Assessment of Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae) Diets on Adult Fecundity and Larval Development: Insights Into Employing the Sterile Insect Technique

Abstract Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) is a notorious insect pest that attacks diverse vegetables and fruits worldwide. The sterile insect technique has been developed as an environmentally friendly and effective control method that depends on the mass production of target flies. Because dietary yeast (protein) and sucrose (carbohydrate) are important in adult diets, yeast:sucrose (Y:S) mixtures are crucial for the mass-rearing of B. dorsalis. In this study, we found adult diets with different ratios of yeast to sucrose-influenced fecundity, and an extremely high or low Y:S ratios significantly decreased egg production of B. dorsalis. Additionally, the maximum oviposition efficiency was realized at dietary yeast to sucrose ratios of 1:1 and 1:3, suggesting their potential use to produce more eggs for the mass production of B. dorsalis. Here, new gel diets having different yeast concentrations (g/L water) were also assessed for rearing B. dorsalis larvae. Gel diets containing 20 g/L yeast led to a higher pupation, pupal weight and adult eclosion rate, and a shorter developmental time than other yeast concentrations. Moreover, the present gel diet also resulted in greater pupal production and adult emergence rates than previously used liquid and solid artificial diets, revealing that it is suitable for rearing B. dorsalis larvae. This research provides a useful reference on artificial diets mixtures for mass rearing B. dorsalis, which is critical for employing the sterile insect technique.

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Probiotic based-diet effect on the immune response and induced stress in irradiated mass reared Ceratitis capitata males (Diptera: Tephritidae) destined for the release in the sterile insect technique programs

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0257097 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (9) ◽

pp. e0257097

Author(s):

Meriem Msaad Guerfali ◽

Kamel Charaabi ◽

Haytham Hamden ◽

Wafa Djobbi ◽

Salma Fadhl ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sterile Insect Technique ◽

Ceratitis Capitata ◽

Control Method ◽

Expression Patterns ◽

Probiotic Strain ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Protective Role ◽

Pupal Weight ◽

Quality Traits ◽

The Impact

Ceratitis capitata (medfly) is one of the most devastating crop pests worldwide. The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is a control method that is based on the mass rearing of males, their sterilization, and release in the field. However, the effectiveness of the technique depends on the quality of the released males and their fitness. We previously isolated and selected a probiotic bacteria (Enterobacter sp.), from wild-caught medflies, according to criteria that improved biological quality traits of reared medfly males.We firstly evaluated the impact of the irradiation on the expression of different immune and stress genes in the medfly sterile males. Expression was measured at differents time points ranging from 0 to 168 h after irradiation to capture the response of genes with distinct temporal expression patterns. Then, we supplemented the larval diet with previously isolated Enterobacter sp.strain, live and autoclaved at various concentrations to see whether the probiotic treatments affect, through their protective role, the gene expression level, and quality traits. The irradiation had significant effect on the genes attacin, cecropin, PGPR-LC, hsp23, and hsp70 level expression. The expression of attacin and PGPR-LC was up-regulated while that of cecropin was down-regulated. Hsp genes showed decreased levels between 0 and 18 h to peak at 72 h. However, the supplementation of the probiotic strain, either live or autoclaved, was statistically significant only for attacingene. However, significant interaction time x probiotic was noticed for attacin, cecropin, hsp23 and hsp70. The probiotic treatments also improved the quality control parameters like pupal weight. From this work we can conclude that a consortium of parabiotics (autoclaved probiotics) treatment will be recommended in insectaries considering both the beneficial effects on mass reared insects and its general safety for insectary workers and for environment.

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Potential of a fly gut microbiota incorporated gel-based larval diet for rearing Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel)

BMC Biotechnology ◽

10.1186/s12896-019-0580-0 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (S2) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Mahfuza Khan ◽

Kajla Seheli ◽

Md. Abdul Bari ◽

Nahida Sultana ◽

Shakil Ahmed Khan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Large Scale ◽

Control Method ◽

Insect Pests ◽

Adult Emergence ◽

Fruit Fly ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Bactrocera Dorsalis ◽

