Abstract
Rutin and its aglycone quercetin occur in the fruits, leaves, seeds, and grains of many plant species and are involved in plant herbivore interactions. We studied the effect of the exogenous application of rutin and quercetin on the probing behavior (= stylet penetration activities in plant tissues) of Acyrthosiphon pisum on Pisum sativum, Myzus persicae on Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis, and Rhopalosiphum padi on Avena sativa using the electrical penetration graph technique (EPG = electropenetrography). The reaction of aphids to quercetin and rutin and the potency of the effect depended on aphid species, the flavonol, and flavonol concentration. Quercetin promoted probing activities of A. pisum within non-phloem and phloem tissues, which was demonstrated in the longer duration of probes and a trend toward longer duration of sap ingestion, respectively. M. persicae reached phloem in a shorter time on quercetin-treated B. rapa than on the control. Rutin caused a delay in reaching sieve elements by A. pisum and deterred probing activities of M. persicae within non-phloem tissues. Probing of R. padi was not affected by quercetin or rutin. The potency of behavioral effects increased as the applied concentrations of flavonols increased. The prospects of using quercetin and rutin in plant protection are discussed.
Highlights
Aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) are herbivorous insects with piercing-sucking mouthparts that ingest plant sap precisely from phloem vessels [1]
The sequence of events during aphid stylet penetration in plant tissues was observed under semi-natural conditions, on plants treated topically with ethanolic solutions of quercetin and rutin
We demonstrated that neither quercetin nor rutin prevented aphids from probing in tissues of their host plants, irrespective of a treatment
Summary
Aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) are herbivorous insects with piercing-sucking mouthparts that ingest plant sap precisely from phloem vessels [1]. Such a way of feeding requires the insertion of the mouthparts’ stylets into plant tissues and their progressive movement toward sieve elements of the phloem. On their route to phloem, aphid stylets puncture cells of non-phloem tissues, mainly for gustatory purposes [2]. The synthesis of flavonoids in plants is induced by herbivore attack including aphid infestation [21,22,23]
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