Lin Tiantian, Han Xiaotao, Zhu Guoqing, He Wanci, Chen Lianghua, Li Jing, Wang Yan, Li Tao
State Key Laboratory for Vegetation Structure, Functions and Construction, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Transboundary Ecosecurity of Southwest China, and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Plant Reproductive Adaptation and Evolutionary Ecology, Institute of Biodiversity, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China; Key Laboratory of National Forestry & Grassland Administration on Forest Resources Conservation and Ecological Safety in the Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River, College of Forestry, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China.
State Key Laboratory for Vegetation Structure, Functions and Construction, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Transboundary Ecosecurity of Southwest China, and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Plant Reproductive Adaptation and Evolutionary Ecology, Institute of Biodiversity, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China.
J Hazard Mater. 2025 Aug 15;494:138687. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2025.138687. Epub 2025 May 22.
Environmental stress can disrupt multi-trophic interactions between plants and associated insects through modifying plant volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. Dioecious plant species exhibit sexual dimorphism in metal accumulation and tolerance between males and females under heavy metal stress. However, whether these differences lead to sex-specific variations in VOC emissions and herbivore resistance across multi-trophic levels remains unclear. In this study, we used full-sibs of female and male poplars to investigate how soil cadmium (Cd) stress and plant sex influence emissions of constitutive plant volatiles (CPVs) and herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) as well as associated multi-trophic interactions. We showed that Cd exposure qualitatively and quatitatively affected CPV and HIPV emissions in both sexes, particularly in males, which emitted less CPVs but more HIPVs than females under Cd stress. Insect bioassays demonstrated that Cd-exposed males were more effective at deterring generalist and specialist herbivores, while becoming more attractive to parasitic wasps than Cd-exposed females. We identified 3-methylbutyronitrile as the key compound driving enhanced repellency against herbivorous insects, while methyl salicylate was primarily responsible for increased attractiveness to parasitic wasps. These results suggest that male plants may be better suited for phytoremediation in metal-contaminated areas amid escalating global pollution and herbivory pressure.
环境胁迫可通过改变植物挥发性有机化合物（VOC）的排放来破坏植物与相关昆虫之间的多营养级相互作用。在重金属胁迫下，雌雄异株植物物种在金属积累和雌雄之间的耐受性方面表现出性别二态性。然而，这些差异是否会导致跨多营养级的VOC排放和食草动物抗性的性别特异性变化仍不清楚。在本研究中，我们使用雌雄杨树的全同胞来研究土壤镉（Cd）胁迫和植物性别如何影响组成型植物挥发物（CPV）和食草动物诱导的植物挥发物（HIPV）的排放以及相关的多营养级相互作用。我们发现，镉暴露在质量和数量上都会影响两性的CPV和HIPV排放，尤其是雄性，在镉胁迫下，雄性排放的CPV比雌性少，但HIPV比雌性多。昆虫生物测定表明，暴露于镉的雄性在威慑广食性和专食性食草动物方面更有效，同时比暴露于镉的雌性对寄生蜂更有吸引力。我们确定3-甲基丁腈是增强对食草昆虫驱避作用的关键化合物，而水杨酸甲酯则主要负责增加对寄生蜂的吸引力。这些结果表明，在全球污染和食草压力不断升级的情况下，雄性植物可能更适合在金属污染地区进行植物修复。
