Project description:Induced plant responses to insect herbivores are well studied, but we know very little about responses to gastropod feeding. We aim to identify the temporal dynamics of signalling- and defence-related plant responses after slug feeding in relation to induced resistance. We exposed Solanum dulcamara plants to feeding by the grey field slug (GFS; Deroceras reticulatum) for different periods and tested discs of local and systemic leaves in preference assays. Induced responses were analysed using metabolomics and transcriptomics. GFS feeding induced local and systemic responses. Slug feeding for 72h more strongly affected the plant metabolome than 24h feeding. It increased the levels of a glycoalkaloid (solasonine), phenolamides, anthocyanins, and trypsin protease inhibitors as well as polyphenol oxidase activity. Phytohormone and transcriptome analyses revealed that jasmonic acid, abscisic acid and salicylic acid signalling were activated. GFS feeding upregulated more genes than that it downregulated. The response directly after feeding was more than five times higher than after an additional 24h without feeding. Our research showed that GFS, like most chewing insects, triggers anti-herbivore defences by activating defence signalling pathways, resulting in increased resistance to further slug feeding. Slug herbivory may therefore impact other herbivores in the community.

2020-04-10 | GSE131208 | GEO

Glycoalkaloid composition explains variation in slug resistance in Solanum dulcamara

Project description:In natural environments, plants have to deal with a wide range of different herbivores whose communities vary in time and space. It is believed that the chemical diversity within plant species has mainly arisen from selection pressures exerted by herbivores. So far, the effects of chemical diversity on plant resistance have mostly been assessed for arthropod herbivores. However, also gastropods, such as slugs, can cause extensive damage to plants. Here we investigate to what extent individual Solanum dulcamara plants differ in their resistance to slug herbivory and whether this variation can be explained by differences in secondary metabolites. We performed a series of preference assays using the grey field slug (Deroceras reticulatum) and S. dulcamara accessions from eight geographically distinct populations from the Netherlands. Significant and consistent variation in slug preference was found for individual accessions within and among populations. Metabolomic analyses showed that variation in steroidal glycoalkaloids (GAs) correlated with slug preference; accessions with high GA levels were consistently less damaged by slugs. One, strongly preferred, accession with particularly low GA levels contained high levels of structurally related steroidal compounds. These were conjugated with uronic acid instead of the glycoside moieties common for Solanum GAs. Our results illustrate how intraspecific variation in steroidal glycoside profiles affects resistance to slug feeding. This suggests that also slugs should be considered as important drivers in the co-evolution between plants and herbivores.

2019-06-17 | MTBLS738 | MetaboLights

Gastropods and Insects Prefer Different Solanum dulcamara Chemotypes

Project description:Solanum dulcamara (Bittersweet nightshade) shows significant intraspecific variation in glycoalkaloid (GA) composition and concentration. We previously showed that constitutive differences in overall GA levels are correlated with feeding preference of the grey field slug (GFS; Deroceras reticulatum). One particularly preferred accession, ZD11, contained low GA levels, but high levels of previously unknown structurally related uronic acid conjugated compounds (UACs). Here we test whether different slug species as well as insect herbivores show similar feeding preferences among six S. dulcamara accessions with different GA chemotypes. In addition, we investigate whether slug feeding can lead to induced changes in the chemical composition and affect later arriving herbivores. A leaf disc assay using greenhouse-grown plants showed that three slug species similarly preferred accessions with low GA levels. Untargeted metabolomic analyses showed that previous slug feeding consistently increased the levels of N-caffeoyl-putrescine and a structurally related metabolite, but not the levels of GAs and UACs. Slug-induced responses only affected slug preference in one accession. A common garden experiment using the same six accessions revealed that ZD11 received the highest natural gastropod feeding damage, but suffered the lowest damage by specialist flea beetles. The latter preferred to feed on accessions with high GA levels. Our study indicates that different selection pressures imposed by generalist gastropods and specialist insects may explain part of the observed chemical diversity in S. dulcamara.

2020-05-16 | MTBLS1132 | MetaboLights

Comparing the chromosome binding profiles of nucleoid structuring protein H-NS in the presence or absence of conditions eliciting the depletion of transcription termination protein NusG in Salmonella

Project description: Not available

2022-07-04 | E-MTAB-11386 | biostudies-arrayexpress