The molecular genetic basis of herbivory between butterflies and their host-plants

Interactions between herbivorous insects and their host-plants are a central component of terrestrial food webs and a critical topic in agriculture, where a substantial fraction of potential crop yield is lost annually to pests. Important insights into plant-insect interactions have come from research on specific plant defenses and insect detoxification mechanisms. Yet, much remains unknown about the molecular mechanisms that mediate plant-insect interactions. Here we use multiple genome-wide approaches to map the molecular basis of herbivory from both plant and insect perspectives, focusing on butterflies and their larval host-plants. Parallel genome-wide association studies in the Cabbage White butterfly, Pieris rapae, and its host-plant, Arabidopsis thaliana, pinpointed a small number of butterfly and plant genes that influenced herbivory. These genes, along with much of the genome, were regulated in a dynamic way over the time course of the feeding interaction. Comparative analyses, including diverse butterfly/plant systems, showed a variety of genome-wide responses to herbivory, yet a core set of highly conserved genes in butterflies as well as their host-plants. These results greatly expand our understanding of the genomic causes and evolutionary consequences of ecological interactions across two of nature’s most diverse taxa, butterflies and flowering plants.