Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2008 Feb;34(2):121-31.
doi: 10.1007/s10886-007-9424-9. Epub 2008 Jan 23.

Barbarea vulgaris glucosinolate phenotypes differentially affect performance and preference of two different species of lepidopteran herbivores

Hanneke van Leur  1 , Louise E M Vet, Wim H van der Putten, Nicole M van Dam
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Barbarea vulgaris glucosinolate phenotypes differentially affect performance and preference of two different species of lepidopteran herbivores

Hanneke van Leur et al. J Chem Ecol. 2008 Feb.

Abstract

The composition of secondary metabolites and the nutritional value of a plant both determine herbivore preference and performance. The genetically determined glucosinolate pattern of Barbarea vulgaris can be dominated by either glucobarbarin (BAR-type) or by gluconasturtiin (NAS-type). Because of the structural differences, these glucosinolates may have different effects on herbivores. We compared the two Barbarea chemotypes with regards to the preference and performance of two lepidopteran herbivores, using Mamestra brassicae as a generalist and Pieris rapae as a specialist. The generalist and specialist herbivores did not prefer either chemotype for oviposition. However, larvae of the generalist M. brassicae preferred to feed and performed best on NAS-type plants. On NAS-type plants, 100% of the M. brassicae larvae survived while growing exponentially, whereas on BAR-type plants, M. brassicae larvae showed little growth and a mortality of 37.5%. In contrast to M. brassicae, the larval preference and performance of the specialist P. rapae was unaffected by plant chemotype. Total levels of glucosinolates, water soluble sugars, and amino acids of B. vulgaris could not explain the poor preference and performance of M. brassicae on BAR-type plants. Our results suggest that difference in glucosinolate chemical structure is responsible for the differential effects of the B. vulgaris chemotypes on the generalist herbivore.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Consumption of BAR-type (grey bars) and NAS-type (white bars) leaf discs by 5-day-old larvae of Mamestra brasscicae and Pieris rapae (feeding category averaged per Petri dish ± SE)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Biomass accumulation of aMamestra brassicae and bPieris rapae larvae during 8 days of feeding BAR-type (grey bars) and NAS-type (white bars) Barbarea vulgaris plants ± SE
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Leaf characteristics after 4 days of larval feeding of Mamestra brassicae (left graphs) or Pieris rapae (right graphs) on Barbarea vulgaris ± SEM: a and b consumed leaf area (cm2), c and d total glucosinolate content, e and f total sugar content, g and h total amino acid content. Results are depicted per chemotype (grey bars BAR-type plants; white bars NAS-type plants) and per half-sib family (no hatching EL13, hatching EL44)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Correlation of total glucosinolate content and the larval biomass after 4 days feeding of Mamestra brassicae experiment on NAS-type (white dots), BAR-type (black dots), and dead larvae of on BAR-type (black crosses) Barbarea vulgaris plants with their correlations per chemotype (black line) and their 95% confidence intervals (dotted lines)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1023/A:1024217504445', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1024217504445'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '12918925', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12918925/'}]}
    2. Agerbirk, N., Olsen, C. E., Bibby, B. M., Frandsen, H. O., Brown, L. D., Nielsen, J. K., and enwick, J. A. A. 2003a. A saponin correlated with variable resistance of Barbarea vulgaris to the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella. J. Chem. Ecol. 29:1417–1433. - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1016/S0031-9422(02)00750-1', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1016/s0031-9422(02)00750-1'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '12657300', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12657300/'}]}
    2. Agerbirk, N., Orgaard, M., and Nielsen, J. K. 2003b. Glucosinolates, flea beetle resistance, and leaf pubescence as taxonomic characters in the genus Barbarea (Brassicaceae). Phytochemistry 63:69–80. - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1021/jf001256r', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1021/jf001256r'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '11312886', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11312886/'}]}
    2. Agerbirk, N., Petersen, B. L., Olsen, C. E., Halkier, B. A., and Nielsen, J. K. 2001. 1,4-Dimethoxyglucobrassicin in Barbarea and 4-hydroxyglucobrassicin in Arabidopsis and Brassica. J. Agric. Food Chem. 49:1502–1507. - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1111/j.2006.0030-1299.15025.x', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2006.0030-1299.15025.x'}]}
    2. Agosta, S. J. 2006. On ecological fitting, plant-insect associations, herbivore host shifts, and host plant selection. Oikos 114:556–565.
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1023/A:1020821823794', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1020821823794'}]}
    2. Agrawal, A. A., Gorski, P. M., and Tallamy, D. W. 1999. Polymorphism in plant defense against herbivory: Constitutive and induced resistance in Cucumis sativus. J. Chem. Ecol. 25:2285–2304.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources