Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology

Max Planck researchers demonstrate the ecological role of steroidal saponins in insect defense

An enzyme originating from the basic metabolism controls the formation of important antibodies in tomatoes

A complex venom system allows antlions to overpower large prey

Researchers describe a new endosymbiont that is widespread in insects

The brain of migratory locusts encodes chemical information differently than that of other insects or vertebrates

Max Planck researchers cooperate with partners in more than 120 countries. Here they write about their personal experiences and impressions. Clabe Wekesa from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena spends two summer months north of the Arctic Circle. Using wild blueberries, he is investigating how arctic light conditions affect plants’ resistance to pests.

Max Planck researchers are currently collaborating with partners in over 120 countries. In the following article they talk about their personal experiences and impressions. Andrea Müller from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena spent four months in Peru. She has been studying plants that live symbiotically with ants in the Tambopata National Reserve in the southeast of that country. Below, she shares her enthusiasm for the rainforest and how, in addition to the coronavirus, protesting coca farmers can jeopardize scientific field work.

Trees stand for strength and steadfastness. However, the latter can also be a handicap. This is because trees can neither run nor hide from enemies. Nevertheless, trees are by no means defenseless. Sybille Unsicker from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena is investigating how black poplars defend themselves against voracious insects.

Leghold traps, limed rods, pit traps - insectivorous plants have come up with unusual strategies to obtain additional nutrients. Axel Mithöfer at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena is investigating how pitcher plants from Southeast Asia entrap and digest their victims.

To protect themselves against harmful microorganisms, certain insects such as Lagria beetles and beewolves establish associations with symbiotic bacteria. These symbionts produce antibiotic or antimycotic substances against pathogenic fungi and in return are protected by the hosts from their own defense mechanisms. Investigations into such protective symbioses not only provide exciting insights into the biology of insects, but can also reveal valuable findings for human medicine.

Monarch butterflies, milkweed bugs and tiger keelback snakes may be very different creatures, but they have some things in common. These master chemists all contain heart-stopping toxic steroids, and have distinctive bright orange markings that warn predators: “if you eat me, you’ll regret it.” It’s difficult to believe, then, that any predator would make a meal of such obviously dangerous prey. But our research is discovering that predators from Germany to Australia and from Mexico to Japan have evolved remarkable abilities to withstand these toxins, and to survive on a most dangerous diet.

Black poplar leaves are particularly susceptible to be attacked by gypsy moths if they are also infected by a fungus. Actually, young larvae of the gypsy moth that feed on leaves covered with fungal spores gain biomass much faster and pupate several days earlier than larvae that feed only on leaf tissue. The reason for this is probably that fungal spores improve the supply of nutrients in the caterpillars’ diet. Thus, some herbivores may be in fact also fungivores. Fungi and microorganisms probably play a more important role in the coevolution of plants and herbivores than previously thought.

Plants produce an enormous number of complex molecules. These compounds play various roles in the plants’ natural environment. Many of these compounds are also used in both traditional and modern medicine; some have even life-saving properties. Our aim is to elucidate the fundamental chemical, biological and evolutionary processes that underlie the biosynthesis of these complex molecules in order to be able to optimize their production using synthetic biology.

The tobacco hawkmoth uses olfaction to localize suitable host plants for oviposition. Recent findings suggest that the moth not only decides based on odors emitted by host plants, but also can sense odors emitted from frass of conspecific larvae already present on this host plant. By avoiding oviposition in the presence of frass odors, the female moth avoids conspecific competition for its offspring. Using the novel genetic tool CRISPR/Cas9 we could identify the olfactory receptor detecting these frass odors and hence, governing the moth’s competition avoidance.