Vein-Cutting Behavior: Insect Counterploy to the Latex Defense of Plants

Dussourd, David E.; Eisner, Thomas

doi:10.1126/science.3616620

Cited by 269 publications

(203 citation statements)

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“…We propose that these countervailing evolutionary trends could be the result of the dominance of the milkweed herbivore fauna by specialist insects. Despite the function of cardenolides, latex, and trichomes in reducing herbivory, each of the specialized herbivores employs several mechanisms to circumvent or attenuate the negative effects of these defensive traits (4,5,9). As a result, we find that herbivory on milkweeds is common, consistent across years, and often considerably intense.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 67%

“…Each of these traits has been demonstrated to quantitatively affect the behavior (4, 5), performance (1,6,7), and abundance (8) of herbivores in the field. The resistance provided by these three traits occurs despite the fact that most milkweed herbivores are specialists and have adaptations to cope with each defense (4,5,9). Our central goal was thus to evaluate what factors predict variation in defense investment across the clade.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Phylogenetic escalation and decline of plant defense strategies

Agrawal

Fishbein

2008

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

163

194

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As the basal resource in most food webs, plants have evolved myriad strategies to battle consumption by herbivores. Over the past 50 years, plant defense theories have been formulated to explain the remarkable variation in abundance, distribution, and diversity of secondary chemistry and other defensive traits. For example, classic theories of enemy-driven evolutionary dynamics have hypothesized that defensive traits escalate through the diversification process. Despite the fact that macroevolutionary patterns are an explicit part of defense theories, phylogenetic analyses have not been previously attempted to disentangle specific predictions concerning (i) investment in resistance traits, (ii) recovery after damage, and (iii) plant growth rate. We constructed a molecular phylogeny of 38 species of milkweed and tested four major predictions of defense theory using maximum-likelihood methods. We did not find support for the growth-rate hypothesis. Our key finding was a pattern of phyletic decline in the three most potent resistance traits (cardenolides, latex, and trichomes) and an escalation of regrowth ability. Our neontological approach complements more common paleontological approaches to discover directional trends in the evolution of life and points to the importance of natural enemies in the macroevolution of species. The finding of macroevolutionary escalating regowth ability and declining resistance provides a window into the ongoing coevolutionary dynamics between plants and herbivores and suggests a revision of classic plant defense theory. Where plants are primarily consumed by specialist herbivores, regrowth (or tolerance) may be favored over resistance traits during the diversification process.cardenolides ͉ coevolution ͉ macroevolutionary trends ͉ milkweed Asclepias ͉ plant defense theory M ilkweeds (Asclepias spp., Apocynaceae) are prime candidates for a clade-based approach to testing plant defense theories because of their well known defensive strategies and tremendous variation in expression of these traits (1-3). Three traits-cardenolides, latex, and trichomes-have been strongly implicated in providing milkweed resistance against herbivores. Each of these traits has been demonstrated to quantitatively affect the behavior (4, 5), performance (1, 6, 7), and abundance (8) of herbivores in the field. The resistance provided by these three traits occurs despite the fact that most milkweed herbivores are specialists and have adaptations to cope with each defense (4, 5, 9). Our central goal was thus to evaluate what factors predict variation in defense investment across the clade.We tested four major predictions of classic plant defense theory using phylogenetically explicit analyses employing maximum-likelihood estimation of defense trait evolution (10, 11). First, do the individual resistance traits used by plants trade off due to redundancy, or do they repeatedly evolve together as a suite of covarying traits (12, 13)? Second, does plant growth rate covary with investment in resistance traits as p...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 67%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylogenetic escalation and decline of plant defense strategies

Agrawal

Fishbein

2008

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

163

194

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“…Em B. bicuspidatum, a ocorrência de parasitas (larvas de insetos) nas pétalas foi freqüente. Embora poucos insetos consigam se alimentar de plantas latescentes, alguns fitófagos desenvolveram mecanismos para combater este sistema de defesa coevolutivamente (Dussourd & Eisner 1987, Christiano 2002. A presença de laticíferos em Apocynaceae tem importância devido à proteção conferida pelo látex e propicia o sucesso das espécies nos diversos ambientes, como proposto por Farrell et al (1991) para plantas latescentes e resiníferas.…”

Section: Discussionunclassified

Laticíferos articulados anastomosados: novos registros para Apocynaceae

Demarco¹,

Kinoshita²,

Castro³

2006

Rev. bras. Bot.

