Data from: Cascading effects of host plant inbreeding on the larval growth, muscle molecular composition, and flight capacity of an adult herbivorous insect.

A primary function of adult winged insects is dispersal. Limiting larval
dietary intake (partial starvation) has been shown to affect the flight
muscle metabolism of adult moths reared on artificial diet, but a more
ecologically relevant question is whether natural variation in host plant
quality can lead to differences in the flight capacity of adult insects.
Recent studies have shown that inbreeding compromises plant anti-herbivore
defenses. We created inbred and outbred progeny from locally collected
horsenettle (Solanum carolinense L.) and examined how host plant
inbreeding affects the growth, development, and flight muscle physiology
of tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta L.), a specialist herbivore on
Solanaceae. We tested the hypothesis that within population genetic
variation in host plant quality, resulting from inbreeding, can create
significant changes to the larval development and flight physiology of an
adult insect. We found that Manduca larvae reared on inbred horsenettle
plants grew faster and developed into larger pupae compared to larvae
reared on outbred plants. Adult flight metabolic rate was greater in
adults reared on inbred plants compared to outbred plants, and this
elevation was independent of body mass when we excluded one plant family
that produced small, low metabolic rate moths regardless of breeding
regime. Differences in mass-specific flight metabolism were associated
with changes in alternative splicing of Troponin t, a flight muscle
protein that regulates muscle contraction. These results show that host
plant inbreeding can create effects that cascade through larval and pupal
development to affect dispersal-related traits of the adult stage. Hence,
plant inbreeding may also impact herbivore population dynamics,
particularly their ability to spread away from, and possibly into,
isolated patches of inbred plants creating increased herbivore pressure on
these plant populations. More generally, our findings reveal that changes
in population biology at one trophic level can affect the metabolic
physiology and flight capacity of an animal at a higher trophic level.