Detoxication Enzymes in the Guts of Caterpillars: An Evolutionary Answer to Plant Defenses?

Abstract

Higher activity of midgut microsomal oxidase enzymes in polyphagous than in monophagous species indicates that the natural function of these enzymes is to detoxify natural insecticides present in the larval food plants. Differing strategies of adaptation to plant defenses may partly account for the great diversity of insect herbivores.