Abstract
Plant–plant interactions via volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have received much attention, but how abiotic stresses affect these interactions is poorly understood. We tested the effect of VOCs exposure from damaged conspecifics on the production of extra-floral nectar (EFN) in wild cotton plants (Gossypium hirsutum), a coastal species in northern Yucatan (Mexico), and whether soil salinization affected these responses. We placed plants in mesh cages, and within each cage assigned plants as emitters or receivers. We exposed emitters to either ambient or augmented soil salinity to simulate a salinity shock, and within each group subjected half of the emitters to no damage or artificial leaf damage with caterpillar regurgitant. Damage increased the emission of sesquiterpenes and aromatic compounds under ambient but not under augmented salinity. Correspondingly, exposure to VOCs from damaged emitters had effect on receiver EFN induction, but this effect was contingent on salinization. Receivers produced more EFN in response to damage after being exposed to VOCs from damaged emitters when the latter were grown under ambient salinity, but not when they were subjected to salinization. These results suggest complex effects of abiotic factors on VOC-mediated plant interactions.
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The datasets used and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon request.
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Acknowledgements
We thank A. Virgen for providing S. frugiperda larvae, and P. Sosenski for the use of pumps for VOCs collections. This study was supported by a project awarded to TCJT by the Swiss National Science Foundation (315230_185319). The authors also thank the Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán for providing greenhouse infrastructure and logistic support. The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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This research was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (315230_185319).
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TT. obtained the funding. YBM. and LAR. conceived the study and designed the experiment. YBM, TQM., and BPN. performed the experiment. CBS. performed the chemical analyses. LAR, CBS, and YBM. performed the statistical analyses and LAR. and YBM. wrote the first version of the manuscript. CBS, TT, BPN, and BB. contributed to the revision of the manuscript and the interpretation of the results.
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Briones-May, Y., Quijano-Medina, T., Pérez-Niño, B. et al. Soil salinization disrupts plant–plant signaling effects on extra-floral nectar induction in wild cotton. Oecologia 202, 313–323 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-023-05395-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-023-05395-w