Mafa, Mpho S.Ramovha, Dembe2022-07-252022-07-252021-11http://hdl.handle.net/11660/11779Wheat plays a major role in food production and security. Infestation of wheat by Russian wheat aphid affects food security as it causes chlorosis on cereal crops. Since plants are sessile, they have developed a range of defense mechanisms against attackers. When aphids feed on the plant nutrients through the stylet they release salivary secretions containing cell-wall modification enzymes that degrade the cell wall. There are enzymes that act on the plant cell wall. These enzymes target the cellulose component of the cell wall. When studying the enzyme activity, increased activity was found on plants that were infested by aphids as compared to the control plants. During cell wall remodeling the esterase activity also increased due to the fact that the ester bond between phenolic acids and hemicellulose is cleaved.enDepartment of Plant Sciences--University of the Free State, 2021WheatDiuraphis noxiaPlant-pest interactionPlant defenseRussian wheat aphidPlant cell wallsOtherUniversity of the Free State