Influence of Green Leaf Herbivory by Manduca sexta on Floral Volatile Emission by Nicotiana suaveolens

Abstract

Plants have to cope with various abiotic and biotic impacts as a consequence of changing environments, which can impair their ability to sexually reproduce. The main objective of this study was to investigate whether green leaf herbivory, having one of the most hazardous biotic impacts, would have any direct effect on the production and emission of floral volatiles because volatiles are known to play a crucial role in pollination. Nicotiana suaveolens plants were challenged with Manduca sexta feeding on leaves, and alterations in the quality and quantity of the floral blend, shifts in emission patterns, and changes in expression patterns of the floral benzoic/salicylic acid carboxyl-methyltransferase were monitored in noninfested and infested plants. Leaves responded to larval feeding by herbivory-induced diurnal emission of semiochemicals, whereas the emission of floral volatiles remained unchanged in comparison to the noninfested control. Neither the volatile composition nor the quantity of components or the nocturnal emission patterns was altered. The mRNA and protein levels of the benzoic/salicylic acid carboxyl-methyltransferase, as well as its enzyme activity, also did not show any significant differences. These results indicate that metabolism in flowers at and postanthesis is an autonomous process and is independent of metabolic changes in green leaves. By this sustaining mechanism, N. suaveolens plants ensure sexual reproduction even under unfavorable conditions.