AUTHOR=Chen Yingying , Liang Shenghua , Wang Shuyao , Li Baocai , Wang Kun , Zhu Yongjin , Yang Risheng , Hao Xin , Yang Zhuoying , Shen Yingbai , Jiang Rihong , Li Kaixiang 

TITLE=Repeated mechanical damage enhanced Aquilaria sinensis resistance to Heortia vitessoides through jasmonic acid

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=14

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2023.1183002

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2023.1183002

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p>The leaf-chewing pest <italic>Heortia vitessoides</italic> severely threatens the growth and development of <italic>Aquilaria sinensis</italic>. In our previous study, we found that mechanical damage (MD) to stem enhanced <italic>A. sinensis</italic> sapling resistance to <italic>H. vitessoides</italic> larvae.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>To reveal the defense mechanisms underlying this observation, we analyzed the types and contents of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), phytohormone contents, and expression of phytohormone-related genes in response to MD and herbivory wounding(HW).</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Here, we identified several VOCs, such as the pesticides fenobucarb and 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol, in mature leaf (ML) of MD-treated plants. Compared with salicylic acid (SA) or the ethylene (ET) pathway, jasmonic acid (JA) content and JA-related genes were more strongly upregulated. Interestingly, we found a dramatic difference between JA-related upstream and downstream genes expression in YL and ML, which confirmed that JA-Ile accumulation in MD-ML and HW-ML could be derived from local damaged site.</p></sec><sec><title>Discussion</title><p>Taken together, we provide evidence that the JA pathway plays a dominant role in the <italic>A. sinensis</italic> response to MD and HW.</p></sec>