Herbivores in Disguise--the Wolf In Sheep's Clothing

植物面临着潜在入侵者的猛攻。为了建立成功的防御，植物特别识别威胁（微生物对食草动物）并建立适当的防御。作为有效的对策，食草动物可以解毒植物的化学防御，甚至避开这些植物。核心假设是，作为一种反制策略，一些食草动物以“伪装”的形式出现，从而避免被植物发现。研究人员将研究食草动物，它们通过将肠道细菌释放到植物的口腔分泌物中来利用肠道细菌，从而被“错误地”识别为微生物。因此，植物开启了错误的防御机制，对这些入侵者基本上是无效的。这一假设将通过生物化学和分子方法进行验证，以确定负责抑制植物防御的特定口腔细菌。实验系统将包括食叶甲虫和毛毛虫，以及几种作物（玉米、大豆、番茄）和野生植物（野生茄、杨树和拟南芥）。草食动物口腔分泌物的细菌群落将被膳食抗生素改变，然后测试其抑制植物防御的活性。负责抑制的特定细菌将被识别并在分子水平上充分表征。因此，这项研究工作在扩大对食草动物如何利用寄主植物的理解方面具有变革性。由于研究系统涉及主要农作物/有害生物，从这些研究中获得的知识可能对通报可持续的有害生物管理产生深远的影响。害虫肠道菌群的作用在很大程度上被忽视了，但可以为害虫管理提供新的目标。pi将把这项研究纳入本科课程，互动教育模块将在K-12学生的各种推广机会中展示。调查人员还将在之前的推广/教育项目的基础上，针对服务不足的受众，包括患有自闭症谱系障碍的儿童和非裔美国人。

Plants face an onslaught of potential invaders. In order to mount successful defenses, plants specifically recognize the threat (microbe vs. herbivore) and mount the proper defense. As effective counterploys, herbivores may detoxify the chemical defenses of plants or even avoid these plants. The central hypothesis is that as a counterploy, some herbivores present themselves in "disguise" and thus avoid detection by plants. The investigators will study herbivores that exploit their gut bacteria by releasing them in their oral secretions on plants, and thus be "mistakenly" recognized as microbes. Consequently, plants turn on the incorrect defenses that are largely ineffective against these intruders. The hypothesis will be tested using biochemical and molecular approaches to identify specific oral bacteria responsible for suppressing plant defenses. The experimental system will include leaf-feeding beetles and caterpillars and several crop species (corn, soybeans, tomato) and wild plant species (wild Solanum, poplar, and Arabidopsis). The bacterial community of the oral secretions of the herbivores will be altered by dietary antibiotics and then tested for activity in suppressing plant defenses. Specific bacteria responsible for suppression will be identified and fully characterized at the molecular level. Thus the research work is transformative in expanding the understanding of how herbivores exploit their host plants. Because the study system involves key agricultural crops/pests, the knowledge gained from these studies may have far-reaching impact on informing sustainable pest management. The role of the gut microflora of pest insects has largely been ignored, but could offer new targets that for pest management. The PIs will incorporate this research in an undergraduate course and interactive educational modules will be presented at various outreach opportunities for K-12 students. The investigators will also build upon previous outreach/educational programs to underserved audiences including children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and African-Americans.