Latest development
in Allelopathy
Allelopathy is derived from two greek words “allelon” means
“mutual or each other” and “pathos” means “suffering or to
suffer.”
Hans Molisch (1937), plant physiologist, University of Vienna,
Austria, coined the term allelopathy
It was first reported in alfalfa, and the first allelochemical was
extracted from walnut.
Actually, it is the process involving secondary metabolites,
produced by algae, bacteria, plants, which influence the growth of
the other or same species.
What is Allelopathy?
Allelopathy refers to the chemical inhibition of one species by another. The
"inhibitory" chemical is released into the environment where it affects the
development and growth of neighboring plants.
Allelopathic chemicals can be present in any part of the plant.
They can be found in leaves, flowers, roots, fruits, or stems. They can also
be found in the surrounding soil.
Allelopathy was recognized in fresh water and marine systems,
demonstrating the capacity for allelochemicals to retain their
bioactivity even when greatly diluted. Similarly, the fate of
allelochemicals in the rhizosphere and, more generally, in soil
was being explored.
Emergent, contemporary interest in sustainability of natural
and managed systems focused workers on the role
which allelopathy might play, for example, in reducing reliance
on synthetic pesticides.
The application of mass spectrometry and high pressure liquid
chromatography greatly facilitated the identification and
quantification of allelochemicals.
“Allelochemicals may, therefore, be considered as part of a
network of communication in which disparate organisms give
similar responses to similar compounds or families of
compounds. Plants producing biologically active compounds at
relatively high concentrations may be perceived as utilizing
chemical defences” (Lovett et al,1989).
The alkaloids of Datura interfere with cell division, damage
mitochondria and interfere with energy metabolism (Lovett and
Ryuntyu, 1988).
Studies of allelopathy with Brassica crop residues
(Mason-Sedun et al 1986) showed that not only
Brassica species but also cultivars differed in their
expression of allelopathy.
The release of the alkaloids gramine and hordenine
from growing barley plants affected the growth of a
test plant, Sinapis alba L., but it was also found that
hordenine affected the growth of the common
armyworm, Mythimna convecta, an insect pest of
barley and the fungal pathogen Drechslera teres
(Lovett, 1991).
Allelopathy
Allelopathy has been defined as the direct or indirect harmful or
beneficial effects of one plant on another through the production
of chemical compounds that escape into the environment.
Numerous allelochemicals have been idendified as
Phenolic acids
Coumarins
Terpenoids
Flavonoids
Alkaloids
Glycosides
Isothiocyanate
Glucosinolates
The central principle - plants and microorganisms collectively
produce thousands of chemicals, and many of these chemicals are
released from the producing organism by leaching, exudation,
volatilization, or decomposition processes.
Subsequently, some of these compounds alter the growth or
physiological functions of organisms that encounter them during
growth.
Eg. Sorgoleone (a quinone) - Sorghum species, which inhibits
growth in plants that contact it by blocking photosynthesis and
respiration.
Target species are affected by these toxins in many different
ways.
The toxic chemicals may inhibit shoot/root growth, nutrient
uptake, or naturally occurring symbiotic relationship thereby
destroying the plant's usable source of a nutrient.
Chemical Warfare in the Plant Kingdom
Black Walnut-The chemical responsible for
the toxicity in Black Walnut is Juglone and is a
respiration inhibitor.
Tree-Of-Heaven-Ailanthone, an allelotoxin
extracted from the root bark of Ailanthus.
Sorghum- Sorgolene is found in the root and
disrupts mitochondrial functions and inhibits
photosynthesis.
Cinnamic and benzoic acids, flavonoids and various terpenes
are the most commonly found allelochemicals.
A few allelo-chemicals have been developed as herbicides and
pesticides, and it may be possible to genetically engineer a
crop to produce its own herbicides.
TYPES OF ALLELOPATHY
a). Alloallelopathy and Autoallelopathy
b). True allelopathy and Functional allelopathy
FORMS OF ALLELOPATHIC INTERACTIONS
Crop against other crops: Examples:
Sunflower on groundnut under intercropping situation.
Tree crops like Eucalyptus on vegetables and some field crops
(mustard).
Crop residues of lentil are phytotoxic to wheat and of sunflower
and mustard to several crops
Sorghum is allelopathic to wheat and sweet potato to cowpea.
Mung/ green gram and cowpea are stimulatory to the growth of
wheat.
