Skip to main content
ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Albany, California » Western Regional Research Center » Foodborne Toxin Detection and Prevention Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #305880
Title: Yellow Starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) volatile composition under elevated temperature and CO2 in the field

Author
item OSTER, M - Stanford University
item Beck, John
item FURROW, R - Stanford University
item YEUNG, K - Stanford University
item FIELD, C - Stanford University

Submitted to: Chemoecology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/27/2015
Publication Date: 8/11/2015
Citation: Oster, M., Beck, J.J., Furrow, R., Yeung, K., Field, C.B. 2015. Yellow Starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) volatile composition under elevated temperature and CO2 in the field. Chemoecology. 25(6):313-323.

Interpretive Summary: Global climate change may affect biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) – chemical odors released by plants – that are involved in plant communication. Whether climate change will promote expansion of invasive species is still unclear. Centaurea solstitialis (yellow starthistle) is a major invasive weed in western North America and is known to reduce grassland biodiversity by pushing out native plants or harming livestock. There is potential to use plant herbivores as biological agents to control this invasive weed. We examine the effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on odors produced by mechanically damaged leaves of C. solstitialis grown in grassland plots in the San Francisco Bay Area. Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and a custom Teflon® collection bag were used to collect odors from the plant and identification of the odors was accomplished using gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. A total of 16 odors were detected and predominantly comprised of sesquiterpenes. We found no significant effect of treatment on plant volatile relative abundance. Compound co-occurrence was strong between two pairs of VOCs. Our results suggest that any changes in CO2 and temperature will not affect volatile emission by C. solstitialis. The detected in-field odors will contribute to a growing volatile library allowing selection of plant species-specific biological controls for invasive weeds.

Technical Abstract: Global climate change is already occurring and may affect biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) involved in plant communication. Whether climate change will promote expansion of invasive species is still unclear. Centaurea solstitialis (yellow starthistle) is a major invasive weed in western North America known to reduce grassland biodiversity. There is potential to use herbivores as biological agents to control this weed. We examine the effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on VOCs produced by mechanically damaged leaves of C. solstitialis grown in grassland plots in the San Francisco Bay Area. Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and a custom Teflon® collection bag were used to collect VOCs in situ while identification took place using a GC-MS. 16 volatile compounds were detected and predominantly comprised of sesquiterpenes. We found no significant effect of treatment on plant volatile relative abundance. Compound co-occurrence was strong between two pairs of VOCs. Our results suggest that, in the near future, changes in CO2 and temperature will not affect volatile emission by C. solstitialis. Our detected in-field VOCs will contribute to a growing volatile library allowing selection of plant species-specific biological controls for invasive weeds.