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Kristin Buchner Appalachian State University Research and Creative Endeavors Day April 23, 2009

Effects of Climate Change and Insect Infestation on Terpene Content in Solidago canadensis and Abies fraseri. Kristin Buchner Appalachian State University Research and Creative Endeavors Day April 23, 2009. What are Terpenes ?. Organic hydrocarbon compounds Composed of isoprene units

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Kristin Buchner Appalachian State University Research and Creative Endeavors Day April 23, 2009

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  1. Effects of Climate Change and Insect Infestation on Terpene Content in Solidagocanadensis and Abiesfraseri Kristin Buchner Appalachian State University Research and Creative Endeavors Day April 23, 2009

  2. What are Terpenes? • Organic hydrocarbon compounds • Composed of isoprene units • Secondary metabolites • Emitted into the environment through leaching, volatilization, or decomposition

  3. Uses of Terpenes • In nature: • Attract/repel insects • Deter other competitive plants • In Industry: (“essential oils”) • Flavor additives/enhancers • Fragrances • Alternative medicine • Cleaning agents (pine-sol)

  4. Carbon Allocation in Plants • Optimal Defense Theory • Growth-Differentiation Balance hypothesis Diagram taken from Hamilton et al., 2001

  5. Climate Change and Plant Defenses • Old-Field Community Climate and Atmospheric Manipulation (OCCAM) • Solidago canadensis • 3 climate drivers: • Elevated and ambient [CO2] • Elevated and ambient temperature • Ambient and low water supply • How will terpene concentration be affected?

  6. Experimental Design • 48 samples were collected in June 2008 from the OCCAM site at ORNL in Oak Ridge, TN • Gas Chromatography Analysis • P-value ≤ 0.10

  7. Results – Terpene Production in Solidagocanadensis

  8. Effects of Insect Infestation on Terpene Production • 24 samples collected from Dale Cornett's Carolina Fraser Fir Farm in Vilas, NC, on December 8, 2008 • Samples taken from damaged and healthy areas of each Fir exhibiting Balsam Twig Aphid damage • P-value ≤0.05 Special thanks to the North Carolina Agricultural Extension for their support with this project.

  9. Results – Terpene Production in Abiesfraseri

  10. Possibilities – Solidagoand Abies Studies • Carbon allocation? • Growth and repair vs. terpenes • Improved defenses? • Pre-emptive prevention or genetic resistance • Overcompensation? • Plants respond with a flood of defenses • Plant tissue age? • Older leaves could have lower defenses

  11. Literature Cited • Langenheim, J.H.: 1994, 'Higher-Plant Terpenoids - a Phytocentric Overview of Their Ecological Roles', Journal of Chemical Ecology 20, 1223-1280. • Hamilton, J.G., Zangerl, A.R., DeLucia, E.H. and Berenbaum, M.R.: 2001, 'The carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis: its rise and fall', Ecology Letters 4, 86-95. • Sidebottom, J.: 2002, ‘Balsam Twig Aphid on Fraser Fir: CTN-019’, Extension Forestry, North Carolina State University. • Villalpando, S.N., Williams, R.S. and Norby, R.J.: 2009, 'Elevated air temperature alters an old-field insect community in a multifactor climate change experiment', Global Change Biology 15, 930-942. • Williams, R.S., Thomas, R.B., Strain, B.R. and Lincoln, D.E.: 1997, 'Effects of elevated CO2, soil nutrient levels, and foliage age on the performance of two generations of Neodiprion lecontei (Hymenoptera : Diprionidae) feeding on loblolly pine', Environmental Entomology 26, 1312-1322.

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