Abstract
Abstract Silicon, the second most abundant element in the Earth's crust, affects plant defenses across large geographic scales, which is an interesting yet mostly unexplored issue in non-native species. We investigated silicon-mediated variation in defensive/nutritional traits and palatability to the generalist herbivores Mythimna separata and Locusta migratoria in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora collected from native and introduced ranges. We found that silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%, and enhanced their physical/chemical defenses (jasmonic acid +28%, flavonoids +12%, toughness +9%) and reduced nutritional quality (carbon content −2%, C:N ratio +5%), ultimately impeding the growth of both generalists (M. separata −28%, and L. migratoria −43%). Introduced populations, independent of silicon treatments, had significantly higher silicon content in leaves than native populations. However, silicon supplementation increased more leaf silicon in low-latitude introduced populations (+81%) than in high-latitude introduced populations (+63%). Moreover, the mechanisms of silicon accumulation affecting generalists differed between plant provenances: enhancing quantitative and qualitative chemical defenses in native populations, but improving quantitative chemical or structural defenses in introduced ones. These results suggest a rapid evolution of defense strategies mediated by silicon in introduced populations. Our findings provide insights into how non-native plants utilize silicon to enhance defenses, emphasizing the importance of metalloid defenses in invasion success.
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Claims 15
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina alterniflora leaves by 76%.
- Taxon
- Spartina alterniflora
Sporobolus alternifloruse1 - Material
- 16 geographic populationse1
- Organ / stage
- leavese2
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- silicon accumulatione2
- Direction
- increasede2
- Value
- 76%e2
- Qualifier
- generallye2
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation enhanced jasmonic acid by +28% in Spartina alterniflora.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- jasmonic acide3
- Direction
- enhancede3
- Value
- +28%e3
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e3“enhanced their physical/chemical defenses (jasmonic acid +28%, flavonoids +12%, toughness +9%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation enhanced flavonoids by +12% in Spartina alterniflora.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- flavonoidse3
- Direction
- enhancede3
- Value
- +12%e3
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e3“enhanced their physical/chemical defenses (jasmonic acid +28%, flavonoids +12%, toughness +9%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation enhanced toughness by +9% in Spartina alterniflora.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- toughnesse3
- Direction
- enhancede3
- Value
- +9%e3
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e3“enhanced their physical/chemical defenses (jasmonic acid +28%, flavonoids +12%, toughness +9%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation reduced carbon content by 2% in Spartina alterniflora leaves.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- carbon contente4
- Direction
- reducede4
- Value
- −2%e4
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e4“reduced nutritional quality (carbon content −2%, C:N ratio +5%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation increased the C:N ratio by 5% in Spartina alterniflora.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- C:N ratioe4
- Direction
- increaseinferrede4
- Value
- +5%e4
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e4“reduced nutritional quality (carbon content −2%, C:N ratio +5%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation impeded the growth of the generalist herbivore Mythimna separata by 28%.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Interactor
- Mythimna separata
Mythimna separatae5herbivore - Outcome
- growthe6
- Direction
- impedinge6
- Value
- −28%e6
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e5“generalist herbivores Mythimna separata and Locusta migratoria”
e6“impeding the growth of both generalists (M. separata −28%, and L. migratoria −43%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation impeded the growth of the generalist herbivore Locusta migratoria by 43%.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Interactor
- Locusta migratoria
Locusta migratoriae5herbivore - Outcome
- growthe6
- Direction
- impedinge6
- Value
- −43%e6
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation generally increased silicon accumulation in Spartina leaves by 76%”
e5“generalist herbivores Mythimna separata and Locusta migratoria”
e6“impeding the growth of both generalists (M. separata −28%, and L. migratoria −43%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Introduced Spartina populations had significantly higher leaf silicon content than native populations, independent of silicon treatment.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Material
- Introduced populationse2
- Organ / stage
- leavese2
- Outcome
- silicon contente2
- Direction
- highere2
- Qualifier
- independent of silicon treatmentse2
- Comparator
- native populationse2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“Introduced populations, independent of silicon treatments, had significantly higher silicon content in leaves than native populations”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation increased leaf silicon by 81% in low-latitude introduced Spartina populations.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Material
- low-latitude introduced populationse2
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- leaf silicone2
- Direction
- increasede2
- Value
- +81%e2
- Comparator
- high-latitude introduced populationse2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation increased more leaf silicon in low-latitude introduced populations (+81%) than in high-latitude introduced populations (+63%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon supplementation increased leaf silicon by 63% in high-latitude introduced Spartina populations.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Material
- high-latitude introduced populationse2
- Treatment
- silicon supplementatione2
- Outcome
- leaf silicone2
- Direction
- increasede2
- Value
- +63%e2
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“silicon supplementation increased more leaf silicon in low-latitude introduced populations (+81%) than in high-latitude introduced populations (+63%)”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon accumulation enhances quantitative and qualitative chemical defenses in native Spartina populations.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Material
- native populationse2
- Treatment
- silicon accumulatione2
- Outcome
- quantitative and qualitative chemical defensese2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“the mechanisms of silicon accumulation affecting generalists differed between plant provenances: enhancing quantitative and qualitative chemical defenses in native populations, but improving quantitative chemical or structural defenses in introduced ones”
Claim · model-written summary
Silicon accumulation improves quantitative chemical or structural defenses in introduced Spartina populations.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Material
- introduced onese2
- Treatment
- silicon accumulatione2
- Outcome
- quantitative chemical or structural defensese2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“the mechanisms of silicon accumulation affecting generalists differed between plant provenances: enhancing quantitative and qualitative chemical defenses in native populations, but improving quantitative chemical or structural defenses in introduced ones”
Claim · model-written summary
Results suggest rapid evolution of silicon-mediated defense strategies in introduced Spartina populations.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Material
- introduced populationse2
- Treatment
- silicone2
- Outcome
- a rapid evolution of defense strategiese2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“These results suggest a rapid evolution of defense strategies mediated by silicon in introduced populations”
Claim · model-written summary
Metalloid defenses are important for invasion success of Spartina alterniflora.
- Taxon
- Spartina alternifloraSporobolus alternifloruse1
- Outcome
- invasion successe2
- Qualifier
- metalloid defensese2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in 16 geographic populations of the invasive grass Spartina alterniflora”
e2“emphasizing the importance of metalloid defenses in invasion success”