Tissue-specific plant toxins and adaptation in a specialist root herbivore.

ABSTRACT: In coevolution between plants and insects, reciprocal selection often leads to phenotype matching between chemical defense and herbivore offense. Nonetheless, it is not well understood whether distinct plant parts are differentially defended and how herbivores adapted to those parts cope with tissue-specific defense. Milkweed plants produce a diversity of cardenolide toxins and specialist herbivores have substitutions in their target enzyme (Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase), each playing a central role in milkweed-insect coevolution. The four-eyed milkweed beetle (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus) is an abundant toxin-sequestering herbivore that feeds exclusively on milkweed roots as larvae and less so on milkweed leaves as adults. Accordingly, we tested the tolerance of this beetle's N

SUBMITTER: Agrawal AA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10235950 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature