In the plant world, there is a traditional belief that a plant's resistance always comes at the expense of its growth. However, new research led by Dr. Estrella Santamaría of the CBGP and published in the journal Plant, Cell & Environment presents a novel approach that activates specific defenses against pests without penalizing growth, development, or reproduction, allowing plants to strengthen their defensive mechanisms without compromising productivity.
Herbivorous pests destroy around 20% of global agricultural production each year, making them one of the main threats to food security. To defend themselves, plants deploy sophisticated resistance mechanisms, although this response often entails high energy costs that penalize growth and yield.
Furthermore, the genetic improvement of crops in recent decades has prioritized productivity, often to the detriment of their defensive capacity. This negative duality, coupled with the environmental and health impact of excessive pesticide use, opens the door to the search for new, more sustainable strategies.
The work, led by Dr. Estrella Santamaría of the CBGP, demonstrates that this dilemma is not always inevitable. This study reveals that priming seeds with low concentrations of the natural compound methyl jasmonate (MeJA) modifies the molecular dynamics of the plant system, allowing plants to activate specific defenses against different types of pests without compromising their growth or reproductive capacity.
Greater defense and productivity
The researchers observed that plants from seeds treated with a low concentration of MeJA (0.1 mM) showed significantly less damage from mite (Tetranychus urticae) and caterpillar (Pieris brassicae) pests. Furthermore, the treatment not only did not reduce productivity, but promoted larger rosettes and greater biomass compared to untreated plants.
Integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses revealed that seed priming induces a state of pre-attack readiness, characterized by more closed stomata, higher sugar content, and a higher protein translation rate.
Selective defense without sacrificing growth
After infestation, the plants adjusted their metabolic pathways according to the pest: anthocyanin accumulation against caterpillars and higher aromatic amino acid content, and an apparent higher production of hydroxycinnamic acid amides against mites.
This finding challenges the traditional belief that plant resistance necessarily implies a loss of yield. Thus, the results obtained by the CBGP researchers reveal that seed priming is a practical strategy to strengthen crop resistance to herbivore pests without any associated costs and opens new avenues for eliminating pesticide use.
Image: The work led by Dr. Estrella Santamaría reveals a new strategy that activates specific defenses against pests without penalizing their growth. / CBGP
Original Paper: Talavera-Mateo, L., Sabater-Gabriel, A., Garcia, A., Perez-Alonso, M.M., Halitschke, R., Santamaria, M.E. 2025. Methyl Jasmonate Seed Priming Mitigates the Defence-Growth Trade-Off and Tailors Plant Response to Specific Pests. Plant, Cell & Environment. DOI: 10.1111/pce.70105
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