Pupal Weight ◽

Larval Diet ◽

Egg Hatching

Abstract Background The Oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) (Diptera: Tephritidae), is an important polyphagous pest of horticultural produce. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a proven control method against many insect pests, including fruit flies, under area-wide pest management programs. High quality mass-rearing process and the cost-effective production of sterile target species are important for SIT. Irradiation is reported to cause severe damage to the symbiotic community structure in the mid gut of fruit fly species, impairing SIT success. However, studies have found that target-specific manipulation of insect gut bacteria can positively impact the overall fitness of SIT-specific insects. Results Twelve bacterial genera were isolated and identified from B. dorsalis eggs, third instars larval gut and adults gut. The bacterial genera were Acinetobacter, Alcaligenes, Citrobacter, Pseudomonas, Proteus, and Stenotrophomonas, belonging to the Enterobacteriaceae family. Larval diet enrichment with the selected bacterial isolate, Proteus sp. was found to improve adult emergence, percentage of male, and survival under stress. However, no significant changes were recorded in B. dorsalis egg hatching, pupal yield, pupal weight, duration of the larval stage, or flight ability. Conclusions These findings support the hypothesis that gut bacterial isolates can be used in conjunction with SIT. The newly developed gel-based larval diet incorporated with Proteus sp. isolates can be used for large-scale mass rearing of B. dorsalis in the SIT program.

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Life-History Traits and Flight Capacity of Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) Using Artificial Diets With Varying Sugar Content

Journal of Economic Entomology ◽

10.1093/jee/toaa256 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Sha Su ◽

Xueting Wang ◽

Chengzhi Jian ◽

Amedius Dwigo Ignatus ◽

Xiaohe Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Second Generation ◽

Sugar Content ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Pupal Weight ◽

Adult Longevity ◽

Biological Traits ◽

Sucrose Content ◽

Artificial Diets ◽

Grapholita Molesta ◽

Flight Capacity

Abstract Successful application of the sterile insect technique (SIT), an environmentally friendly control technology, mainly depends on mass-rearing of high-quality and high-performance insects. For mass-rearing of insects, the development of artificial diets is a key component. For optimal insect growth and development, sugar is an essential nutrient as it provides energy for flight. To date, few studies have analyzed the effects of different sugar contents on the biological parameters, including the flight capacity of Grapholita molesta, a globally important economic pest. Artificial diets with different sucrose contents (0, 15, and 30 g) were evaluated in two consecutive generations. The insect flight mill was used to study the G. molesta flight capacity. The larval and pupal periods, adult longevity and pupal weight of the first-generation of G. molesta reared on artificial diets with different sucrose contents were significantly different. Insects of the second-generation had a shorter larval period, greater adult longevity, and heavier larvae and pupae in the treatment with 30 g of sucrose than using 15 g. Among the males, strong, medium, and weak flight capacities were recorded and the weakest one was observed in the diet without sucrose. Results showed that the proportion of insects with highest flight capacity increased with increasing sucrose content in insects of the second generation. It can be concluded that sucrose content is a key determinant in the biological traits, including flight capacity of G. molesta, and should be taken into consideration during the mass-rearing of the pest for SIT.

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Impact of age, sex, and size on the thermal tolerance of the adult black soldier fly (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)

Journal of Insects as Food and Feed ◽

10.3920/jiff2021.0092 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

C. Li ◽

N.F. Addeo ◽

T.W. Rusch ◽

A.J. Dickerson ◽

A.M. Tarone ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Production ◽

Thermal Tolerance ◽

Egg Production ◽

Thermal Stresses ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Critical Temperatures ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Black Soldier Fly ◽

The Difference ◽

Age And Sex

Thermal stresses from both environmental conditions and organismal crowding are common in mass production of the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens L. (Diptera: Stratiomyidae). In this study, upper and lower critical thermal (CT) limits (i.e. knockdown CTmax and CTmin) for the adult black soldier fly were determined. Impacts of size, age, and sex on these critical temperatures were also assessed. The CTmax ranged from 45.0-51.0 °C with larger and older adults having a ~1 °C higher CTmax than smaller and younger adults. However, no differences in the CTmax were found between sexes, regardless of age or size. The CTmin ranged from 8.0 to 13.0 °C with larger and older females having a ~1 °C higher CTmin than males and smaller or younger females. While reporting the upper and lower critical temperatures, this study also revealed the thermal breadth (i.e. the range of body temperatures over which organisms can locomote) for adult black soldier flies across age, sex, and size. Based on these data, and when recognising not all fly populations are the same, mass-rearing facilities should determine the CTmax and CTmin for their fly population in order to optimise mating and fertile egg production, and ultimately maximise profits and sales. One degree of temperature can be the difference between success and failure in industrialised facilities.

