Microbes Help Beetles Defeat Plant Defenses

Sunday, October, 20, 2013

Microbes Help Beetles Defeat Plant Defenses

Summary: Symbiotic bacteria that live inside the Colorado potato beetles can make a plant believe that it is being attacked by microbes instead of an animal. The beetles that have this bacteria were more healthy and grew at a better rate then the other beetles that didn't have the bacteria. The beetles regurgitated the bacteria onto the leaves to begin eating and digesting the leaves. When the leaves are being eaten by herbivores or insects, the leaves releases protease inhibitors and polyphenol oxidase which in turn suppresses the insects growth and digestion. But with the gut bacteria, the Colorado potato beetles could chew and digest the plant more normally then other beetles without the symbiotic bacteria.

Relevance: This article relates to our class studies on how species interact with each other with symbiotic relationships. This connects to chapter 35 where we learned about the three symbiotic relationships with different species. We learned about parasitism where an organism obtains food at the risk of a different organism. Their was also commensalism, which was where one organism benefits while the other organism isn't affected. Lastly is mutualism, where both organisms benefit from each other. The symbiotic bacteria in the Colorado potato beetle could possibly be mutualism because the beetle gets to eat and digest normally while the bacteria has somewhere to live and can multiply.

Author: A'ndrea Elyse Messer
Published: September 9, 2013
Link: http://news.psu.edu/story/286884/2013/09/09/research/microbes-help-beetles-defeat-plant-defenses
By: Simin Li