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Abstract

Plant hemiparasites obtain a wide range of primary compounds from their host plants, including carbon, water and ions. In this paper, we examine the transfer of carbon from the host plant Myoporum parvifolium and the movement of an insecticidal compound from the host Melia azedarach to the root hemiparasite Santalum acuminatum (R.Br) (quandong). By using 14 C we determined that glucose was moving from the M. parvifolium host to the parasite while the carbon fixed by quandongs was found to be mostly in mannitol. Mannitol occurred in fruit, leaf, stem and root tissue and also in xylem sap. We also provide evidence from direct infusion electrospray mass spectrometry (DIEMS) that quandong fruit from trees growing near Melia azedarach (L.) contain an insecticidal compound. This was supported by results from a bioassay in which apple moth (Epiphyas postvittana Walker) larvae suffered higher mortality when fed only on quandong fruit that was growing near M. azedarach than those fed on quandong fruit from trees growing away from M. azedarach. B . R . L o ve ys , S . D. T ye r ma n, B. R. Lo v ey s B T9 90 8 0 B . R . L ov e ys O rg a ni c -C tr a ns f er f ro m h os t s t o t h e h em ip a ra s it e S. ac u mi na t um e t a l .

Geographic and Phenotypic Variation in Heartwood and Essential‐Oil Characters in Natural Populations of Santalum austrocaledonicum in Vanuatu

“…As a hemi-parasitic species (forming root haustorial connections with other plants), it is possible that oil quality could be affected by attributes of the host species. The transfer of natural insecticidal compounds from host species Melia azedarach to S. acuminatum has been demonstrated [19]. Little is known, however, about the range and specificity of host species in S. austrocaledonicum and further research is required to determine the influence of particular hosts on heartwood formation and oil qualities.…”