Its wonders are endless. Ants protect plants from at least 14 kinds of diseases

Mohamed Ramadan

The wonders of ants do not seem to end, according to a new study by researchers at the Danish University of Aarhus that ants can fight about 14 kinds of plant diseases. This is what scientists are seeking to explore in the hope of discovering pesticides vital can control agricultural pests, especially those that show ferocity in the resistance of pesticides currently used.

Takaful and prevention
The study published in the journal "Oikos" that many different types of ants can contribute to the protection of plants from diseases through a variety of ways, where some types of ants have glands that secrete chemical compounds that work antibiotics, and other types of ants host bacterial colonies on their bodies Also produce natural antibiotics.

The vital relationship between ants and plants is described as symbiotic that will benefit both parties.Ants on plants protect them from grass-eating, while at the same time plants provide a source of food and habitat for ants, but the new study revealed that ants play an additional role in protecting plants from disease.

The main purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between ants and plants, diseases and biological interactions occurring in this framework. Scientists have found that the presence of ants on plants has reduced their incidence of diseases by 59%. They also found sufficient evidence that ants can inhibit at least 14 species of plant diseases.

One clear example of what happens with apple plants is that the movement of wood ants to apple tree plantations reduces the incidence of two types of apple diseases: scabies and rotting apples.

Social lifestyle
Scientists believe that ants 'ability to control plant diseases may be due to the ant's unique behavior in maintaining its health and resisting diseases and infections.Ants' social lifestyle within the colonies makes them more susceptible to the spread of infectious diseases, so ants secrete antibiotics from certain glands in their body to treat themselves Bacteria that live on ants' bodies and legs also produce antibiotics that play a role in protecting ants from disease.

"We know that ants secrete chemical compounds when they walk on plants to recognize their path. We also know that some of these compounds have antibiotic properties," says Aarhus University research team leader Joachim Offenburg. About those chemical compounds. "

Scientists aspire to use antibiotics produced by ants in future agricultural applications. "We hope that further research in this area will reveal new types of biological control methods that can be used to combat high-resistance plant diseases," said Offenburg.