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2013 ; 4
(3
): 413-24
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Insects as a Nitrogen Source for Plants
#MMPMID26462427
Behie SW
; Bidochka MJ
Insects
2013[Jul]; 4
(3
): 413-24
PMID26462427
show ga
Many plants have evolved adaptations in order to survive in low nitrogen
environments. One of the best-known adaptations is that of plant symbiosis with
nitrogen-fixing bacteria; this is the major route by which nitrogen is
incorporated into plant biomass. A portion of this plant-associated nitrogen is
then lost to insects through herbivory, and insects represent a nitrogen
reservoir that is generally overlooked in nitrogen cycles. In this review we show
three specialized plant adaptations that allow for the recovery of insect
nitrogen; that is, plants gaining nitrogen from insects. First, we show
specialized adaptations by carnivorous plants in low nitrogen habitats. Insect
carnivorous plants such as pitcher plants and sundews
(Nepenthaceae/Sarraceniaceae and Drosera respectively) are able to obtain
substantial amounts of nitrogen from the insects that they capture. Secondly,
numerous plants form associations with mycorrhizal fungi that can provide soluble
nitrogen from the soil, some of which may be insect-derived nitrogen, obtained
from decaying insects or insect frass. Finally, a specialized group of
endophytic, insect-pathogenic fungi (EIPF) provide host plants with
insect-derived nitrogen. These soil-inhabiting fungi form a remarkable symbiosis
with certain plant species. They can infect a wide range of insect hosts and also
form endophytic associations in which they transfer insect-derived nitrogen to
the plant. Root colonizing fungi are found in disparate fungal phylogenetic
lineages, indicating possible convergent evolutionary strategies between taxa,
evolution potentially driven by access to carbon-containing root exudates.