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-(Articulated anastomosing laticifers -new records for Apocynaceae). Laticifer presence is universal in Apocynaceae, in the classic literature the type described for this family is the non-articulated. Later researches have proved the occurrence of articulated laticifers only in four species, giving rise to controversies on their origin. The results obtained in our studies differ from those reported for most species of this family. In both Aspidosperma australe Müll. Arg. (Rauvolfioideae) and Blepharodon bicuspidatum Fourn. (Asclepiadoideae), the laticifers are of the articulated anastomosing type because they are formed by adding cells with rapidly dissolving transverse walls. Laticifers originate from ground meristem and/or procambium and form a branched system, they are in secretory phase since the early stages of formation in different organs, releasing latex only when the plant is damaged. The laticifer walls are exclusively pectic-cellulosic and their chemical characteristics probably change during their development. Vegetative organ laticifers occur in all stem and leaf tissues, except epidermis and medullary parenchyma of A. australe. In the flower, laticifers are found in all floral organs, except in the medullary parenchyma of the pedicel of A. australe and in the ovules of both species. The presence of the same type of laticifer in these two genera, which represent the most divergent subfamilies within the Apocynaceae corroborates the current circumscription of this family. The latex has protective function, allowing the species of this family to succeed in different environments.Key words -anatomy, Apocynaceae, articulated laticifers, distribution, ontogeny RESUMO -(Laticíferos articulados anastomosados -novos registros para Apocynaceae). A presença de laticíferos é universal nas Apocynaceae e o tipo descrito nas obras clássicas de revisão para esta família é o não articulado. Pesquisas posteriores provaram a ocorrência de laticíferos articulados apenas em quatro espécies, suscitando controvérsias quanto à sua origem. Os resultados obtidos em nossos estudos divergem dos já publicados para a maioria das espécies da família. Tanto em Aspidosperma australe Müll. Arg. (Rauvolfioideae) quanto em Blepharodon bicuspidatum Fourn. (Asclepiadoideae), os laticíferos são articulados anastomosados e formados por adição de células, cujas paredes transversais dissolvem-se rapidamente. Eles originam-se a partir do meristema fundamental e/ou procâmbio, já estão em fase secretora desde o início de sua formação nos diferentes órgãos, constituindo um sistema ramificado e só liberam o látex se a planta for injuriada. As paredes dos laticíferos são exclusivamente pectocelulósicas e suas características químicas provavelmente se alteram durante o seu desenvolvimento. Os laticíferos dos órgãos vegetativos ocorrem em todos os tecidos do caule e da folha, com exceção da epiderme e do parênquima medular de A. australe. Na flor, eles são encontrados em todas as peças florais, exceto no parênquima medular do pedicelo de...

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“…Thus, for example, a number of insects that feed on the leaves of latex-producing plants prepare the leaves for ingestion by severing latex canals and causing the latex to drain from the leaves (15). Similarly, grasshopper mice that feed on certain beetles with dischargeable defensive glands overpower these beetles by holding them in such fashion that their glandular discharges are misdirected into the soil (16).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Defensive use of a fecal thatch by a beetle larva ( Hemisphaerota cyanea )

Eisner

2000

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The larva of the tortoise beetle, Hemisphaerota cyanea (Chrysomelidae, Cassidinae), constructs a thatch from long filamentous fecal strands, beneath which it is totally concealed. The thatch is not discarded at molting but is enlarged by addition of strands as the larva grows. Thatch construction begins when the larva hatches from the egg. Pupation occurs beneath the thatch. Two predators, a coccinellid beetle larva (Cycloneda sanguinea) and a pentatomid bug (Stiretrus anchorago), were shown to be thwarted by the thatch. However, one predator, a carabid beetle (Calleida viridipennis), feeds on the larva by either forcing itself beneath the thatch or chewing its way into it. The attack behavior is stereotyped, suggesting that the beetle feeds on Hemisphaerota larvae as a matter of routine.Coleoptera ͉ Chrysomelidae ͉ Carabidae ͉ Calleida

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Vein-Cutting Behavior: Insect Counterploy to the Latex Defense of Plants

Cited by 269 publications

References 16 publications

Phylogenetic escalation and decline of plant defense strategies

Phylogenetic escalation and decline of plant defense strategies

Laticíferos articulados anastomosados: novos registros para Apocynaceae

Defensive use of a fecal thatch by a beetle larva ( Hemisphaerota cyanea )

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