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Updated: Dec 29, 2025

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Insect herbivory reshapes a native leaf microbiome.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Insect herbivory amplifies leaf microbes, altering plant microbiome diversity and promoting the spread of potentially harmful bacteria. This interaction significantly impacts plant health and reproduction.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Microbiology
  • Plant Science

Background:

  • Insect herbivory is common but its effect on plant-associated microbes is understudied.
  • Understanding these interactions is key to plant health and community dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how insect herbivory affects the abundance and composition of the leaf microbiome (phyllosphere).
  • To determine if plant defenses against herbivores influence bacterial communities.
  • To explore the link between herbivory, bacterial pathogens, and plant reproductive success.

Main Methods:

  • Quantified absolute bacterial load in leaves using calibrated sequencing.
  • Experimentally induced plant anti-herbivore defenses.
  • Assessed Pseudomonas species fitness and abundance.
  • Correlated herbivore damage with plant reproductive success.

Main Results:

  • Insect herbivory significantly amplifies the abundance of most leaf microbiome taxa.
  • Herbivory leads to reduced microbial diversity and compositional shifts.
  • Plant defenses altered bacterial fitness and favored specific Pseudomonas strains, including potential pathogens.
  • Herbivore damage negatively impacted plant reproduction and clustered with pathogen presence.

Conclusions:

  • Insect herbivory is a major driver of plant microbiome structure and bacterial epidemiology.
  • Interactions between plants, herbivores, and microbes are critical for ecological dynamics.
  • Quantifying absolute microbial abundance is essential for interpreting microbiome shifts.