Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2006
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Authors
Jenny Fäldt Halvor Solheim Bo Långström Anna-Karin Borg-KarlsonAbstract
To identify chemical resistant markers induced by fungal or mechanical injury, young trees of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) were subjected to inoculations of blue stain fungi associated with the pine shoot beetles Tomicus piniperda and T. minor. Among the 20 trees selected for chemical analyses, 16 were divided into four groups: one as control and three were pretreated by wounding only, or by inoculation with either the blue stain fungus Leptographium wingfieldii or Ophiostoma canum.Four wk after pretreatment, all 16 pretreated trees were mass-inoculated with L. wingfieldii. The absolute and relative amounts, as well as the enantiomeric compositions of monoterpene hydrocarbons in the phloem, were determined via a small sample of the phloem before and after the pretreatment and mass inoculation, by using two-dimensional gas chromatography (2D GC) and GC-mass spectrometry (MS).After mass inoculation, the absolute amounts of most of the monoterpenes decreased in the phloem sampled 20 cm from the fungal infection, and were higher in the phloem sampled within the infected reaction zone.The relative amounts of both ()--pinene and ()-limonene increased in phloem samples taken 20 cm above the fungal inoculation in the preinoculated trees compared with phloem sampled from the remaining four control trees. The enantiomeric compositions of -pinene and limonene changed, after fungal growth, at defined distances from the inoculation site: the proportion of the ()-enantiomers was highest in the phloem sampled 20 cm from the fungal inoculation.Four wk after pretreatment, monoterpene production in the phloem at the site of inoculation was more enhanced by L. wingfieldii than by O. canum. However, the different virulence levels of the fungi did not affect the enantiomeric composition of the monoterpenes. The biosynthesis of monoterpene enantiomers is discussed in relation to induced pathogen resistance.
Authors
Jolanda Roux Halvor Solheim Gilbert Kamgan Nkuekam Michael J. WingfieldAbstract
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Authors
Paal KrokeneAbstract
Bark beetles and associated phytopathogenic fungi elicit defence responses in conifers that may interfere with beetle establishment and development. Norway spruce is serving as a useful model species for studies of induced defences elicited by beetle attacks, fungal inoculation, and treatment with chemical elicitors.When trees are pretreated with a sublethal dose of fungal inoculations or with the phytohormone methyl jasmonate they become much more resistant to subsequent bark beetle attacks or artificial mass inoculations with fungi. This induced disease resistance follows dose-response dynamics, is nonspecific with respect to the pretreatment organism, appears to be nonsystemic, takes weeks rather than days to become activated, and can also be activated by mechanical wounding alone.Application of methyl jasmonate to Norway spruce stems induces a massive increase in terpene levels and external resin flow on the stem, whereas no increase is observed in soluble phenolics. Methyl jasmonate-application also leads to significantly less bark beetle colonization, with shorter parental galleries and fewer eggs laid in treated bark. There were also reductions in the number of beetles produced and the mean dry weight per beetle in methyl jasmonate-treated bark. Furthermore, fewer beetles were attracted to conspecifics tunneling in MJ-treated bark.The exact mechanisms responsible for induced resistance in Norway spruce and other conifers have not been determined, but inducible anatomical defense responses such as changes in polyphenol-containing parenchyma cells (PP cells) in the phloem and induction of traumatic resin duct formation in the sapwood seem to play an important role.
Abstract
Detailed analyses of thresholded ecological interactions can improve our understanding of the transition from aperiodic to periodic dynamics. We develop a threshold model of the population dynamics of outbreaking bark beetle populations that alternate between non-epidemic and epidemic behavior. The model involves accumulation of resources during low-density periods and depletion during outbreaks. The transition between the two regimes is caused by disturbance events in the form of major tree felling by wind. The model is analyzed with particular reference to the population dynamics of the spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus) in Scandinavia for which a comprehensive literature allows full parameterization. The fairly constant outbreak lengths and the highly variable waiting time between outbreaks that are seen in the historical records of this species agree well with the predictions of the model. The thresholded resource-depletion dynamics result in substantial variation in the degree of periodicity between stochastic realizations. The completely aperiodic tree colonizations are partly predictable when the timing of the irregular windfall events are known. However, the predictability of inter-outbreak periods is low due to the large variation of cases falling most frequently in the middle between the extremes of purely nonperiodic (erratic) and periodic (cyclic) fluctuations.
Abstract
Conidia germination of the root pathogen fungi Fusarium sp. and Cylindrocarpon sp. were followed for up to 96 hours in the presence of border cells from newly germinated Norway spruce. The border cells stimulated the conidium germination of both fungi. We postulate that this may be a part of the defence mechanism of Norway spruce against pathogens. The stimulating agent is unknown The stimulating effect was not seen when border cells originated from plants grown in the presence of aluminium
Authors
Guro BrodalAbstract
A survey of the loose smut frequencies in certified barley seed lots in Norway during 1997"2002 showed that the disease has become more prevalent and has occurred at higher infection frequencies in recent years. Laboratory analyses (embryo method) of barley seeds harvested in 2001 and 2002, including both certified and farm saved seed, showed a large number of infected seed lots with higher than expected infection frequencies. One lot of farm saved seed (cv. Otira) from 2002 had 32% seed infection. Unexpectedly high loose smut infection frequencies recorded in fields sown with carboxin treated barley seed suggest a reduced effectiveness of the fungicide. A seed treatment experiment was conducted in 2002 using both greenhouse and field trials with two infected seed lots (cv. Otira with 14.4% and cv. Fager with 6.9% infected seeds) to evaluate and compare the effect of Fungazil C (carboxin + imazalil) and Premis Robust (triticonazol + imazalil) against loose smut. Fungazil C at normal rates reduced loose smut frequencies by approximately 50% or less. At twice the normal rate, loose smut symptoms were reduced by 60-80%. Premis Robust showed more effective loose smut control, but did not confer complete control.
Abstract
When conifers such as Picea abies Karst. (Norway spruce) are attacked by insects or pathogens, they often respond by producing increased quantities of terpenoid oleoresin. This response can be mimicked in young P. abies seedlings by treatment with methyl jasmonate (MJ). In this study, we determined the effects of MJ on terpenoids and other chemical defenses of mature P. abies, and investigated whether this treatment protected trees against attack by the blue-stain fungus Ceratocystis polonica (Siem.) C. Moreau, the most important fungal associate of the spruce bark beetle Ips typo-graphus L. Methyljasmonate treatment induced the formation of traumatic resin ducts in the developing xylem, enhanced resin flow and stimulated increased accumulation of monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and diterpene resin acids. However, only minor changes were detected in terpene composition in response to MJ treatment and no changes in soluble phenolic concentration were measured. There was much variability in the timing and degree of response to MJ among clones. The observed chemical and anatomical changes in response to MJ treatment were correlated with increased resistance to C. polonica, suggesting that terpenoid oleoresin may function in defense against this pathogen.