Exogenous Application of Methyl Jasmonate Increases Emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds in Pyrenean Oak Trees, Quercus pyrenaica

The tri-trophic interactions between plants, insects, and insect predators and parasitoids are often mediated by chemical cues. The attraction to herbivore-induced Plant Volatiles (HIPVs) has been well documented for arthropod predators and parasitoids, and more recently for insectivorous birds. The attraction to plant volatiles induced by the exogenous application of methyl jasmonate (MeJA), a phytohormone typically produced in response to an attack of chewing herbivores, has provided controversial results both in arthropod and avian predators. In this study, we examined whether potential differences in the composition of bouquets of volatiles produced by herbivore-induced and MeJA-treated Pyrenean oak trees (Quercus pyrenaica) were related to differential avian attraction, as results from a previous study suggested. Results showed that the overall emission of volatiles produced by MeJA-treated and herbivore-induced trees did not differ, and were higher than emissions of Control trees, although MeJA treatment showed a more significant reaction and released several specific compounds in contrast to herbivore-induced trees. These slight yet significant differences in the volatile composition may explain why avian predators were not so attracted to MeJA-treated trees, as observed in a previous study in this plant-herbivore system. Unfortunately, the lack of avian visits to the experimental trees in the current study did not allow us to confirm this result and points out the need to perform more robust predator studies.

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Exogenous Application of Methyl Jasmonate Increases Emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds in Pyrenean Oak Trees, Quercus pyrenaica

10.20944/preprints202112.0082.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Luisa Amo ◽

Anna Mrazova ◽

Irene Saavedra ◽

Katerina Sam

Keyword(s):

Methyl Jasmonate ◽

Plant Volatiles ◽

Quercus Pyrenaica ◽

Exogenous Application ◽

Avian Predators ◽

Arthropod Predators ◽

Oak Trees ◽

Meja Treatment ◽

Insect Predators ◽

Plant Herbivore

The tri-trophic interactions between plants, insects, and insect predators and parasitoids are often mediated by chemical cues. The attraction to Herbivore-Infested Plant Volatiles (HIPVs) has been well documented for arthropod predators and parasitoids, and more recently for insectivorous birds. The attraction to plant volatiles induced by the exogenous application of methyl jasmonate (MeJA), a phytohormone typically produced in response to an attack of chewing herbivores, have provided controversial results, both in arthropod and avian predators. In this study, we aimed to examine whether potential differences in the composition of bouquets of volatiles produced by Herbivore-infested and MeJA-treated Pyrenean oak trees (Quercus pyrenaica) were related to differential avian attraction, as results from a previous study suggested. Results showed that the overall emission of volatiles produced by MeJA-treated and Herbivore-infested trees did not differ, and were higher than emissions of Control trees, although MeJA treatment showed more significant reaction and released several specific compounds in contrast to Herbivore-induced trees. These slight differences in the volatile composition may explain why avian predators were not so attracted to MeJA-treated trees as observed in a previous study in this plant-herbivore system. Unfortunately, the lack of avian visits to the experimental trees in the current study does not allow us to confirm this result and points out the need to perform more robust predator studies.

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Are wild insectivorous birds attracted to methyl-jasmonate-treated Pyrenean oak trees?

Behaviour ◽

10.1163/1568539x-00003516 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 155 (13-15) ◽

pp. 945-967 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Irene Saavedra ◽

Luisa Amo

Keyword(s):

Jasmonic Acid ◽

Methyl Jasmonate ◽

Field Experiments ◽

Predation Rate ◽

Signalling Pathway ◽

Insectivorous Birds ◽

Oak Trees ◽

Prey Location ◽

Oak Tree ◽

Herbivore Induced Plant Volatiles

Abstract Plants emit herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) when they are attacked by herbivorous arthropods to attract natural enemies of the herbivores. Previous studies have suggested that insectivorous birds can detect the HIPVs for prey location. The production of HIPVs is partly mediated by the jasmonic acid signalling pathway. Methyl jasmonate is one compound involved in the jasmonic acid signalling pathway. Therefore, spraying of methyl jasmonate (MeJa) solution on plants can induce the emission of volatiles similar to the HIPVs induced by herbivory. We performed two field experiments to test whether insectivorous adult birds are attracted to Pyrenean oak trees (Quercus pyrenaica) treated with MeJa solutions. We used artificial larvae to measure bird predation rate. There were no differences in the predation rates of plasticine larvae between control and MeJa treatments, suggesting that insectivorous birds were not attracted to trees treated with MeJa. We also tested whether blue tit nestlings without previous experience in foraging respond to the scent of Pyrenean oak tree leaves treated with MeJa, to test whether the attraction to MeJa-treated trees is innate. A similar number of nestlings performed begging responses when exposed to the scent of leaves of MeJa-treated trees compared to the scent of leaves of control untreated trees. Furthermore, the duration of the first begging was similar in response to the volatiles emitted by MeJa-treated trees and untreated trees. Despite previous evidence suggesting that insectivorous birds are attracted to HIPVs, our results show that neither insectivorous adult birds nor inexperienced nestlings were attracted to trees treated with MeJa. Further studies are needed to disentangle whether the differences in the emission of volatiles between herbivore-infested trees and MeJa-treated trees can explain this lack of attraction to MeJa-treated Pyrenean oak trees.

