Thrips Resistance In TomatO Plants (ERA-PG 042)

尽管人们普遍认为，一个成功的应用基因组学项目需要结合分子、遗传、代谢和生态方法，但我们的计划是第一批整合这一范围的专业知识的项目之一。我们打算研究一种酚类化合物，绿原酸(CGA)，它在植物中起到抗氧化剂的作用，预计可以预防退行性的、与年龄相关的疾病。虽然大多数关于CGA的研究都集中在人类健康方面，但我们的计划将研究CGA在植物抵抗草食性昆虫方面的重要性。具体地说，我们想要：1)通过提高天然CGA水平来培育番茄抗西花蓟马的品系，2)探索番茄CGA水平的自然变异，3)鉴定CGA产生水平背后的遗传，4)了解CGA生物合成与其他初级和次生代谢产物途径的关系，5)增加我们对CGA在抗蓟马中作用的了解，特别是确定CGA与其他(酚类)化合物可能的协同作用，并确定其他各种肉桂酸酯对蓟马的防治活性。过度使用杀虫剂已导致WFT对各种杀虫剂产生抗药性，并导致商品作物上的残留问题。因此，寄主植物对蓟马的抗性将对经济、环境和健康效益做出重要贡献。

Despite the general belief that a successful applied genomics project requires a combination of molecular, genetic, metabolomic and ecological approaches our programme is one of the first to integrate this range of expertise. We intend to study a phenolic compound, chlorogenic acid (CGA), which acts as an antioxidant in plants and is expected to protect against degenerative, age related diseases. While most studies on CGA have focussed on human health aspects, our programme will study the importance of CGA for plant resistance against herbivorous insects. Specifically we want: 1) to develop tomato lines resistant to western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) by increasing natural CGA levels, 2) to explore the natural variation in CGA levels in tomatoes, 3) to identify the genetics behind CGA production levels, 4) to understand the relationship of CGA biosynthesis to other primary and secondary metabolite pathways, 5) to increase our understanding of the role of CGA in thrips resistance, in particular to identify possible synergy of CGA with other (phenolic) compounds and to determine the activity of various other cinnamic acid esters against thrips. The excessive use of pesticides has led to resistance of WFT to various insecticides and to residue problems on marketable crops. Host-plant resistance to thrips will, therefore, be an important contribution towards economic, environmental and health benefits.