An Insect Counteradaptation against Host Plant Defenses Evolved through Concerted Neofunctionalization

Abstract

Antagonistic chemical interactions between herbivorous insects and their host plants are often thought to coevolve in a stepwise process, with an evolutionary innovation on one side being countered by a corresponding advance on the other. Glucosinolate sulfatase (GSS) enzyme activity is essential for the Diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, to overcome a highly diversified secondary metabolite-based host defense system in the Brassicales. GSS genes are located in an ancient cluster of arylsulfataselike genes, but the exact roles of gene copies and their evolutionary trajectories are unknown. Here, we combine a functional investigation of duplicated insect arylsulfatases with an analysis of..