| Summary: | In order to explore the response dynamics of the activities of defense related enzymes in cotton leaves towards the interactive stress of Helicoverpa armigera herbivory and omethoate application, the activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), lipoxygenase (LOX), and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) were examined from 6 to 126 h after cotton leaves were treated 12 h of H. armigera herbivory, and then sprayed with 800 mg L−1 omethoate. The results showed that the changes in the activities of PAL, LOX and PPO that occured under the interactive stress of H. armigera herbivory and omethoate application reflected the interactive effects of the two stresses on cotton defense. The similarity between the response dynamics of PAL, LOX, and PPO activities in cotton leaves under the interactive stress and that under H. armigera herbivory treatment alone showed that the induction of H. armigera herbivory on the activities of PAL, LOX and PPO in cotton leaves played a leading role in the interactive effects, and the effect of omethoate application played only a minor role. A joint factor analysis was performed according to a method which has been used to analyze the joint toxicity of pesticides; this analysis sought to clarify if there was a synergistic, antagonistic, or additive effect on PAL, LOX, and PPO activity in cotton leaves resulting from the interactive H. armigera herbivory and omethoate treatment. In the interactive effect on the response of PAL activity in cotton leaves, antagonistic effects of the omethoate application towards H. armigera herbivory were observed at 6 and 12 h. Synergistic effects were then observed at 18 and 30 h. Antagonistic effects were observed from 54 to 78 h and synergistic effects were finally observed at 126 h. The correlation between H. armigera herbivory and omethoate application in the interactive effect on cotton defense responses of LOX activity also fluctuated from synergism to antagonism during the time course. In the interactive effect on PPO activity, only antagonism was observed between H. armigera herbivory and omethoate application. In the interactive stress of H. armigera herbivory and omethoate application on cotton defense responses, omethoate affected the defense responses of cotton to H. armigera herbivory by producing antagonistic and synergistic effects. These results will be useful to understand the relationship between host plant and herbivorous pest.
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