Journal ArticleDOI
Biosynthesis and function of terpenoid defense compounds in maize (Zea mays).
TLDR
Maize produces an array of herbivore-induced terpene volatiles that attract parasitoids to infested plants and a suite of pathogen-induced non-volatile terpenoids with antimicrobial activity to defend against pests.Abstract:
Maize produces an array of herbivore-induced terpene volatiles that attract parasitoids to infested plants and a suite of pathogen-induced non-volatile terpenoids with antimicrobial activity to defend against pests Plants rely on complex blends of constitutive and dynamically produced specialized metabolites to mediate beneficial ecological interactions and protect against biotic attack One such class of metabolites are terpenoids, a large and structurally diverse class of molecules shown to play significant defensive and developmental roles in numerous plant species Despite this, terpenoids have only recently been recognized as significant contributors to pest resistance in maize (Zea mays), a globally important agricultural crop The current review details recent advances in our understanding of biochemical structures, pathways and functional roles of maize terpenoids Dependent upon the lines examined, maize can harbor more than 30 terpene synthases, underlying the inherent diversity of maize terpene defense systems Part of this defensive arsenal is the inducible production of volatile bouquets that include monoterpenes, homoterpenes and sesquiterpenes, which often function in indirect defense by enabling the attraction of parasitoids and predators More recently discovered are a subset of sesquiterpene and diterpene hydrocarbon olefins modified by cytochrome P450s to produce non-volatile end-products such kauralexins, zealexins, dolabralexins and β-costic acid These non-volatile terpenoid phytoalexins often provide effective defense against both microbial and insect pests via direct antimicrobial and anti-feedant activity The diversity and promiscuity of maize terpene synthases, coupled with a variety of secondary modifications, results in elaborate defensive layers whose identities, regulation and precise functions are continuing to be elucidatedread more
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Evolutionary Metabolomics Identifies Substantial Metabolic Divergence between Maize and Its Wild Ancestor, Teosinte.
TL;DR: The recent metabolic divergence between tropical and temperate maize tended to have simpler genetic architecture than the divergence between teosinte and tropical maize, showing the power of combining omics data for trait dissection.
Journal ArticleDOI
Evolution of metabolic novelty: A trichome-expressed invertase creates specialized metabolic diversity in wild tomato
TL;DR: Results show that modification of the core acylsucrose biosynthetic pathway leading to loss of furanose ring acylation set the stage for co-option of a general metabolic enzyme to produce a new class of protective compounds.
Journal ArticleDOI
Genetic elucidation of interconnected antibiotic pathways mediating maize innate immunity.
Yezhang Ding,Philipp R. Weckwerth,Elly Poretsky,Katherine M. Murphy,James Sims,Evan Saldivar,Shawn A. Christensen,Si Nian Char,Bing Yang,Bing Yang,Anh dao Tong,Zhouxin Shen,Karl A. Kremling,Edward S. Buckler,Edward S. Buckler,Thomas J. Y. Kono,David R. Nelson,Jörg Bohlmann,Matthew G. Bakker,Matthew G. Bakker,Martha M. Vaughan,Ahmed S. Khalil,Mariam Betsiashvili,Keini Dressano,Tobias G. Köllner,Steven P. Briggs,Philipp Zerbe,Eric A. Schmelz,Alisa Huffaker +28 more
TL;DR: The elucidated genetic basis of biochemical phenotypes that underlie disease resistance demonstrates a predominant maize defence pathway and informs innovative strategies for transferring chemical immunity between crops.
Journal ArticleDOI
Biochemistry of Terpenes and Recent Advances in Plant Protection.
TL;DR: An overview of terpenes, types, biosynthesis, and their roles in protecting plants against microbial pathogens, insect pests, and weeds to rekindle the debate on using terphenes for the development of environmentally friendly biopesticides and herbicides is provided in this article.
References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Crop losses to pests
TL;DR: Despite a clear increase in pesticide use, crop losses have not significantly decreased during the last 40 years, however, pesticide use has enabled farmers to modify production systems and to increase crop productivity without sustaining the higher losses likely to occur from an increased susceptibility to the damaging effect of pests.
Journal ArticleDOI
Exploitation of herbivore-induced plant odors by host-seeking parasitic wasps.
TL;DR: Corn seedlings release large amounts of terpenoid volatiles after they have been fed upon by caterpillars, and females of the parasitic wasp Cotesia marginiventris (Cresson) learn to take advantage of those plant-producedvolatiles to locate hosts when exposed to these volatile in association with hosts or host by-products.
Journal ArticleDOI
Recruitment of entomopathogenic nematodes by insect-damaged maize roots
Sergio Rasmann,Tobias G. Köllner,Jörg Degenhardt,Ivan Hiltpold,Stefan Toepfer,Ulrich Kuhlmann,Jonathan Gershenzon,Ted C. J. Turlings +7 more
TL;DR: The first identification of an insect-induced belowground plant signal, (E)-β-caryophyllene, which strongly attracts an entomopathogenic nematode, is reported, which should help enhance the efficacy of nematodes as biological control agents against root pests like D. virgifera.
Journal ArticleDOI
Plant terpenoid synthases: Molecular biology and phylogenetic analysis
TL;DR: This review focuses on the monoterpene, sesquiterpenes, and diterpene synthases of plant origin that use the corresponding C10, C15, and C20 prenyl diphosphates as substrates to generate the enormous diversity of carbon skeletons characteristic of the terpenoid family of natural products.