Aphids capture plant inter- and intraspecific chemodiversity

Abstract

The role of chemodiversity in plant-insect interactions is widely recognised. However, our understanding of the extent to which chemodiversity connects both partners remains limited. Here, we investigated how aphid chemistry is linked to their plant diet and whether aphids capture plant inter- and intraspecific chemodiversity. Up to 93% of aphid chemical features were detected in plants. Untargeted metabolomics of aphids feeding on diets composed of distinct species or chemotypes within species unveiled the aphid capacity to capture inter- and intraspecific chemodiversity. Multiple chemodiversity indices and metabolic features significantly tracked diet variation and plant chemotypes were reflected in aphid metabolites. These features included phenolics and amino acids, likely ingested with the phloem sap, and fatty acids and terpenoids, potentially captured from the leaf surface. Overall, these findings expand our knowledge of the aphid plant-derived chemical repertoire and highlight that plant chemodiversity can be transmitted, supporting the need for chemodiversity preservation programs.