DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Test of Competing Plant Defense Hypotheses in a New Model System

论文研究：在新模型系统中检验竞争性植物防御假设

• 批准号: 0508552
• 负责人: Lee Dyer
• 金额: $ 0.99万
• 依托单位: Tulane University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2005
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2005-06-15 至 2007-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0508552&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: DISSERTATION; RESEARCH; Test; Competing; Plant

Using a combination of field work in the rain forest of Costa Rica, greenhouse experiments, and laboratory analysis, the investigators will examine the relationships between soil fertility and the ability of plants to defend themselves against the wide variety of insect herbivores that feed on their leaves. Plants produce a broad array of toxic chemicals in their leaves that are not directly related to plant growth or maintenance. These toxins may function as defenses against herbivores or other organisms that attack plants. The amounts of toxic chemicals in plants may vary in response to environmental factors such as soil nutrients or light availability, or in reponse to herbivore attack, although the internal changes in plants that occur whendefensive chemical amounts change are poorly understood. The investigators will manipulate the amounts of defensive chemicals in plants by varying the availability of soil nutrients and then measure overall changes in chemical concentration within the plant.Broader Impacts: The proposed research will address a long-standing debate about the importance of resources in plant defense against herbivores. Understanding the relationship between environmental variables, plant defense, and herbivores may contribute to conservation, agricultural research, and pestcontrol. Our research will contribute to the training of high school, undergraduate and graduate students in ecological and chemical researchtechniques. The broader community will be affected through involvement ofvolunteers in research. This work will contribute to outreach programs inlocal public schools in New Orleans and seminars in Costa Rica, and resultswill be distributed through popular and scientific publications.

研究人员将利用哥斯达黎加的雨林，温室实验和实验室分析的结合，研究土壤肥力与植物之间的关系与植物抵抗以叶子为食的各种各样的昆虫食草动物之间的关系。 植物在其叶片中产生大量的有毒化学物质，这些化学物质与植物的生长或维护无直接相关。 这些毒素可能是针对攻击植物的草食动物或其他生物的防御能力。 植物中的有毒化学物质的量可能会随着环境因素（例如土壤养分或光的可用性）或对草食动物攻击的回应而有所不同，尽管人们对发生防御性化学量发生变化的内部变化很少了解。 研究人员将通过改变土壤养分的可用性，然后衡量植物内化学浓度的总体变化来操纵植物中的防御性化学物质量。公民的影响：拟议的研究将解决有关资源在植物防御中针对食草动物的重要性的辩论。了解环境变量，植物防御和食草动物之间的关系可能有助于保护，农业研究和虫害。 我们的研究将有助于对生态和化学研究技术研究生的高中，本科生和研究生的培训。 更广泛的社区将通过参与研究人员的研究而受到影响。 这项工作将促进新奥尔良的外展计划和哥斯达黎加的研讨会的局部公立学校，并通过流行和科学出版物分发结果。