Letter

Specific herbivore-induced volatiles defend plants and determine insect community composition in the field

  1. Y. Xiao1,†,
  2. Q. Wang1,2,†,
  3. M. Erb3,
  4. T. C. J. Turlings4,
  5. L. Ge1,
  6. L. Hu1,
  7. J. Li1,
  8. X. Han1,
  9. T. Zhang1,
  10. J. Lu1,
  11. G. Zhang2,
  12. Y. Lou1,*

Article first published online: 16 JUL 2012

DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2012.01835.x

Issue

Ecology Letters

Ecology Letters

Volume 15, Issue 10, pages 1130–1139, October 2012

Additional Information

How to Cite

Ecology Letters (2012) 15: 1130–1139

Author Information

  1. 1

    State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China

  2. 2

    State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Institute of Entomology, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China

  3. 3

    Root-Herbivore Interactions, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany

  4. 4

    Laboratory of Fundamental and Applied Research in Chemical Ecology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland

  1. †

    Y. X. and Q. W. contributed equally to this work.

* Correspondence: E-mail: yglou@zju.edu.cn

  1. †

    Y. X. and Q. W. contributed equally to this work.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 5 SEP 2012
  2. Article first published online: 16 JUL 2012
  3. Manuscript Accepted: 11 JUN 2012
  4. Manuscript Revised: 28 MAY 2012
  5. Manuscript Revised: 13 MAR 2012
  6. Manuscript Received: 11 FEB 2012

Funded by

  • National Basic Research Program of China. Grant Number: 2010CB126200
  • National Natural Science Foundation of China. Grant Numbers: 31021003, 30671376
  • Modern Agro-industry Technology Research System

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Keywords:

  • Anagrus nilaparvatae ;
  • direct defence;
  • genetic manipulation;
  • herbivore-induced plant defence;
  • indirect defence;
  • Nilaparvata lugens ;
  • plant–insect interactions;
  • rice;
  • tritrophic interaction;
  • volatiles

Abstract

In response to insect attack, plants release complex blends of volatile compounds. These volatiles serve as foraging cues for herbivores, predators and parasitoids, leading to plant-mediated interactions within and between trophic levels. Hence, plant volatiles may be important determinants of insect community composition. To test this, we created rice lines that are impaired in the emission of two major signals, S-linalool and (E)-β-caryophyllene. We found that inducible S-linalool attracted predators and parasitoids as well as chewing herbivores, but repelled the rice brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens, a major pest. The constitutively produced (E)-β-caryophyllene on the other hand attracted both parasitoids and planthoppers, resulting in an increased herbivore load. Thus, silencing either signal resulted in specific insect assemblages in the field, highlighting the importance of plant volatiles in determining insect community structures. Moreover, the results imply that the manipulation of volatile emissions in crops has great potential for the control of pest populations.

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