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Black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae powder as a larval diet ingredient for mass-rearing Aedes mosquitoes

Parasite ◽

10.1051/parasite/2019059 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 ◽

pp. 57 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Wadaka Mamai ◽

Nanwintoum Sévérin Bimbilé Somda ◽

Hamidou Maiga ◽

Anna Konczal ◽

Thomas Wallner ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Production ◽

Egg Production ◽

Bovine Liver ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

High Plasticity ◽

Brewer’S Yeast ◽

Black Soldier Fly ◽

Brewer's Yeast ◽

Female Body Size

The mass production of mosquitoes is becoming more wide-spread due to the increased application of the sterile insect technique (SIT) and other genetic control programmes. Due to the variable availability and high cost of the bovine liver powder (BLP) constituent of many current larval diets, there is an urgent demand for new ingredients in order to support sustainable and efficient mosquito production while reducing rearing cost, without affecting the quality of the insects produced. Two black soldier fly (BSF) powder-based diet formulations (50% tuna meal, 35% BSF powder, 15% brewer’s yeast and 50% tuna meal + 50% BSF powder) were tested for their suitability to support the development of Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquitoes in mass-rearing conditions. Overall, the results indicate that the use of the BSF powder did not negatively impact the development and quality of the produced insects in terms of time to pupation, adult production and male flight ability. Furthermore, depending on the species and diet formulations, there were improvements in some parameters such as female body size, egg production, egg hatch rate and male longevity. BSF powder is a valuable ingredient that can effectively replace costly BLP for the mass production of high quality Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquitoes. Both diet formulations can be used for Ae. aegypti showing high plasticity to nutrition sources. However, for Ae. albopictus we recommend the combination including brewer’s yeast.

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Blood serum and BSA, but neither red blood cells nor hemoglobin can support vitellogenesis and egg production in the dengue vector Aedes aegypti

10.7287/peerj.preprints.682v1 ◽

2014 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kristina K Gonzales ◽

Hitoshi Tsujimoto ◽

Immo A Hansen

Keyword(s):

Aedes Aegypti ◽

Blood Serum ◽

Egg Production ◽

Artificial Diet ◽

Serum Proteins ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Blood Proteins ◽

Artificial Diets ◽

Population Replacement ◽

Potential Health

Aedes aegypti is the major vector of dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya viruses that put millions of people in endemic countries at risk. Mass rearing of this mosquito is crucial for strategies that use modified insects to reduce vector populations and transmission of pathogens, such as sterile insect technique or population replacement. A major problem for vector mosquito mass rearing is the requirement of vertebrate blood for egg production since it poses significant costs as well as potential health hazards. Also regulations for human and animal use as blood source can pose a significant obstacle. A completely artificial diet that supports egg production in vector mosquitoes can solve this problem. In this study, we compared different blood fractions as dietary protein sources for mosquito egg production. We also tested artificial diets made from commercially available blood proteins (bovine serum albumin (BSA) and hemoglobin). We found that Ae. aegypti performed vitellogenesis and produced eggs when given whole bovine blood, serum, or an artificial diet containing BSA. Conversely, egg production was impaired after feeding of the red blood cell fraction or an artificial diet containing only hemoglobin. Our results indicate that serum proteins, not hemoglobin, may replace vertebrate blood in artificial diets for mass mosquito rearing.

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Blood serum and BSA, but neither red blood cells nor hemoglobin can support vitellogenesis and egg production in the dengue vector Aedes aegypti

10.7287/peerj.preprints.682 ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

Kristina K Gonzales ◽

Hitoshi Tsujimoto ◽

Immo A Hansen

Keyword(s):

Aedes Aegypti ◽

Blood Serum ◽

Egg Production ◽

Artificial Diet ◽

Serum Proteins ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Blood Proteins ◽

Artificial Diets ◽

Population Replacement ◽

Potential Health

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Enterobacter sp. AA26 gut symbiont as a protein source for Mediterranean fruit fly mass-rearing and sterile insect technique applications

BMC Microbiology ◽

10.1186/s12866-019-1651-z ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (S1) ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Georgios A. Kyritsis ◽

Antonios A. Augustinos ◽

Spyridon Ntougias ◽

Nikos T. Papadopoulos ◽

Kostas Bourtzis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sterile Insect Technique ◽

Fruit Fly ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Mediterranean Fruit Fly ◽

