The green peach aphid Myzus persicae perform better on pre-infested Chinese cabbage Brassica pekinensis by enhancing host plant nutritional quality

Abstract

The green peach aphid, Myzus persicae Sulzer, is a notorious pest on vegetables, which often aggregates in high densities on crop leaves. In this study, we investigated whether M. persicae could suppress the resistance level of Chinese cabbage Brassica pekinensis. M. persicae performed better in terms of weight gain (~33% increase) and population growth (~110% increase) when feeding on previously infested (pre-infested) Chinese cabbage compared with those on non-infested plants. However, when given a choice, 64% of the aphids preferred to settle on non-infested leaves, while 29% of aphids chose pre-infested leaves that had a 2.9 times higher concentration of glucosinolates. Aphid feeding significantly enhanced the amino acid:sugar ratio of phloem sap and the absolute amino acid concentration in plant leaves. Aphid infestation significantly increased the expression levels of salicylic acid (SA) marker genes, while it had marginal effects on the expression of jasmonate marker genes. Exogenously applied SA or methyl jasmonate had no significant effects on M. persicae performance, although these chemicals increased glucosinolates concentration in plant leaves. M. persicae infestation increase amino acid:sugar ratio and activate plant defenses, but aphid performed better on pre-infested plants, suggesting that both nutrition and toxics should be considered in insect-plant interaction.

Bensulfuron-Methyl Treatment of Soil Affects the Infestation of Whitefly, Aphid, and Tobacco Mosaic Virus on Nicotiana tabacum

“…Both Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) and Myzus persicae (Sulzer) are serious pests affecting the production of tobaccos and other crops (Kollenberg et al, 2014; Santos-Garcia et al, 2015; Cao et al, 2016; Kang et al, 2016). Also maize fields have been reported to be damaged by the colonization of biotype B whiteflies (Quintela et al, 2016).…”

“…Owing to fast evolution, B. tabaci nowadays has diverse biotypes worldwide among which the B and Q types can cause severe crops losses (Santos-Garcia et al, 2015). Green peach aphid M. persicae , which is another kind of important pest affecting tobaccos, has a broad spectrum of hosts all over the world (Cao et al, 2016; Kang et al, 2016; Kayser et al, 2016). The pests can both deprive plants of nutrients and transmit cucumber mosaic viruses or other pathogens (Zhao et al, 2015), resulting in immense losses of crop yield (Cao et al, 2016).…”

“…Green peach aphid M. persicae , which is another kind of important pest affecting tobaccos, has a broad spectrum of hosts all over the world (Cao et al, 2016; Kang et al, 2016; Kayser et al, 2016). The pests can both deprive plants of nutrients and transmit cucumber mosaic viruses or other pathogens (Zhao et al, 2015), resulting in immense losses of crop yield (Cao et al, 2016). Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) is widely spread around the world, and it can affect a broad spectrum of hosts such as tobaccos, tomatoes, and potatoes, leading to economical losses.…”

Differences in Hormonal Signaling Triggered by Two Root-Feeding Nematode Species Result in Contrasting Effects on Aphid Population Growth

“…In contrast, aphid feeding on M. hapla-infested plants induced the JA, but not the SA pathway. Indeed, it has been reported that aphid feeding triggers both SA and JA responses (Moran et al, 2002;De Vos et al, 2005;Cao et al, 2016). On Arabidopsis thaliana, B. brassicae feeding particularly increases the expression of genes in the SA pathway, and to a lesser extent in the JA pathway (Kuśnierczyk et al, 2008).…”

“…Nematodes alter primary metabolite production and resource allocation within their host plant to enhance nutrient allocation to their feeding site (Kyndt et al, 2012a;Hol et al, 2013). Aphids also create a nutrient sink, enhancing amino acid and sugar concentrations in the phloem sap on which they feed (Cao et al, 2016;Hol et al, 2016). When nematodes and aphids feed on the same plant, it may also result in a "tug of war" for plant nutrients between the two herbivores.…”