German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv)
Halle-Jena-Leipzig
 

    Dr Alexander Weinhold

    Postdoc
    Molecular Interaction Ecology

    Research focus

     

    In my research I am interested in how plant metabolites are shaping plant-herbivore interaction but as well the interactions in plant communities. In my current project I am studying belowground interactions that are mediated by root exudates and root volatiles. The aim is to establish a platform that will allow us to untangle the sophisticated interactions in the soil with state of the art analytical instrumentation (LC-qToF, GC-QqQ, LC-QqQ). Starting with plants of Brassica and Solanum as model systems I would like to identify major chemical markers by means of a metabolomics/ chemometrics approach. Deciphering the role of belowground plant metabolites will help to gain a better understanding how plant biodiversity is emerging and how it is maintained.

    ResearchGate

    Keywords

     

    Metabolomics, chemometrics, secondary metabolites, plant volatiles, root exudates, root volatiles, plant-herbivore interactions

    Short CV

     

    December 2014 – Now

    PostDoc at the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) in the group of Nicole van Dam.

    April 2013 – December 2014

    PostDoc at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Institute for Reference
    Materials and Measurements in Geel, Belgium, working on the authentication of olive oils and wines by means of HPLC-MS and GC-MS combined with metabolomics.

    June 2012 – March 2013

    PostDoc in the Group of Phyllis Coley and Thomas Kursar at the Biology Department of the University of Utah, working on deciphering the chemical diversity of the tropical tree genus Inga by means of UPLC-qToFMS.

    2008 - 2012

    PhD student/ Dissertation at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in the group of Prof. Dr. Ian T. Baldwin on the topic “Understanding the role of trichomes in plant-herbivore interactions”. 

    2007 - 2008

    Diploma/Master thesis at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in the group of Prof. Dr. Ian T. Baldwin on "Multivariate analysis of volatile emissions from wild tobacco Nicotiana attenuata using GCxGC-ToFMS" co-supervised by Professors Dr. Ian T. Baldwin and Dr. Georg Pohnert (Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Friedrich Schiller University Jena).

    Selected Publications

     

    Endara, M.-J., Weinhold, A., Cox, J. E., Wiggins, N. L., Coley, P. D., Kursar, T. A. (2015), Divergent evolution in antiherbivore defences within species complexes at a single Amazonian site. Journal of Ecology, 103: 1107–1118. doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.12431

    Weinhold, A.; Baldwin, I. T. (2011). Trichome-derived O-acyl sugars are a first meal for caterpillars that tags them for predation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 108(19), 7855-7859. doi:10.1073/pnas.1101306108

    Stork, W. F. J.; Weinhold, A.; Baldwin, I.T.  (2011). Trichomes as dangerous lollipops: do lizards also use caterpillar body and frass odor to optimize their foraging? Plant Signaling & Behavior, Volume 6 Issue 12 1893-1896 doi:10.4161/psb.6.12.18028

    Weinhold, A.; Shaker, K.; Wenzler, M.; Schneider, B.; Baldwin, I.T. (2011). Phaseoloidin, a homogentisic acid glucoside from Nicotiana attenuata trichomes, contributes to the plant’s resistance against Lepidopteran herbivores. Journal of Chemical Ecology, Volume 37 1091-1098 doi:10.1007/s10886-011-0012-7

    Gaquerel, E.; Weinhold, A.; Baldwin, I. T. (2009). Molecular interactions between the specialist herbivore Manduca sexta (Lepidoptera, Sphigidae) and its natural host Nicotiana attenuata. VIII. An unbiased GCxGC-ToFMS analysis of the plant´s elicited volatile emissions. Plant Physiology, 149(3), 1408-1423. doi:10.1104/pp.108.130799

    iDiv publications

     

    Calf, O. W., Huber, H., Peters, J. L., Weinhold, A., Poeschl, Y., van Dam, N. M.

