Lasting consequences of psyllid (Bactericera cockerelli L.) infestation on tomato defense, gene expression, and growth
Open Access
- 24 February 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in BMC Plant Biology
- Vol. 21 (1), 1-43
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-021-02876-z
Abstract
The tomato psyllid, Bactericera cockerelli Šulc (Hemiptera: Triozidae), is a pest of solanaceous crops such as tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) in the U.S. and vectors the disease-causing pathogen ‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’. Currently, the only effective strategies for controlling the diseases associated with this pathogen involve regular pesticide applications to manage psyllid population density. However, such practices are unsustainable and will eventually lead to widespread pesticide resistance in psyllids. Therefore, new control strategies must be developed to increase host-plant resistance to insect vectors. For example, expression of constitutive and inducible plant defenses can be improved through selection. Currently, it is still unknown whether psyllid infestation has any lasting consequences on tomato plant defense or tomato plant gene expression in general. In order to characterize the genes putatively involved in tomato defense against psyllid infestation, RNA was extracted from psyllid-infested and uninfested tomato leaves (Moneymaker) 3 weeks post-infestation. Transcriptome analysis identified 362 differentially expressed genes. These differentially expressed genes were primarily associated with defense responses to abiotic/biotic stress, transcription/translation, cellular signaling/transport, and photosynthesis. These gene expression changes suggested that tomato plants underwent a reduction in plant growth/health in exchange for improved defense against stress that was observable 3 weeks after psyllid infestation. Consistent with these observations, tomato plant growth experiments determined that the plants were shorter 3 weeks after psyllid infestation. Furthermore, psyllid nymphs had lower survival rates on tomato plants that had been previously psyllid infested. These results suggested that psyllid infestation has lasting consequences for tomato gene expression, defense, and growth.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2017-67013-26564)
- A&M AgriLife Research Insect Vector Disease Grant Program (06-L701774)
This publication has 64 references indexed in Scilit:
- The Arabidopsis Ortholog of Rice DWARF27 Acts Upstream of MAX1 in the Control of Plant Development by StrigolactonesPlant Physiology, 2012
- Descendants of Primed Arabidopsis Plants Exhibit Resistance to Biotic StressPlant Physiology, 2011
- Herbivory in the Previous Generation Primes Plants for Enhanced Insect ResistancePlant Physiology, 2011
- Phytozome: a comparative platform for green plant genomicsNucleic Acids Research, 2011
- Hormone Crosstalk in Plant Disease and Defense: More Than Just JASMONATE-SALICYLATE AntagonismAnnual Review of Phytopathology, 2011
- cpSRP43 Is a Novel Chaperone Specific for Light-harvesting Chlorophyll a,b-binding ProteinsJournal of Biological Chemistry, 2010
- Airborne Induction and Priming of Plant Defenses against a Bacterial PathogenPlant Physiology, 2009
- Arabidopsis LON2 Is Necessary for Peroxisomal Function and Sustained Matrix Protein ImportPlant Physiology, 2009
- Antagonistic Effect of Salicylic Acid and Jasmonic Acid on the Expression of Pathogenesis-Related (PR) Protein Genes in Wounded Mature Tobacco LeavesPlant and Cell Physiology, 1998
- Effects of plant growth rate and leaf lifetime on the amount and type of anti-herbivore defenseOecologia, 1988