Evaluating the ecotoxicological effects of Pb contamination on the resistance against Lymantria dispar in forest plant, Larix olgensis

BACKGROUND Heavy metal contamination in forest ecosystems has become increasingly severe, and there is an urgent need to better understand the ecotoxicological effects of heavy metals on the whole forest ecosystems, especially their effects on insect resistance of forest plant. In the present study, the resistance against gypsy moth ( Lymantria dispar ) larvae in Larix olgensis seedlings grown in non‐amended or Pb‐amended (at 500 and 1500 mg kg −1 ) soil was evaluated. RESULTS Pb from the treated soil could be transferred and exerted bio‐toxicological effects along the food chain consisting of L. olgensis seedlings and gypsy moth larvae, eventually causing significantly reduction in seedlings growth, as well as larval weight, survival rate and antioxidant capacity. With regard to phytochemical defense, the activities or contents of protease inhibitors (trypsin and chymotrypsin inhibitors) and secondary metabolites (condensed tannin and total phenolics) in Pb‐treated larch needles presented a tendency of ‘low‐promotion, high‐inhibition’ with the increase of Pb exposure concentration. At the same time, Pearson's correlation coefficients showed that the trade‐off hypothesis on energy allocation between phytochemical defense and plant growth was not supported by the data from the L. olgensis seedlings that were exposed to Pb stress, and elemental defense might replace the dominant role of phytochemical defense in L. olgensis seedlings under Pb stress against the gypsy moth larvae. CONCLUSION These findings emphasize ecotoxicological effects of heavy metal contaminations along the food chains (forest plants and forest defoliators), and provide a new perspective for optimizing forest pest control strategies in the heavy metal polluted regions. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry