The abstract is read at the publisher; the summary is JClub's.
Soil lead contamination at 180 mg kg−1 in kale (Brassica oleracea) shifts volatile emissions and herbivore host choice, with guild-dependent changes in amino acids and jasmonate/salicylic acid pathways.
- Why it matters: Lead pollution can accumulate in plants and disrupt trophic interactions, but its effects on both volatile and non-volatile plant chemistry and on herbivores from different feeding guilds remain poorly resolved.
- What they did: Plants were grown in Pb-contaminated soil (180 mg kg−1) versus controls, then tested with the leaf-chewing Ascia monuste orseis and the phloem-feeding Myzus persicae, measuring survival, fecundity, host selection, targeted metabolites, and VOC emissions.
- The result: Pb reduced aphid survival and fecundity in the first generation and decreased preference for contaminated plants; it left caterpillar performance unaffected despite adult Pb accumulation, altered VOCs by lowering β-myrcene and raising limonene, and produced guild-specific hormonal and amino-acid responses.
The findingWhy it mattersWhat they didThe result
AI summary of the abstract · may contain errors · not medical advice · read the paper.