Pilot study of the interaction of watery saliva proteins of Aphis gossypii Glover with the soluble protein fraction of Cucumis melo L. leaves

In the species Cucumis melo L. several sources of resistance against aphids have been reported but all of them seem to be controlled by the same gene called Vat. Recently, the presence of this gene has been associated with specific hypersensitive response (HR) mechanisms against A. gossypii infestation. This active defence response seems to be only triggered after the secretion of aphid watery saliva into the cytoplasm. Presumably, aphid saliva proteins act as pathogen associated molecular pattern (PAMP) and are detected by specific plant proteins, which trigger plant defence cascades. Thus far, interactions between aphid watery saliva proteins and plant proteins have hardly been investigated. Here, the Far Western Blot technique was used to study in vitro interaction revealing that, at least, 15 plant proteins interact with 5 different aphid saliva proteins. Further work is needed to determine the specificity and the biological function of each interaction to unravel the complex relation between aphids and plants.