Plant Defenses Against Tetranychus urticae: Mind the Gaps

Abstract

The molecular interactions between a pest and its host plant are the consequence of an evolutionary arms race based on the perception of the phytophagous arthropod by the plant and the different strategies adopted by the pest to overcome plant triggered defenses. The complexity and the different levels of these interactions make it difficult to get a wide knowledge of the whole process. Extensive research in model species is an accurate way to progressively move forward in this direction. The two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch has become a model species for phytophagous mites due to the development of a great number of genetic tools and a high-quality genome sequence. This review is an update of the current state of the art in the molecular interactions between the generalist pest T. urticae and its host plants. The knowledge of the physical and chemical constitutive defenses of the plant and the mechanisms involved in the induction of plant defenses are summarized. The molecular events produced from plant perception to the synthesis of defense compounds are detailed, with a special focus on the key steps that are little or totally uncovered by previous research.

Classification of Plant Electrophysiology Signals for Detection of Spider Mites Infestation in Tomatoes

“…Each year, approximately one-fourth of the agricultural production is damaged by herbivorous arthropods, such as spider mites [1,2]. Spider mites represent the most important family of mites with the ability to feed on many host plants [3,4], but they are very hard to detect before severe contamination occurs. Early and automated detection of spider mites attacks would prevent crop losses and result in more effective crop protection.…”

Comparative transcriptomics reveals hidden issues in the plant response to arthropod herbivores

“…The interaction between the two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae and the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana has become a good system to adequately explore the response of the plant to a herbivore attack (Santamaria et al, 2020). Thus, starting from a comprehensive analysis of the transcriptomic Arabidopsis response to the spider mite, this work is focused on the capacity of comparative transcriptomics to discover additional key points in this response.…”

Nitric Oxide, an Essential Intermediate in the Plant–Herbivore Interaction

“…The known antagonistic relation between SA and JA allows a fine-tune regulation of the defense process ( Erb et al, 2012 ; Schmiesing et al, 2016 ). Generally, JA-depending pathway is activated by chewing insects, whereas SA regulates responses induced by sucking-feeders ( Bari and Jones, 2009 ; Pieterse et al, 2012 ), and a balance between JA/SA modulates defenses against sucking mites ( Wei et al, 2014 ; Zhurov et al, 2014 ; Santamaria et al, 2020a ).…”