Susceptibility of Eucalyptus trees to defoliation by the Eucalyptus snout beetle, Gonipterus sp. n. 2, is enhanced by high foliar contents of 1,8-cineole, oxalic acid and sucrose and low contents of palmitic and shikimic acid

Show simple item record

dc.contributor.author Joubert, Johannes Christoff
dc.contributor.author Sivparsad, Benice
dc.contributor.author Schroder, Michelle L.
dc.contributor.author Germishuizen, Ilaria
dc.contributor.author Chen, Jingyuan
dc.contributor.author Hurley, Brett Phillip
dc.contributor.author Allison, Jeremy D.
dc.contributor.author Hammerbacher, Almuth
dc.date.accessioned 2024-09-13T12:31:02Z
dc.date.available 2024-09-13T12:31:02Z
dc.date.issued 2023-11
dc.description DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT : The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. en_US
dc.description.abstract Gonipterus sp. n. 2 (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) is an invasive, commercially important weevil that causes large‐scale defoliation of Eucalyptus trees. The weevil specifically feeds on young leaves and new shoots, thus reducing tree growth. The weevil displays a very strong preference for certain Eucalyptus genotypes, however, this behaviour and the chemistry underlying it is poorly understood, thereby complicating the selection of resistant trees. To elucidate the feeding preference of Gonipterus sp. n. 2, we assessed the relative levels of susceptibility of 62 Eucalyptus genotypes from 23 species using a laboratory choice assay. This revealed large intraspecific variation in susceptibility to weevil feeding, which for certain species, exceeded the interspecific variation. A semiquantitative metabolite profile analysis on 13 genotypes revealed strong correlations of 10 metabolites to feeding damage. The behavioural effects of the identified compounds were assessed through an in vitro feeding preference assay using artificial diets as well as under field conditions. This revealed three phagostimulants (1,8‐cineole, oxalic acid and sucrose) and two feeding deterrent compounds (shikimic acid and palmitic acid) for Gonipterus sp. n. 2. These chemical markers can be applied to tree breeding programmes for the selection of resistant genotypes to reduce damage caused by Gonipterus weevils. en_US
dc.description.department Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI) en_US
dc.description.department Zoology and Entomology en_US
dc.description.librarian am2024 en_US
dc.description.sdg SDG-15:Life on land en_US
dc.description.sponsorship National research foundation South Africa; Forestry South Africa; Tree Protection Co‐operative Program; DST‐NRF Center of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology; University of Pretoria. en_US
dc.description.uri http://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/pce en_US
dc.identifier.citation Joubert, J., Sivparsad, B., Schröder, M., Germishuizen, I., Chen, J., Hurley, B. et al. (2023) Susceptibility of Eucalyptus trees to defoliation by the Eucalyptus snout beetle, Gonipterus sp. n. 2, is enhanced by high foliar contents of 1,8‐ cineole, oxalic acid and sucrose and low contents of palmitic and shikimic acid. Plant, Cell & Environment, 46, 3481–3500. https://DOI.org/10.1111/pce.14696. en_US
dc.identifier.issn 0140-7791 (print)
dc.identifier.issn 1365-3040 (online)
dc.identifier.other 10.1111/pce.14696
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/2263/98202
dc.language.iso en en_US
dc.publisher Wiley en_US
dc.rights © 2022 University of Pretoria and The Authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. en_US
dc.subject Bioassay‐guided compound identification en_US
dc.subject Insect feeding inhibitor en_US
dc.subject Insect feeding preference en_US
dc.subject Phagostimulant en_US
dc.subject Plant–insect interactions en_US
dc.subject SDG-15: Life on land en_US
dc.title Susceptibility of Eucalyptus trees to defoliation by the Eucalyptus snout beetle, Gonipterus sp. n. 2, is enhanced by high foliar contents of 1,8-cineole, oxalic acid and sucrose and low contents of palmitic and shikimic acid en_US
dc.type Article en_US


Files in this item

This item appears in the following Collection(s)

Show simple item record