title: Roots under attack: contrasting plant responses to below- and aboveground insect herbivory.
abstract: The distinctive ecology of root herbivores, the complexity and diversity of root-microbe interactions, and the physical nature of the soil matrix mean that plant responses to root herbivory extrapolate poorly from our understanding of responses to aboveground herbivores. For example, root attack induces different changes in phytohormones to those in damaged leaves, including a lower but more potent burst of jasmonates in several plant species. Root secondary metabolite responses also differ markedly, although patterns between roots and shoots are harder to discern. Root defences must therefore be investigated in their own ecophysiological and evolutionary context, specifically one which incorporates root microbial symbionts and antagonists, if we are to better understand the battle between plants and their hidden herbivores.
authors.affiliation: Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia.
authors.forename: Scott N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Altenbergrain 21, 3013, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Erb
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, York Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK.
authors.forename: Susan E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hartley
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D060434:Herbivory / Q000502:physiology*; D007313:Insecta / Q000502:physiology*; D010788:Photosynthesis; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000502:physiology*; D064210:Secondary Metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction
keywords: defensive responses; folivores; herbivores; photoassimilates; phytohormones; root feeding; secondary metabolites