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Attraction behaviors of entomopathogenic nematodes (Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae) to synthetic volatiles emitted by insect-damaged carrot roots

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Abstract

Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) play a role in indirect defenses of plants under attack by root herbivores. We have tested the chemotactic responses of 4 EPN species (Steinernema feltiae, S. carpocapsae, S. kraussei, and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora) to 5 compounds ([1] α-Pinene, [2] Terpinolene, [3] Bornyl acetate, [4] 2-Ethyl-hexanol, and [5] 2, 4-Di-tert-butylphenol) released by damaged (3, 4, 5) and undamaged (1, 2) carrot roots. We hypothesized that the EPN directional responses to the tested volatile compounds (VOCs) could be related to foraging strategy and would vary among species, VOC, and VOC concentrations. Our results indicate that all of the tested EPN species exhibited a weak attraction or repulsion to volatiles, irrespective of their foraging strategy. Terpinolene was a repellent for EPN species classified in all three foraging groups. However, such values of chemotaxis index (CI) were reported with EPN species only when pure concentration of VOC was used. Based on our current results, we conclude that responses to distinct volatile cues are a species-specific characteristic. Our results suggest that EPNs are able to distinguish herbivore-induced chemicals from chemicals that are typical for healthy roots.

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Acknowledgments

This work was conducted within Horticulture No P4-0013-0481, a program funded by the Slovenian Research Agency. Part of this research was funded within Professional Tasks from the Field of Plant Protection, a program funded by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Food of Phytosanitary Administration of the Republic Slovenia. Special thanks are given to Anamarija Jagodič and Anita Klobučar for their technical assistance. We would like to thank Gareth Martin (Becker Underwood) for providing the commercial EPN strains.

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  1. Department of Agronomy, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Žiga Laznik & Stanislav Trdan

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  1. Žiga Laznik
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  2. Stanislav Trdan
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Correspondence to Žiga Laznik.

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Communicated by M. Traugott.

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Laznik, Ž., Trdan, S. Attraction behaviors of entomopathogenic nematodes (Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae) to synthetic volatiles emitted by insect-damaged carrot roots. J Pest Sci 89, 977–984 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-015-0720-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-015-0720-9

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