Data from: Linking plant genes to insect communities: identifying the genetic bases of plant traits and community composition

Community genetics aims to understand the effects of intraspecific genetic
variation on community composition and diversity, thereby connecting
community ecology with evolutionary biology. Thus far, research has shown
that plant genetics can underlie variation in the composition of
associated communities (e.g., insects, lichen, endophytes), and those
communities can therefore be considered as extended phenotypes. This work,
however, has been conducted primarily at the plant genotype level and has
not identified the key underlying genes. To address this gap, we used
genome-wide association mapping (GWAS) with a population of 445 aspen
(Populus tremuloides) genets to identify the genes governing variation in
plant traits (defense chemistry, bud phenology, leaf morphology, growth)
and insect community composition. We found 49 significant SNP associations
in 13 Populus genes that are correlated with chemical defense compounds
and insect community traits. Most notably, we identified an early-nodulin
like protein (ENODL) that was associated with insect community diversity
and the abundance of interacting foundation species (ants and aphids).
These findings support the concept that particular plant traits are the
mechanistic link between plant genes and the composition of associated
insect communities. In putting the “genes” into “genes to ecosystems
ecology”, this work enhances understanding of the molecular genetic
mechanisms that underlie plant-insect associations and the consequences
thereof for the structure of ecological communities.