The synthesis of specialized metabolites in the plant is subject to very fine spatial and temporal regulation; some of them are only produced when necessary for the plant, at a particular phenological stage or in response to biotic or abiotic constraints. The activation of the specialized metabolism mobilizes the same resources (carbon, mineral element) as those which the plant needs for its growth. Several studies point to an antagonism between the establishment of defense in the plant, essentially based on specialized metabolism and its growth which is essentially based on primary metabolism. This leads to a compromise for the plant to allow its resources to its growth or to its defense.
Understanding the regulatory mechanisms of specialized metabolism and the determinisms of the trade-off between growth and defense is essential in order to develop more resilient and just as productive modes of cultivation.
These questions are addressed in our team by an integrative study of the ecophysiology of the plant subject to constraints. Currently, this study is focused on the tomato subject to a limitation of nitrogen availability and to herbivory by the leafminer larva of the microlepidopter Tuta absoluta.
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