Common tansy, Tanacetum vulgare, shows distinct terpene profiles in its leaves, forming so-called chemotypes. This high chemical diversity influences interactions with herbivores. For example, specialised aphids prefer certain chemotypes. In turn, the phloem sap composition and leaf senescence can depend on aphid attack. We investigate whether the phloem sap composition differs between chemotypes (depending on the aphid species) and whether different aphid species trigger different signaling pathways and thus affect metabolite patterns to different degrees.
(Research group “Ecology and Evolution of Intraspecific Chemodiversity of Plants”)