Plant chemical signalling affecting aphid-plant interactions

Aphid-plant interaction are complex processes where much still remains to be explored. This project tested the capacity of aphid-infested barley, Hordeum vulgare (L.), to induce defencelike responses in neighbouring plants via chemical signals, making them less acceptable to the bird cherry-oat a...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Qvarfordt, Erika
Formato: Second cycle, A1E
Lenguaje:sueco
Inglés
Publicado: 2009
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/285/
Descripción
Sumario:Aphid-plant interaction are complex processes where much still remains to be explored. This project tested the capacity of aphid-infested barley, Hordeum vulgare (L.), to induce defencelike responses in neighbouring plants via chemical signals, making them less acceptable to the bird cherry-oat aphid Rhopalosiphum padi (L.). Chemicals released into the air or the rhizospshere from infested plants can potentially act as defence-inducing signals in neighbouring plants. Results showed that both volatiles and rhizospshere extracts from infested plants can make receiving plants less acceptable to R. padi. Despite a range of experiments, the decisive factors behind the rhizospshere interaction could not be identified; however a hypothesis for future study is that soil micro-organisms play a role. Feeding by a different aphid species, Myzus persicae (Sulzer), made barley plants more acceptable to R. padi in settling tests. Aphids were attracted to the odour of M. persicae-infested plants and settled more often on plants that had been exposed to M. persicae-infested plants. This between-species interaction in aphids has not been previously reported. Further research is needed to gain a deeper understanding of the importance of plant-plant chemical signalling in aphid ecology, for example responses at the molecular level and effects on trophic interactions. This project has however provided the first step for these investigations in this study system.