ABSTRACT
The gourd family (Cucurbitaceae) contains many species that are ecologically and agriculturally important. Undomesticated cucurbits are fast-growing annual vines and commonly found in areas prone to disturbance including riverbanks or roadsides. Cultivated varieties such as squash, cucumbers, and melons rank among the highest acreage crops grown worldwide. As a result of their unique defensive chemistry and their ecological and agricultural importance, several wild and cultivated cucurbits have emerged as models for studying chemically-mediated interactions among plants, microbes, and insects. This chapter reviews studies on the cucurbit chemical ecology and explores how plant secondary metabolites mediate interactions with antagonists (insect herbivores that damage plants and transmit pathogens) and mutualists (specialist pollinators and 56herbivore natural enemies) with discussion of more recent work on the influence of beneficial and pathogenic microbes on these chemical signals. Collectively, this research demonstrates the potential of wild and agricultural cucurbit systems to provide key insights the way that chemical signals and cues play a role in plant-insect interactions and in the epidemiology of vector transmitted pathogens. Finally, a perspective on the promise of the Cucurbitaceae as ecological models for translating plant chemical ecology research from controlled laboratory settings to more diverse, ecologically relevant field environments is provided.
