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Plant Defenses Against Herbivores

Plants defend against herbivores with mechanical wounding, barriers, secondary metabolites, and attraction of parasitoids.

Learning Objectives

Identify plant defense responses to herbivores

Key Takeaways

Key Points

Many plants have impenetrable barriers, such as bark and waxy cuticles, or adaptations, such as thorns and spines, to protect them from herbivores.

If herbivores breach a plant's barriers, the plant can respond with secondary metabolites, which are often toxic compounds, such as glycol cyanide, that may harm the herbivore.

When attacked by a predator, damaged plant tissue releases jasmonate hormones that promote the release of volatile compounds, attracting parasitoids, which use, and eventually kill, the predators as host insects.

Defense Responses Against Herbivores

Herbivores, both large and small, use plants as food and actively chew them. Plants have developed a variety of strategies to discourage or kill attackers.

Mechanical Defenses

The first line of defense in plants is an intact and impenetrable barrier composed of bark and a waxy cuticle. Both protect plants against herbivores. Other adaptations against herbivores include hard shells, thorns (modified branches), and spines (modified leaves). They discourage animals by causing physical damage or by inducing rashes and allergic reactions. Some Acacia tree species have developed mutualistic relationships with ant colonies: they offer the ants shelter in their hollow thorns in exchange for the ants' defense of the tree's leaves.

Chemical Defenses

A plant's exterior protection can be compromised by mechanical damage, which may provide an entry point for pathogens. If the first line of defense is breached, the plant must resort to a different set of defense mechanisms, such as toxins and enzymes. Secondary metabolites are compounds that are not directly derived from photosynthesis and are not necessary for respiration or plant growth and development.

Many metabolites are toxic and can even be lethal to animals that ingest them. Some metabolites are alkaloids, which discourage predators with noxious odors (such as the volatile oils of mint and sage) or repellent tastes (like the bitterness of quinine). Other alkaloids affect herbivores by causing either excessive stimulation (caffeine is one example) or the lethargy associated with opioids. Some compounds become toxic after ingestion; for instance, glycol cyanide in the cassava root releases cyanide only upon ingestion by the herbivore. Foxgloves produce several deadly chemicals, namely cardiac and steroidal glycosides. Ingestion can cause nausea, vomiting, hallucinations, convulsions, or death.

Timing

Mechanical wounding and predator attacks activate defense and protective mechanisms in the damaged tissue and elicit long-distancing signaling or activation of defense and protective mechanisms at sites farther from the injury location. Some defense reactions occur within minutes, while others may take several hours. In addition, long-distance signaling elicits a systemic response aimed at deterring predators. As tissue is damaged, jasmonates may promote the synthesis of compounds that are toxic to predators. Jasmonates also elicit the synthesis of volatile compounds that attract parasitoids: insects that spend their developing stages in or on another insect, eventually killing their host. The plant may activate abscission of injured tissue if it is damaged beyond repair.

Plant Defenses Against Pathogens

Plants defend against pathogens with barriers, secondary metabolites, and antimicrobial compounds.

Learning Objectives

Identify plant defense responses to pathogens

Key Takeaways

Key Points

Many plants have impenetrable barriers, such as bark and waxy cuticles, or adaptations, such as thorns and spines, to protect them from pathogens.

If pathogens breach a plant's barriers, the plant can respond with secondary metabolites, which are often toxic compounds, such as glycol cyanide, that may harm the pathogen.

Plants produce antimicrobial chemicals, antimicrobial proteins, and antimicrobial enzymes that are able to fight the pathogens.

Defense Responses Against Pathogens

Pathogens are agents of disease. These infectious microorganisms, such as fungi, bacteria, and nematodes, live off of the plant and damage its tissues. Plants have developed a variety of strategies to discourage or kill attackers.

The first line of defense in plants is an intact and impenetrable barrier composed of bark and a waxy cuticle. Both protect plants against pathogens.

A plant's exterior protection can be compromised by mechanical damage, which may provide an entry point for pathogens. If the first line of defense is breached, the plant must resort to a different set of defense mechanisms, such as toxins and enzymes. Secondary metabolites are compounds that are not directly derived from photosynthesis and are not necessary for respiration or plant growth and development. Many metabolites are toxic and can even be lethal to animals that ingest them.

Additionally, plants have a variety of inducible defenses in the presence of pathogens. In addition to secondary metabolites, plants produce antimicrobial chemicals, antimicrobial proteins, and antimicrobial enzymes that are able to fight the pathogens. Plants can close stomata to prevent the pathogen from entering the plant. A hypersensitive response, in which the plant experiences rapid cell death to fight off the infection, can be initiated by the plant; or it may use endophyte assistance: the roots release chemicals that attract other beneficial bacteria to fight the infection.

Mechanical wounding and predator attacks activate defense and protective mechanisms in the damaged tissue and elicit long-distancing signaling or activation of defense and protective mechanisms at sites farther from the injury location. Some defense reactions occur within minutes, while others may take several hours.

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Plants defend against herbivores with mechanical wounding, barriers, secondary metabolites, and attraction of parasitoids. Identify plant defense responses to herbivores Key Points Many plants have impenetrable barriers, such as bark and waxy cuticles, or adaptations, such as thorns and spines, to protect them from herbivores.

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OCR AS Biology Notes: Biodiversity, Evolution and Disease - Communicable Diseases, Disease Prevention & The Immune System

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Concise and high quality OCR AS Biology notes for Biodiversity, Evolution And Disease: Communicable Diseases, Disease Prevention & The Immune System

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Plant Defences Against Pathogens (Active / Passive)

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Passive Defences - present before infection, used to prevent entry and spread of pathogens, include both physical barriers and chemicalsActive Defences - the fortifications of defences when pathogens are detected, includes both physical barriers and chemicalsKey:[P] - Physical defence[C] - Chemical defence[P/C] - Both

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Plant Defences Against Pathogens | A-level Biology | OCR, AQA, Edexcel