Transcriptomics of Catharanthus roseus during a biotic interaction
Caterpillars of Manduca sexta were allowed to feed on Catharanthus roseus leaves to create a non-natural interaction to investigate defense responses in the medicinal plant. We recently published a detailed inspection of this interaction in Scientific Report.
Transcriptional responses to folivory were monitored by RNA-seq and revealed classical responses to herbivory including activation of the jasmonate signaling pathway. More interestingly, the feeding process was associated with a strong increase in Monoterpene Indole Alkaloid biosynthesis in attacked leaves. Sequencing runs were deposited in EBI ENA database and are available here.
Contact: Vincent Courdavault