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Eliciting Plant Defenses Through Herbivore-Induced Plant Volatiles’ Exposure in Sweet Peppers

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.3389/fevo.2021.776827 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Chaymaa Riahi ◽

Jhonn González-Rodríguez ◽

Miquel Alonso-Valiente ◽

Alberto Urbaneja ◽

Meritxell Pérez-Hedo

Keyword(s):

Salicylic Acid ◽

Jasmonic Acid ◽

Methyl Jasmonate ◽

Plant Volatiles ◽

Methyl Salicylate ◽

Plant Defenses ◽

Sweet Pepper ◽

Induced Plant Volatiles ◽

Herbivore Induced Plant Volatiles ◽

Pepper Plants

Insect herbivory activates plant defense mechanisms and releases a blend of herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs). These volatile compounds may be involved in plant-plant communication and induce defense response in undamaged plants. In this work, we investigated whether the exposure of sweet pepper plants to HIPVs [(Z)-3-hexenol, (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, (Z)-3-hexenyl propanoate, (Z)-3-hexenyl butanoate, hexyl butanoate, methyl salicylate and methyl jasmonate] activates the sweet pepper immune defense system. For this, healthy sweet pepper plants were individually exposed to the each of the above mentioned HIPVs over 48 h. The expression of jasmonic acid and salicylic acid related genes was quantified. Here, we show that all the tested volatiles induced plant defenses by upregulating the jasmonic acid and salicylic acid signaling pathway. Additionally, the response of Frankliniella occidentalis, a key sweet pepper pest, and Orius laevigatus, the main natural enemy of F. occidentalis, to HIPV-exposed sweet pepper plants were studied in a Y-tube olfactometer. Only plants exposed to (Z)-3-hexenyl propanoate and methyl salicylate repelled F. occidentalis whereas O. laevigatus showed a strong preference to plants exposed to (Z)-3-hexenol, (Z)-3-hexenyl propanoate, (Z)-3-hexenyl butanoate, methyl salicylate and methyl jasmonate. Our results show that HIPVs act as elicitors to sweet pepper plant defenses by enhancing defensive signaling pathways. We anticipate our results to be a starting point for integrating HIPVs-based approaches in sweet pepper pest management systems which may provide a sustainable strategy to manage insect pests in horticultural plants.

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Interactions in Entomology: Plant-Parasitoid Interaction in Tritrophic Systems

Journal of Entomological Science ◽

10.18474/0749-8004-34.1.31 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 34 (1) ◽

pp. 31-39 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Consuelo M. De Moraes ◽

Mark C. Mescher

Keyword(s):

Long Range ◽

Plant Volatiles ◽

Foraging Efficiency ◽

Specific Information ◽

Herbivore Species ◽

Herbivore Induced Plant Volatiles ◽

Plant Herbivore ◽

Physical And Chemical ◽

New Evidence ◽

Parasitoid Foraging

Tritrophic plant-herbivore-parasitoid interactions are highly complex and often tightly interwoven. Plant-parasitoid interactions are a fundamental component of such systems with profound implications both for parasitoid foraging efficiency and plant defense. Chemical, plant-based cues are the dominant cues used by parasitoids in long-range foraging to locate cryptic, highly-dispersed hosts within a complex physical and chemical environment. It is well documented that volatile chemical signals produced and released by plants specifically in response to herbivore feeding play an important role in parasitoid foraging. New evidence suggests that, in addition to being highly detectable and reliable indicators of herbivore presence, herbivore-induced plant volatiles may convey herbivore-specific information that allows parasitoids to discriminate even closely-related herbivore species at long range.

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Great tits ( Parus major ) flexibly learn that herbivore‐induced plant volatiles indicate prey location: An experimental evidence with two tree species

Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.1002/ece3.7869 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Katerina Sam ◽

Eliska Kovarova ◽

Inga Freiberga ◽

Henriette Uthe ◽

Alexander Weinhold ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Experimental Evidence ◽

Tree Species ◽

Plant Volatiles ◽

Parus Major ◽

Induced Plant Volatiles ◽

Prey Location ◽

Herbivore Induced Plant Volatiles

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Response of Bioactive Metabolite and Biosynthesis Related Genes to Methyl Jasmonate Elicitation in Codonopsis pilosula

Molecules ◽

10.3390/molecules24030533 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 533 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Jiao-jiao Ji ◽

Qi Feng ◽

Hai-feng Sun ◽

Xue-jun Zhang ◽

Xiao-xiao Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Methyl Jasmonate ◽

Adventitious Roots ◽

Multiple Shoots ◽

Bioactive Metabolites ◽

Bioactive Metabolite ◽

Codonopsis Pilosula ◽

Meja Treatment ◽

Metabolite Accumulation ◽

Culture Growth ◽

Sucrose Level

Bioactive metabolites in Codonopsis pilosula are of particular interest as an immunostimulant. Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) plays an important role in the elicitation of metabolite biosynthesis. Here, we explored the response of metabolites to MeJA elicitation in C. pilosula adventitious roots and multiple shoots. The results showed that the biomass, polysaccharide, and lobetyolin content of adventitious roots exhibited the highest increases with 100 µmol·L−1 MeJA at the 16th day of subculture, whereas the atractylenolide III (a terpenoid) content increased extremely with 50 µmol·L−1 MeJA treatment at the 7th day of subculture. In addition, the biomass and lobetyolin content significantly increased at the 4th day after treatment. Similarly, the polysaccharide and lobetyolin content increased in multiple shoots. Further identification of different metabolites responding to MeJA by 1H-NMR showed an extremely significant increase of the lobetyolinin level, which coincided with lobetyolin. Accordingly, the precursor, fatty acids, showed a highly significant decrease in their levels. Furthermore, a significant increase in β-d-fructose-butanol glycoside was detected, which was accompanied by a decrease in the sucrose level. Accordingly, the enzyme genes responsible for terpenoid and carbohydrate biosynthesis, CpUGPase, and CpPMK, were up regulated. In conclusion, MeJA promoted culture growth and accelerated bioactive metabolite accumulation by regulating the expression of the metabolite biosynthesis related genes, CpUGPase and CpPMK in C. pilosula.

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