Entre la diversidad de estrategias de comunicación vegetal, Smilax insularis, una planta trepadora nativa de las islas del sur de Japón, destaca por utilizar una sola molécula volátil como base para su polinización, diferenciándose claramente de la mayoría de las plantas, que recurren a mezclas complejas de compuestos.

Este mecanismo ha sido objeto de análisis detallado por parte de investigadores de la Universidad de Kobe, referente en botánica. Tanto el equipo de Kenji Suetsugu, en su investigación publicada en Current Biology, como el medio Muy Interesante, han documentado con precisión este sistema, explicando que la singularidad del proceso radica en la utilización de dihydroedulan I: un solo compuesto químico para atraer polinizadores, a diferencia de la estrategia multifactorial habitual en otras especies.

El mecanismo central consiste en la producción de dihydroedulan I, un compuesto que funciona como señal química y permite atraer únicamente a la cecidomia Dasineura heterosmilacicola. Esta diminuta mosca pertenece a la familia Cecidomyiidae y su ciclo vital depende directamente de la planta: las hembras depositan los huevos en los órganos reproductores de la flor y las larvas se alimentan de los tejidos vegetales.

En este proceso, el insecto efectúa la polinización, posibilitando la reproducción y el mantenimiento poblacional de ambas especies. Sin la intervención de otros estímulos olfativos o visuales, la emisión de dihydroedulan I desencadena la visita del polinizador.

Función y especificidad de dihydroedulan I

El compuesto I asume el rol de mensajero químico entre la planta y el insecto. De acuerdo con la investigación, esta molécula es la única responsable de atraer a Dasineura heterosmilacicola hacia las flores de la planta.

Mientras la mayor parte de las flores liberan una combinación de sustancias volátiles para captar la atención de distintos grupos de insectos, en este caso la señal es tan restringida que ningún otro polinizador reacciona ante ella. Así, se reduce la competencia por la polinización.

La especificidad de este mecanismo fue comprobada en experimentos de campo realizados por el equipo de Suetsugu de la Universidad de Kobe: únicamente la presencia de dihydroedulan I suscitó la llegada de la cecidomia. Otros insectos presentes en el área no mostraron reacción alguna ante este estímulo químico, lo que refuerza el alto grado de especialización entre las dos especies.

Sincronización y supervivencia

La interacción entre Smilax insularis y su polinizador está condicionada por una sincronización temporal precisa. La planta libera el compuesto volátil justo cuando las flores están en condiciones de ser polinizadas. A la vez, el ciclo de vida de Dasineura heterosmilacicola se ajusta para que las hembras adultas emerjan y busquen flores activamente al coincidir con la emisión de dihydroedulan I por parte de la planta.

Este ajuste temporal permite el encuentro óptimo entre planta e insecto. Como resultado, se reduce el uso de recursos de forma innecesaria y se evita la exposición de la flor a visitantes que no participan en la polinización.

La relación entre ambas especies se describe como un mutualismo, en el que la mosca poliniza la flor a la vez que utiliza los tejidos reproductivos de la planta para depositar huevos. Las larvas se alimentan de los tejidos vegetales durante su desarrollo.

A pesar del beneficio recibido por el insecto, la planta controla el impacto larval mediante mecanismos de regulación en el desarrollo floral. Esto mantiene un equilibrio en la interacción, permitiendo la estabilidad de la relación a lo largo del tiempo.

Singularidad y consecuencias evolutivas del sistema de señalización

El uso de un solo compuesto químico en la comunicación planta-insecto constituye una rareza evolutiva dentro del reino vegetal. La investigación de Suetsugu y sus colegas subraya que este método de señalización ha demostrado ser estable en el caso de Smilax insularis y su polinizador. La especificidad extrema de la señal disminuye la posibilidad de interferencia de otros insectos o plantas, reduciendo los errores en la comunicación química.

La estabilidad del sistema responde, en parte, a la sincronía entre los ciclos ecológicos y la dependencia entre la planta y el insecto, que han evolucionado de manera conjunta y mantienen la eficacia del mecanismo, incluso frente a cambios ambientales.

El descubrimiento de un modelo de señalización floral sustentado en un único compuesto permite profundizar en el estudio de las comunicaciones químicas vegetales.

Comprender el modo en que se logra tal especificidad podría facilitar el desarrollo de estrategias agrícolas enfocadas en atraer polinizadores concretos o en el manejo de plagas selectivas, sin afectar a otras especies. Además, la documentación de este caso aporta datos al debate sobre la evolución de las señales en sistemas mutualistas y apoya la conservación de la biodiversidad.

French nationals Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris were released by Iran on Tuesday after «three and a half years of detention,» President Emmanuel Macron announced. 

The pair, who were arrested in May 2022 while visiting Iran, were accused by Iranian state television of being spies who sought to stir up unrest, according to Reuters. France previously denounced their detention as unjustified and unfounded. 

«Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on their way to French territory, after three and a half years of detention in Iran. This is a relief for all of us and obviously for their families,» Macron wrote on X. 

«Thank you to the Omani authorities for their mediation efforts, to the State services, and to the citizens who mobilized tirelessly and thus contributed to their return,» he added.

SON OF BRITISH COUPLE DETAINED IN IRAN ‘LET DOWN’ BY STARMER’S LEADERSHIP ON PARENT’S IMPRISONMENT AMID WAR

The nonprofit United Against Nuclear Iran described Kohler as the head of a federation of teachers unions in France, with Paris being her partner. 

France’s foreign ministry said last May that Kohler and Paris were being detained as «state hostages by the Islamic Republic of Iran.» 

AFGHANISTAN FREES US CITIZEN DENNIS COYLE OVER A YEAR AFTER TALIBAN ARREST

French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference on July 10, 2025, in London, England. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

«They are being held in shameful conditions and have been able to receive only four consular visits, under very restrictive conditions,» the ministry said at the time. 

Iranian authorities freed the pair from prison in November but didn’t let them leave the country, according to The Associated Press.

Noemie Kohler, sister of Cecile Kohler, and Anne-Laure Paris, daughter of Jacques Paris, attend a press conference in Paris, France, on June 27, 2025. Both are relatives of French citizens held in Iran. (Benoit Tessier/Reuters)

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French officials said they were then being kept safe at the French Embassy in Tehran, until their departure from Iran on Tuesday. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

RINGGOLD, GA — Republican congressional candidate Clay Fuller just gave House Speaker Mike Johnson a little bit of breathing room as the GOP clings to a razor-thin majority in Congress.

Fuller, who was backed by President Donald Trump, on Tuesday defeated Democrat Shawn Harris in a special election to fill the empty U.S. House seat in Georgia’s solidly red 14th Congressional District, the Associated Press reported.

«He was the difference maker,» Fuller told Fox News Digital following his victory. He was the key factor in us winning….Our results prove that President Trump means a ton to Georgia-14.»

The seat was left vacant when MAGA firebrand Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene stepped down at the beginning of January. Greene quit Congress with a year left in her term, after a bitter falling out with Trump.

The special election came as Republicans cling to a razor-thin 218–214 majority in the House. The GOP was under the gun to make sure the Democrats didn’t pull off an upset in the special election, in a district in northwest Georgia that Trump carried by a whopping 37 points in his 2024 presidential victory.

PRIMARY PAUSE, POLITICAL FIRESTORM: HIGH-STAKES ELECTIONS THIS MONTH TAKE CENTER STAGE

«It’s extremely crucial, and we need the reinforcements,» Fuller told Fox News Digital on the eve of the runoff election.

Fuller, a local district attorney and a lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard who’s served in the Air Force since 2009, added, «I think the voters in Georgia 14 understand that, and they’re looking forward to sending a MAGA America first fighter up on Capitol Hill to support that agenda.»

TRUMP HITS CAMPAIGN TRAIL IN KEY BATTLEGROUND AS RACE TO REPLACE MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE HEATS UP

Asked if he was concerned that MAGA supporters would sit out what was expected to be a low turnout election since the president is not on the ballot, Fuller said Trump voters «would crawl through glass to make sure they have a representative up there that fight for them and fight for President Trump.»

Harris, a cattle farmer who spent four decades in the military and retired as an Army brigadier general, needed the support of crossover Republicans in order to pull off an upset.

«I am a Democrat, but I’m not tied to the party,» Harris highlighted as he spoke with Fox News Digital on Monday. And Harris argued, «My opponent, Clay, cannot say that. He actually sold his soul to President Trump.»

Harris narrowly edged Fuller amid a field of 17 candidates, including 12 Republicans, in the first round of voting in early March. Since no candidate topped 50%, Harris and Fuller advanced to Tuesday’s runoff.

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The congressional seat — which stretches from Atlanta’s outer suburbs to the state’s northwest borders with Alabama and Tennessee — was left vacant when Greene quit Congress with a year left in her term, after a very public falling out with Trump mostly over her push to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks during a news conference with 10 of the alleged victims of disgraced financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein outside the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

While Greene remains popular among Republicans in the district, Fuller said the voters he talked with on the campaign trail were «focused on the fights of the future, not anything that had happened in the past.»

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Asked if he spoke with Greene, Fuller said he «reached out to Rep. Greene, had conversations with her and got advice on the district, and I’ll keep those conversations confidential.»

Harris, who as a first-time candidate lost to Greene by nearly 29 points in her 2024 re-election, emphasized that he wasn’t «running against Marjorie Taylor Greene anymore,» and that his name «carries more weight than any other name in this district.»