) as our model GLV in maize (Zea mays) seedlings. The microarray results confirmed previous studies on Z-3-HOL -induced gene expression but also provided novel information about the complexity of Z-3-HOL -induced transcriptional networks. Besides identifying a distinct set of genes involved in direct and indirect defenses we also found significant expression of genes involved in transcriptional regulation, Ca(2+)-and lipid-related signaling, and cell wall reinforcement. By comparing these results with those obtained by treatment of maize seedlings with insect elicitors we found a high degree of correlation between the two expression profiles at this early time point, in particular for those genes related to defense. We further analyzed defense gene expression induced by other volatile defense signals and found Z-3-HOL to be significantly more active than methyl jasmonate, methyl salicylate, and ethylene. The data presented herein provides important information on early genetic networks that are activated by Z-3-HOL and demonstrates the effectiveness of this compound in the regulation of typical plant defenses against insect herbivores in maize.

SUBMITTER: Engelberth J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3796489 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Early transcriptome analyses of Z-3-Hexenol-treated zea mays revealed distinct transcriptional networks and anti-herbivore defense potential of green leaf volatiles.

Engelberth Jurgen J Contreras Claudia Fabiola CF Dalvi Chinmay C Li Ting T Engelberth Marie M

PloS one 20131014 10

Green leaf volatiles (GLV), which are rapidly emitted by plants in response to insect herbivore damage, are now established as volatile defense signals. Receiving plants utilize these molecules to prime their defenses and respond faster and stronger when actually attacked. To further characterize the biological activity of these compounds we performed a microarray analysis of global gene expression. The focus of this project was to identify early transcriptional events elicited by Z-3-hexenol (Z ...[more]

PMID: 24155960

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundPlants often release a complex blend of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in response to insect herbivore damage. Among those blends of VOC green leaf volatiles (GLV) have been demonstrated to function as defence signals between plants, thereby providing protection against impending herbivory. A problem in understanding the mode of action of these 6-carbon aldehydes, alcohols, and esters is caused by their structural diversity. Besides different degrees of oxidation, E-2- as well as Z-3-configured isomers are often released. This study was therefore initiated to determine the structural requirement necessary to exhibit biological activity measured as jasmonic acid (JA) accumulation in Zea mays seedlings.FindingsThe structure/function analysis of green leaf volatiles and related compounds revealed that an olefinic bond in position 2 or 3 and a size of 6-8 carbons is required for biological activity in maize. Also, it was found that the presence of an ?, ?-unsaturated carbonyl is not a prerequisite for activity. However, by treating plants first with volatile acrolein it was discovered that this smallest ?, ?-unsaturated carbonyl inhibits JA accumulation in response to insect elicitor treatment, but not after GLV exposure. This selective inhibitory effect was also found for phenidone, an inhibitor of lipoxygenases. These findings led to the discovery of a pool of protein-associated 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid, a biosynthetic precursor of JA, which appeared to be rapidly converted into JA upon exposure to GLV.ConclusionsThe structure/function analysis of GLV demonstrates a high degree of correlation between the compounds released by wounded plants in nature and their biological activity. The selective inhibitory effects of acrolein and phenidone on insect elicitor- and GLV-induced JA accumulation in maize led to the discovery of a pool of protein-associated precursor, which is rapidly activated and transformed to JA after exposure to GLV. This novel mechanism for JA accumulation sheds new light on the biosynthetic variability of the octadecanoid signalling pathway and explains the observed differences in the response of maize seedling to inhibitors of JA accumulation.

Dataset Information

Early transcriptome analyses of Z-3-Hexenol-treated zea mays revealed distinct transcriptional networks and anti-herbivore defense potential of green leaf volatiles.

Publications

Early transcriptome analyses of Z-3-Hexenol-treated zea mays revealed distinct transcriptional networks and anti-herbivore defense potential of green leaf volatiles.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets