Benzothiadiazole maintains redox balance and promotes defense against Sitobion avenae (F.) in wheat by fine-tuning the antioxidant system, secondary metabolism, and osmolyte accumulation.

Aphids are destructive cereal pests causing serious yield losses in the wheat crop. Since wheat is a staple food for more than 75% of the human population, therefore, proper management of insect pests is crucial to enhance its productivity and ensure food security. Aphid herbivory induces highly coordinated defense responses in plants at the cellular and molecular level. This innate plant defense system is activated by a signal transduction pathway mediated by plant hormones like Salicyclic acid (SA). In the present investigation an attempt was made to explore the impacts of Benzothiadiazole (BTH), an analogue of SA on wheat plants infested by Sitobion avenae F. (Grain Aphid). Exogenous application of BTH (0.1 and 1 mM) on two wheat (Triticum aestivum L) cultivars i.e. V00146 and Pasban-90 improved growth, chlorophyll pigments, gas exchange parameters, antioxidant enzyme activity, phenolics and proline accumulation, Ascorbic acid content, Total free amino acids, Total soluble sugars, leaf Ca2+ and expression of gene. Moreover, aphid feeding on BTH treated wheat seedlings showed lower nymph development rate, pre and post-fecundity and longevity and decrease in population. Our research findings, suggest that benzothiadiazole can ameliorate the negative impacts of aphid feeding on wheat and deter aphid herbivory by reducing its population. Overall, V00146 showed a better resistance against aphids.