    (2019):
    Gastropods and Insects Prefer Different Solanum dulcamara ChemotypesJournal of Chemical Ecology45(2), 146-61
    10.1007/s10886-018-0979-4

    Huang, J., Hammerbacher, A., Weinhold, A., Reichelt, M., Gleixner, G., Behrendt, T., van Dam, N. M., Sala, A., Gershenzon, J., Trumbore, S., Hartmann, H.

    (2019):
    Eyes on the future – evidence for trade-offs between growth, storage and defense in Norway spruceNew Phytologist222(1), 144-58
    10.1111/nph.15522

    Ristok, C., Poeschl, Y., Dudenhöffer, J.-H., Ebeling, A., Eisenhauer, N., Vergara, F., Wagg, C., van Dam, N. M., Weinhold, A.

    (2019):
    Plant species richness elicits changes in the metabolome of grassland species via soil biotic legacyJournal of Ecology(in press),
    10.1111/1365-2745.13185

    Calf, O. W., Huber, H., Peters, J. L., Weinhold, A., van Dam, N. M.

    (2018):
    Glycoalkaloid composition explains variation in slug resistance in Solanum dulcamaraOecologia187(2), 495-506
    10.1007/s00442-018-4064-z

    Huang, J., Hartmann, H., Hellén, H., Wisthaler, A., Perreca, E., Weinhold, A., Rücker, A., van Dam, N. M., Gershenzon, J., Trumbore, S. E., Behrendt, T.

    (2018):
    New perspectives on CO2, temperature and light effects on BVOC emissions using online measurements by PTR-MS and cavity ring-down spectroscopyEnvironmental Science & Technology52(23), 13811-23
    10.1021/acs.est.8b01435

    Pappas, M. L., Liapoura, M., Papantoniou, D., Avramidou, M., Kavroulakis, N., Weinhold, A., Broufas, G. D., Papadopoulou, K. K.

    (2018):
    The Beneficial Endophytic Fungus Fusarium solani Strain K Alters Tomato Responses Against Spider Mites to the Benefit of the PlantFrontiers in Plant Science9, 1603
    10.3389/fpls.2018.01603

    Peters, K., Worrich, A., Weinhold, A., Alka, O., Balcke, G., Birkemeyer, C., Bruelheide, H., Calf, O. W., Dietz, S., Duhrkop, K., Gaquerel, E., Heinig, U., Kucklich, M., Macel, M., Muller, C., Poeschl, Y., Pohnert, G., Ristok, C., Rodriguez, V. M., Ruttkies, C., Schuman, M., Schweiger, R., Shahaf, N., Steinbeck, C., Tortosa, M., Treutler, H., Ueberschaar, N., Velasco, P., Weiss, B. M., Widdig, A., Neumann, S., van Dam, N. M.

    (2018):
    Current Challenges in Plant Eco-MetabolomicsInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences19(5),
    10.3390/ijms19051385

    Luu, V. T., Weinhold, A., Ullah, C., Dressel, S., Schoettner, M., Gase, K., Gaquerel, E., Xu, S., Baldwin, I. T.

    (2017):
    O-acyl sugars protect a wild tobacco from both native fungal pathogens and a specialist herbivorePlant Physiology174(1), 370-86
    10.1104/pp.16.01904

    Bixenmann, R. J., Coley, P. D., Weinhold, A., Kursar, T. A.

    (2016):
    High herbivore pressure favors constitutive over induced defenseEcology and Evolution6(17), 6037-49
    10.1002/ece3.2208

    van Dam, N. M., Weinhold, A., Garbeva, P.

    (2016):
    Calling in the Dark: The Role of Volatiles for Communication in the Rhizosphere In: Blande, D. J., Glinwood, R. (Eds.) Deciphering Chemical Language of Plant Communication Springer International Publishing, Cham, p. 175-210
    10.1007/978-3-319-33498-1_8
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    Deutscher Platz 5e
    04103 Leipzig, Germany

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    Room

    4.212

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    +49 341 9733163
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    Affiliation

    Friedrich Schiller University Jena

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