Water Deficit Does Not Compromise the Resistance to Insect Herbivores in Plants Associated With Fungal Endophytes Able to Produce Bioactive Alkaloids.

Drought increased aphid susceptibility in nil and ΔidtM-associated Lolium perenne, but did not affect aphid resistance in wt-associated plants, and increased resistance in ΔidtD-associated plants.

• Why it matters: Sequential drought and herbivore attack can reduce plant defense, but it is unclear whether alkaloid-producing fungal endophytes can preserve or reshape resistance under water deficit.
• What they did: Lolium perenne with nil or Epichloë LpTG-3 sp. strain AR37 (wt, ΔidtA, ΔidtM, ΔidtD) were drought-treated, then challenged with Rhopalosiphum padi aphids at drought recovery.
• The result: In ΔidtD-associated plants, drought-mediated increases in some AR37-derived alkaloids coincided with higher aphid resistance, and drought negative effects were alleviated by AR37 via growth promotion, increased abscisic acid and proline, and enriched Agrococcus, Chryseobacterium, and Parcubacteria.

AI summary of the abstract · may contain errors · not medical advice · read the paper.