Systematic analysis of rice (Oryza sativa) metabolic responses to herbivory

Plants defend against attack from herbivores by direct and indirect defence mechanisms mediated by the accumulation of phytoalexins and release of volatile signals, respectively. While the defensive arsenals of some plants, such as tobacco and Arabidopsis are well known, most of rice's (Oryza sativa) defence metabolites and their effectiveness against herbivores remain uncharacterized. Here, we used a non‐biassed metabolomics approach to identify many novel herbivory‐regulated metabolic signatures in rice. Most were up‐regulated by herbivore attack while only a few were suppressed. Two of the most prominent up‐regulated signatures were characterized as phenolamides (PAs), p‐coumaroylputrescine and feruloylputrescine. PAs accumulated in response to attack by both chewing insects, i.e. feeding of the lawn armyworm (Spodoptera mauritia) and the rice skipper (Parnara guttata) larvae, and the attack of the sucking insect, the brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens, BPH). In bioassays, BPH insects feeding on 15% sugar solution containing p‐coumaroylputrescine or feruloylputrescine, at concentrations similar to those elicited by heavy BPH attack in rice, had a higher mortality compared to those feeding on sugar diet alone. Our results highlight PAs as a rapidly expanding new group of plant defence metabolites that are elicited by herbivore attack, and deter herbivores in rice and other plants.     

水稻中镉积累对粘虫的影响

水稻中重金属积累如何影响水稻害虫尚不清楚,本文拟探讨镉积累的水稻对粘虫Mythimna separata幼虫的影响。通过测定不同浓度氯化镉处理的水稻以及人工饲料对粘虫幼虫生长发育的影响,并进一步研究了氯化镉处理水稻中粘虫诱导的防御化合物含量的变化。研究表明水稻叶片中镉的积累导致粘虫幼虫生长减慢、死亡率上升。不同浓度镉处理可以显著提高粘虫诱导的酚胺类化合物对香豆酰腐胺、阿魏酰腐胺、肉桂酰腐胺以及阿魏酰胍丁胺的含量。不同浓度镉添加的人工饲料对粘虫幼虫的存活率无显著影响,而粘虫幼虫取食1 μM和10 μM氯化镉添加的人工饲料后体重反而高于取食未含镉的人工饲料。综上所述,镉积累提高了水稻中粘虫诱导的防御化合物的含量以及水稻对粘虫的抗性,研究结果有利于加深水稻与不同环境胁迫关系的认识。