Protein Source ◽

Pupal Weight ◽

Larval Diet ◽

Brewer’S Yeast ◽

Complete Replacement ◽

Brewer's Yeast

Abstract Background Insect species have established sophisticated symbiotic associations with diverse groups of microorganisms including bacteria which have been shown to affect several aspects of their biology, physiology, ecology and evolution. In addition, recent studies have shown that insect symbionts, including those localized in the gastrointestinal tract, can be exploited for the enhancement of sterile insect technique (SIT) applications against major insect pests such as the Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly) Ceratitis capitata. We previously showed that Enterobacter sp. AA26 can be used as probiotic supplement in medfly larval diet improving the productivity and accelerating the development of the VIENNA 8 genetic sexing strain (GSS), which is currently used in large scale operational SIT programs worldwide. Results Enterobacter sp. AA26 was an adequate nutritional source for C. capitata larvae, comprising an effective substitute for brewer’s yeast. Incorporating inactive bacterial cells in the larval diet conferred a number of substantial beneficial effects on medfly biology. The consumption of bacteria-based diet (either as full or partial yeast replacement) resulted in decreased immature stages mortality, accelerated immature development, increased pupal weight, and elongated the survival under stress conditions. Moreover, neither the partial nor the complete replacement of yeast with Enterobacter sp. AA26 had significant impact on adult sex ratio, females’ fecundity, adults’ flight ability and males’ mating competitiveness. The absence of both yeast and Enterobacter sp. AA26 (deprivation of protein source and possible other important nutrients) from the larval diet detrimentally affected the larval development, survival and elongated the immature developmental duration. Conclusions Enterobacter sp. AA26 dry biomass can fully replace the brewer’s yeast as a protein source in medfly larval diet without any effect on the productivity and the biological quality of reared medfly of VIENNA 8 GSS as assessed by the FAO/IAEA/USDA standard quality control tests. We discuss this finding in the context of mass-rearing and SIT applications.

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Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) and Its Applications

Insects ◽

10.3390/insects12070638 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (7) ◽

pp. 638

Author(s):

Kostas Bourtzis ◽

Marc J. B. Vreysen

Keyword(s):

Sterile Insect Technique ◽

Insect Pest ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Field Trials ◽

Disease Vectors ◽

Original Research ◽

Special Issue ◽

Genetic Sexing ◽

Genetic Sexing Strains

Although most insect species have a beneficial role in the ecosystems, some of them represent major plant pests and disease vectors for livestock and humans. During the last six–seven decades, the sterile insect technique (SIT) has been used as part of area-wide integrated pest management strategies to suppress, contain, locally eradicate or prevent the (re)invasion of insect pest populations and disease vectors worldwide. This Special Issue on “Sterile insect technique (SIT) and its applications”, which consists of 27 manuscripts (7 reviews and 20 original research articles), provides an update on the research and development efforts in this area. The manuscripts report on all the different components of the SIT package including mass-rearing, development of genetic sexing strains, irradiation, quality control as well as field trials.

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Horizontal transfer and finalization of a reliable detection method for the olive fruit fly endosymbiont,CandidatusErwinia dacicolax

10.1101/326090 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Gaia Bigiotti ◽

Roberta Pastorelli ◽

Roberto Guidi ◽

Antonio Belcari ◽

Patrizia Sacchetti

Keyword(s):

Horizontal Transfer ◽

Sterile Insect Technique ◽

Insect Pest ◽

Fruit Fly ◽

Mass Rearing ◽

Economic Damage ◽

Olive Fruit Fly ◽

Olive Fly ◽

Starting Point ◽

Relevant Role

AbstractBackgroundThe olive fly,Bactrocera oleae, is the most important insect pest in olive production, causing economic damage to olive crops worldwide. In addition to extensive research onB. oleaecontrol methods, scientists have devoted much effort in the last century to understanding olive fly endosymbiosis with a bacterium eventually identified asCandidatusErwinia dacicola. This bacterium plays a relevant role in olive fly fitness. It is vertically transmitted, and it benefits both larvae and adults in wild populations; however, the endosymbiont is not present in lab colonies, probably due to the antibiotics and preservatives required for the preparation of artificial diets. Endosymbiont transfer from wildB. oleaepopulations to laboratory-reared ones allows olive fly mass-rearing, thus producing more competitive flies for future Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) applications.ResultsWe tested the hypothesis thatCa.E. dacicola might be transmitted from wild, naturally symbiotic adults to laboratory-reared flies. Several trials have been performed with different contamination sources ofCa.E. dacicola, such as ripe olives and gelled water contaminated by wild flies, wax domes containing eggs laid by wild females, cages dirtied by faeces dropped by wild flies and matings between lab and wild adults. PCR-DGGE, performed with the primer set 63F-GC/518R, demonstrated that the transfer of the endosymbiont from wild flies to lab-reared ones occurred only in the case of cohabitation.ConclusionsCohabitation of symbiotic wild flies and non-symbiotic lab flies allows the transfer ofCa.E. dacicola through adults. Moreover, PCR-DGGE performed with the primer set 63F-GC/518R was shown to be a consistent method for screeningCa.E. dacicola, also showing the potential to distinguish between the two haplotypes (htA and htB). This study represents the first successful attempt at horizontal transfer ofCa.E. dacicola and the first step in acquiring a better understanding of the endosymbiont physiology and its relationship with the olive fly. Our research also represents a starting point for the development of a laboratory symbiotic olive fly colony, improving perspectives for future applications of the Sterile Insect Technique.

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