Evolutionary significance of abundant cathecins in tea plants

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25660041
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Plant protection science
• Research Institution: Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology
• Principal Investigator: NAKAI Madoka 東京農工大学, (連合)農学研究科(研究院), 准教授 (60302907)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: カテキン / チャ / 昆虫ウイルス / 感受性

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Tea leaves contain 5-8% of epigallocatechin gallate in the dry weight. It can be assumed that tea contains such abundant catechin to protect themselves from its pests. In this study, the hypothesis for tea containing catechin to protect from pests with cooperation of entomopathogen, as catechin increases susceptibility of pests against entomopathogen, were examined. Consequently, the tea pests Adoxophyes honmai (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) increases its susceptibility against granulovirus (Baculoviridae) due to addition of EGCG with inoculum.

Free Research Field

昆虫病理学