Interactions between tomato volatile organic compounds and aphid behaviour

Abstract

In the tritrophic system consisting of tomato, Solanum lycopersicum (L.), the aphid Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas) and its natural enemy, the parasitoid Aphidius ervi (Haliday), it has been shown that the release of volatile organic compounds following aphid attack is responsible for attracting aphid parasitoids in wind tunnel experiments. The main compounds involved in these multitrophic interactions have been characterized and quantified. In this work, the possible activity of such compounds on plant direct defences against the aphid M. euphorbiae was assessed in laboratory tests. The selected compounds were applied to uninfested tomato plants, either by evaporation or contact, and performance of aphids, in terms of plant acceptance, fixing behaviour and aphid development, calculated in standard conditions. The results showed that two compounds, namely methyl salicylate and cis-hex-3-en-1-ol, alter aphid performance. These two compounds have been reported to be those eliciting the best response by A. ervi in terms of flight behavior (wind tunnel bioassay) and antennal stimulation (EAG bioassay).

Tobacco overexpressing β-ocimene induces direct and indirect responses against aphids in receiver tomato plants

“…The role of VOCs in direct and indirect defences of tomato plants against aphids has been recently characterized (Digilio et al, 2010(Digilio et al, , 2012Sasso et al, 2007Sasso et al, , 2009. In this study we demonstrate the interaction between interspecific emitter and receiver plants in both direct and indirect defences.…”

“…both aerial and contact bioassay, resulting in a significantly lower number of aphids settled after 24 h (Digilio et al, 2012). Moreover, cis-3-hexen-1-ol plays a key role in the attraction of A. ervi, being detected at concentrations as low as 0.1 mg/ml (Sasso et al, 2009).…”

“…The higher amount of methyl salicylate released by TTT plants compared with TWT can account, at least in part, for the better defensive performance recorded. Indeed, tomato plants treated aerially with methyl salicylate became unfavourable for the settlement and reproduction of M. euphorbiae (Digilio et al, 2012). However, the defensive response elicited by TTT was characterized not only by a reduced number of aphids settled on the treated plant but also by slower development as exemplified by a lower total weight and lower fecundity in terms of nymphs produced by settled aphids (Fig.…”

“…The receiver plants used in all assays were tomato plants Solanum lycopersicum L. (Solanaceae) cv San Marzano (Digilio et al, 2012). All plants were grown in sterilized soil in three different greenhouses (one to rear the plants and the others for each treatment, see below) under the following conditions: 24 ± 2 • C and 70 ± 10% RH, and a 16:8 light/dark photoperiod.…”

Insights On the Impact of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Symbiosis On Tomato Tolerance to Water Stress

“…The plant genotype selected for this research was cv San Marzano nano (a cultivar with a determined growth rate), which is economically important for fresh consumption or for canning (http://www.consorziopomodorosanmarzanodop. it/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=83& Itemid=74&lang=en), whose aboveground and belowground interactions were investigated recently (Digilio et al, 2012;Battaglia et al, 2013;Cascone et al, 2014). Here, a multidisciplinary approach, involving ecophysiological, morphometric, biochemical, and molecular analyses, was used to verify the plant response to WS during AM symbiosis.…”