Crop against weeds: Examples:
Sorghum releases hydrocynic acid (HCN) and
suppresses many weeds growing in vicinity.
Barley produces “gramine” an alkaloid, which
inhibits weed growth
S.No. Crops Weed species
1 Maize Chenopodium album, Amaranthus retroflexus
2 Sorghum Setaris viridis, Bromus pectinatus, Amaranthus hybridus
3 Cucumber Echinochloa crusgalli
4 Sweet potato Cyperus rotundus, Cyperus esculentus
Weed against crops
S.No. Weeds Crops
1 Cyperus rotundus Sorghum , soybean
2 Imperata cylindrical Several crops
3 Chinopodium album Alfalfa, cucumber, oat, maize
4 Cirsium arvense Several crops
5 Avena fatua Several crops
Weed against other weeds
Cassia sericea, has shown encouraging result to oust parthenium
SOURCES OF ALLELOPATHY
PLANT CHEMICALS REFERENCE
Secale cereal L. 2,4-dihydroxy-1,4(2H)benzoxazin- Barnes & Putnam (1987)
(Rye) 3-one (DIBOA)
2(3H)-benzoxazolinone (BOA)
Avena sativa L. Ferulic acid Rice (1984)
Sorghum bicolor (Sorghum), P-cumaric acid
Triticum aestivum L. (wheat) 2,4- Dihydroxy- 7- methoxy-1, 4-
benzoxazin-3-one (DIMBOA) Perez ( 1990)
Barley Hordenine
Mungbean Hydroxamic acid Liu and Lovett (1993)
Medicago sativa L. Saponins Corcurea et al. (1992)
Chenopodium Ascaridole, alpha-terpinene Krol et al. (1995)
Gamma-linolenic acid, Corcurea et al. (1992)
Cucumis sativus L. (Cucumber) Alpha-asarone
Benzoic and Cinnamic acids Yu and Matsui, 1994
ALLELOPATHIC PROBLEMS IN AGRICULTURE,
HORTICULTURE AND FORESTRY
1) Soil sickness
2) Auto toxicity under same crop - monocropping.
3) Increased crop- weed interference
4) Growing susceptibility of plants to disease/ pests
5) Reduced nitrification and biological nitrogen fixation
6) Reduced nutrient uptake
7) Weed seed decomposition delayed/ prevented
8) Poor success on replanting of tree crops
9) Failure of vegetative propagation (e.g. grafting, budding)
10) Suppression effect from trees
Towards an allelopathic future?
In chronological order, the first example is from India and
describes the application of oilseed cakes containing extracts
of neem (Azadirachta indica A.Juss), castor (Ricinus
cimmunis L.), mustard (Brassica campestris L.) and rocket
salad (Eruca sativa Mill.) to soil under controlled conditions.
The amended cakes reduced the multiplication of two species
of applied nematode, the effects being similar to those
achieved with commercial nematicides (Anver and Alam,
2000).
The findings are relevant to crop protection in several
leguminous crops which are important in the sub-continent.
Tsuzuki and Dong (2003) applied pellets of several
species of buckwheat (Fagopyrum spp.) containing a
number of commonly identified allelochemicals (for
example, ferulic and caffeic acids) to several plant
species under controlled conditions, where inhibitory
activity was observed.
Most importantly, the work was translated to the field
where buckwheat pellets were shown to inhibit weeds
in rice fields without adverse effects on the crop.
Cheema and Irshad (2004) who, working in Pakistan,
investigated the effect of ‘SWE’, water extract of
Sorghum bicolor L., on barnyard grass (Echinochloa
crus-galli (L.) Beauv) in rice (Oryza sativa L.) SWE
significantly reduced mass, but not plant density, of
barnyard grass in the field, relative to control.
This reduction was reflected by a positive effect on
yield components of rice.
The impossible dream?
It seems clear that allelopaths, in general, often
supported by increasingly sophisticated chemistry,
molecular biology and mathematical modelling, are not
engaged in translating even well established and
documented manifestations of allelopathy to the field.
Why is this the case?
Bioassays are easy to carry out and complex chemical tests are
becoming more readily available. Work in controlled
environments yields quicker results than does field work, and
the flow of publications is concomitantly greater.
Allelopathy is but one thread in the web of life and it can be
extremely difficult to disentangle it and to establish its
importance
Allelopathy has been shown to have a role in, say, weed
management, for the farmer to use it as part of a management
system is much more difficult than the simple alternative of
employing a commercial herbicide.
