Reducing the sweetness to survive
Thursday, October 22, 2015 - 14:30
in Biology & Nature
Plants produce toxic compounds in order fend off herbivores. To make sure that the toxicity of these toxins will not harm the plants themselves, many plants add a sugar molecule to these substances. Digestive enzymes called glycosidases in the insect gut usually cleave off this sugar to release the toxin with harmful effects on the insects. Scientists have now found the opposite mechanism.