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Drugs for Bugs: The Potential of Infochemicals Mediating Insect–Plant–Microbe Interactions for Plant Protection and Medicine

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Phytochemicals, Plant Growth, and the Environment

Part of the book series: Recent Advances in Phytochemistry ((RAPT,volume 42))

Abstract

The results obtained by the analysis of functions and structures of plant, insect, and microbe metabolites in interactions among each other and with their environment in natural settings hold a strong potential for developing new applications in plant protection or even human medicine. By identification and synthesis of chemical compounds responsible, e.g., for the regulation of migration between insects’ different host plants, we can gain access to important natural sources for the development of effective strategies using attractive and/or repellent molecules for biotechnical control of plant pests in the context of sustainable agricultural production. In addition, newly detected insect-born infochemicals, which have antifungal or antibacterial activity, bear a potential for the development of new active ingredients for medical purpose.

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Acknowledgments

The author greatly appreciates his technical staff at the Julius Kühn-Institut who contributed to the work reviewed: Elke Breitinger, Sandra Förmer, Felix Hergenhahn, Svenja Hoferer, Jürgen Just, Vanessa Lessle, Kai Lukat, Negash Mekonen, Rouven Nietsch, Tobias Schneider, and Sabine Wetzel. Thanks especially go to the author’s wife Eva Gross for linguistic improvements. Parts of the presented studies were funded by the german Research Foundation (DFG) (GR 2645/1-1, 2). The author is very grateful to the stifterverband für die deutsche wissenschaft for additional funding (innovative research award). The author also thanks the editors of Recent Advances in Phytochemistry for the invitation to write this chapter.

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  1. Julius Kühn-Institut, Federal Research Center for Cultivated Plants, Institute for Plant Protection in Fruit Crops and Viticulture, Schwabenheimer Str. 101, 69221, Dossenheim, Germany

    Jürgen Gross

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  1. Jürgen Gross
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Correspondence to Jürgen Gross .

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    David R Gang

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Gross, J. (2013). Drugs for Bugs: The Potential of Infochemicals Mediating Insect–Plant–Microbe Interactions for Plant Protection and Medicine. In: Gang, D. (eds) Phytochemicals, Plant Growth, and the Environment. Recent Advances in Phytochemistry, vol 42. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4066-6_5

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