Water, not carbon, drives drought-constraints on stem terpene defense against simulated bark beetle attack in Pinus edulis.

ABSTRACT: Drought predisposes forest trees to bark beetle-induced mortality, but the physiological mechanisms remain unclear. While drought-induced water and carbon limitations have been implicated in defensive failure and tree susceptibility, evidence demonstrating how these factors interact is scarce. We withheld water from mature, potted Pinus edulis and subsequently applied a double-stem girdle to inhibit carbohydrate transport from the crown and roots. Within this isolated segment we then elicited a defense response by inoculating trees with a bark beetle-fungal symbiont (Ophiostoma sp.). We quantified local mono- and sesquiterpenes (MST), nonstructural carbohydrates (NSC), and pressure potential of the inner bark. Both drought-stressed and watered trees had similar NSC concentrations just befo

SUBMITTER: Malone SC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11617656 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature