Christiane Schnee

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that a single gene such as tps10 can be sufficient to mediate the indirect defense of maize against herbivore attack and that females of the parasitoid Cotesia marginiventris learn to exploit the TPS10 sesquiterpenes to locate their lepidopteran hosts after prior exposure to these volatiles in association with hosts.

TL;DR: A terPene synthase gene is isolated from maize that exhibits only a low degree of sequence identity to previously identified terpene synthases, and the biochemical characteristics of the encoded enzyme are similar to those of terpenes synthases from both gymnosperms and dicotyledonous angiosperms, suggesting that catalysis involves a similar electrophilic reaction mechanism.

TL;DR: The diversity of sesquiterpenes in these two maize cultivars is strongly influenced by single nucleotide changes in the alleles of two terpene synthase genes.

TL;DR: The sesquiterpene hydrocarbon chemistry of maize (Zea mays) inbred line B73 was analyzed by both direct solvent extraction and headspace sampling suggesting that there is no selective barrier to release from plants.

TL;DR: Investigation of the reaction mechanism showed that the formation of β-macrocarpene proceeds via a neutral β-bisabolene intermediate and requires reprotonation by a proton that may ultimately be abstracted from water.