z-logo
Premium
Dietary plant phenolic improves survival of bacterial infection in M anduca sexta caterpillars
Author(s) -
del Campo Marta L.,
Halitschke Rayko,
Short Sarah M.,
Lazzaro Brian P.,
Kessler André
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
entomologia experimentalis et applicata
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.765
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1570-7458
pISSN - 0013-8703
DOI - 10.1111/eea.12032
Subject(s) - biology , larva , caffeic acid , solanaceae , bacteria , insect , manduca sexta , botany , microbiology and biotechnology , polyphenol , virulence , chlorogenic acid , host (biology) , food science , biochemistry , ecology , antioxidant , genetics , gene
Plant phenolics are generally thought to play significant roles in plant defense against herbivores and pathogens. Many plant taxa, including S olanaceae, are rich in phenolic compounds and some insect herbivores have been shown to acquire phenolics from their hosts to use them as protection against their natural enemies. Here, we demonstrate that larvae of an insect specialist on Solanaceae, the tobacco hornworm, M anduca sexta L . ( L epidoptera: S phingidae), acquire the plant phenolic chlorogenic acid ( CA ), and other caffeic acid derivatives as they feed on one of their hosts, N icotiana attenuata L . ( S olanaceae), and on artificial diet supplemented with CA . We test the hypothesis that larvae fed on CA ‐supplemented diet would have better resistance against bacterial infection than larvae fed on a standard CA ‐free diet by injecting bacteria into the hemocoel of fourth instars. Larvae fed CA ‐supplemented diet show significantly higher survival of infection with E nterococcus faecalis ( A ndrewes & H order) S chleifer & K ilpper‐ B älz, but not of infection with the more virulent P seudomonas aeruginosa ( S chroeter) M igula. Larvae fed on CA ‐supplemented diet possess a constitutively higher number of circulating hemocytes than larvae fed on the standard diet, but we found no other evidence of increased immune system activity, nor were larvae fed on CA ‐supplemented diet better able to suppress bacterial proliferation early in the infection. Thus, our data suggest an additional defensive function of CA to the direct toxic inhibition of pathogen proliferation in the gut.

This content is not available in your region!

Continue researching here.

Having issues? You can contact us here