三只蚜蟲(chóng)在修復(fù)植物傷口
這只兵蚜蟲(chóng)正在分泌自己的體液,，用來(lái)愈合宿主植物的傷口。
植物傷口修復(fù)后
當(dāng)提到昆蟲(chóng)的智慧,，蜜蜂和螞蟻通常攫取了全部的榮譽(yù),，如今，人們意識(shí)到,，群居的蚜蟲(chóng)也應(yīng)該分一杯羹,。研究人員報(bào)告說(shuō)，他們發(fā)現(xiàn)蚜蟲(chóng)有一項(xiàng)最新的絕活兒,，那就是通過(guò)先讓植物結(jié)疤,，再刺激植物組織自我修復(fù)的治愈宿主植物創(chuàng)傷的能力。
作為一種害蟲(chóng),，蚜蟲(chóng)最為人們所知的便是它們會(huì)在宿主植物上繁殖,，并用麥稈一樣的口器吸吮植物的汁液,。然而蚜蟲(chóng)的存在還有更加戲劇性的一面。一些蚜蟲(chóng)會(huì)讓它們的宿主植物長(zhǎng)出一個(gè)中空的腫塊,，被稱(chēng)為蟲(chóng)癭,，蚜蟲(chóng)便在這里生活、覓食,，并得到保護(hù),。有的蚜蟲(chóng)甚至進(jìn)化出了一種沒(méi)有繁殖能力的兵蚜蟲(chóng),，用來(lái)保衛(wèi)和清潔這個(gè)真正的家,。
2003年，日本筑波市國(guó)立尖端工業(yè)科學(xué)與技術(shù)研究所的進(jìn)化生物學(xué)家Takema Fukatsu和他的研究小組注意到,，一種兵蚜蟲(chóng)（Nipponaphis monzeni）居然有一手之前從未被人發(fā)現(xiàn)的絕活兒——修補(bǔ)蟲(chóng)癭,。有時(shí)毛蟲(chóng)會(huì)在蟲(chóng)癭上咬出一個(gè)大洞，導(dǎo)致生活在里面的蚜蟲(chóng)很容易受到天敵的攻擊,。每當(dāng)此時(shí),，兵蚜蟲(chóng)便會(huì)迅速趕到事發(fā)現(xiàn)場(chǎng)，并往這些缺口上分泌自己的體液,，最終使自己膠粘的體液凝結(jié)成一個(gè)大疤,。這些無(wú)私的兵蚜蟲(chóng)每次都會(huì)全神貫注地“堵槍眼”，并在流盡最后一滴血后“轟然倒地”,。
兵蚜蟲(chóng)的犧牲真的有意義嗎,？Fukatsu給出了肯定的回答。在最新的一項(xiàng)研究中,，他的研究小組發(fā)現(xiàn),，在22個(gè)經(jīng)過(guò)修補(bǔ)的蟲(chóng)癭中，有18個(gè)蟲(chóng)癭中的蚜蟲(chóng)在一個(gè)月后依然生長(zhǎng)得很好,。而在12個(gè)沒(méi)有經(jīng)過(guò)修復(fù)的蟲(chóng)癭中,，只有1個(gè)蟲(chóng)癭中的蚜蟲(chóng)種群能夠幸免于難。研究人員最近在英國(guó)《皇家學(xué)會(huì)學(xué)報(bào)B》網(wǎng)絡(luò)版上報(bào)告了這一研究成果,。
然而兵蚜蟲(chóng)的黏合物僅僅起到了一部分的作用,。Fukatsu說(shuō)，當(dāng)研究人員切開(kāi)一個(gè)經(jīng)過(guò)兵蚜蟲(chóng)修補(bǔ)的蟲(chóng)癭后,，他們大吃一驚——這些植物自身也發(fā)生了康復(fù)過(guò)程,，并且經(jīng)過(guò)修復(fù)的蟲(chóng)癭內(nèi)壁非常平滑。通過(guò)采集不同修復(fù)階段的蟲(chóng)癭并對(duì)其著色,，研究小組確認(rèn),，植物在一個(gè)月內(nèi)便能夠使傷口愈合。這些植物顯然是接受了來(lái)自兵蚜蟲(chóng)的傷口修復(fù)信號(hào),，因?yàn)橹挥心切┫x(chóng)癭中有活蚜蟲(chóng)的組織才能夠得到復(fù)原,。
美國(guó)大學(xué)公園城賓夕法尼亞州立大學(xué)的昆蟲(chóng)學(xué)家Gary Felton認(rèn)為：“蚜蟲(chóng)對(duì)宿主植物的影響程度……是一個(gè)新奇的發(fā)現(xiàn),。”Felton曾預(yù)言蚜蟲(chóng)的傷口修復(fù)系統(tǒng)將成為昆蟲(chóng)—植物生物學(xué)中的經(jīng)典案例。接下來(lái),，最讓人感興趣的就是兵蚜蟲(chóng)到底分泌了什么物質(zhì)從而導(dǎo)致了植物的自我修復(fù)過(guò)程,。Felton希望其中包括一些新的化合物，這將對(duì)操控植物細(xì)胞和組織的培養(yǎng)具有重要意義,。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推薦原始出處：
Proceedings of the Royal Society B February 25, 2009, doi: 10.1098/rspb.2008.1628
Scab formation and wound healing of plant tissue by soldier aphid
Mayako Kutsukake1, Harunobu Shibao2, Keigo Uematsu2 and Takema Fukatsu1,2,*
1Institute for Biological Resources and Functions, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) Tsukuba 305-8566, Japan
2Department of System Sciences, University of Tokyo Tokyo 153-8902, Japan
Abstract
In the social aphid Nipponaphis monzeni, a unique gall-repairing behaviour has been known: when a hole is made on the gall, many soldier nymphs discharge body fluid on the breach, which promptly solidifies and plugs the hole. Here, we experimentally investigated the subsequent fate of repaired galls and their inhabitants. Irrespective of natural repair by soldier nymphs or artificial repair with adhesive, repaired galls survived significantly better than non-repaired galls. Within a month after repair, the plant tissue around the hole proliferated and sealed up the hole. Many soldier nymphs were localized at the hole area and extermination of inhabiting aphids by insecticides aborted the gall regeneration, indicating that the gall regeneration requires inhabiting aphids, wherein soldier nymphs are likely to play a major role. This study provides an unprecedented case of scab formation and wound healing, which occurs at an animal–plant interface: scab derived from insect body fluid promptly plugs damaged plant tissue and subsequently the insects actively stimulate regeneration of the plant tissue, whereby the compromised plant tissue recovers. We suggest that the novel system may have evolved in the aphid lineage through enhancement and recruitment of the pre-existing capabilities of haemolymph coagulation and gall formation.
