Isolation of indigenous strains of the white halo fungus as a biological control agent against 3rd instar larvae of tobacco caterpillar, Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda Smith (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is one of the most damaging noctuid pests of maize and is reported in China at the beginning of 2019. It poses a serious threat to the food security of China. In order to find an attractive alternative to reduce the application of chemical insecticides, we screened different initial mite densities of Pyemotes zhonghuajia on the mortality rate of different stages of FAW and also recorded the number of P. zhonghuajia on FAW at the different times (24, 48, and 72 h). The results showed that initial mite densities had a significant effect on the mortality rates of all stages of FAW and the number of P. zhonghuajia found on the surface of FAW. One P. zhonghuajia female was able to significantly induce the mortality of FAW in the 1st to 3rd instar larvae, and the mite density of 40 could achieve 100% FAW mortality when added 1st to 5th instar larvae and prepupae. There was an increasing number of P. zhonghuajia on FAW from the 2nd to 4th instar larvae stages at all three days. These results provide the basic information for considering P. zhonghuajia as a suitable bio-control agent against FAW in China.

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Baculovirus of Autographa californica (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae): a Candidate Biological Control Agent for Douglas-Fir Tussock Moth (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae)1

Journal of Economic Entomology ◽

10.1093/jee/75.6.1120 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 75 (6) ◽

pp. 1120-1124 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mauro E. Martignoni ◽

Milton J. Stelzer ◽

Paul J. Iwai

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Control Agent ◽

Douglas Fir ◽

Autographa Californica ◽

Tussock Moth ◽

Lepidoptera Noctuidae

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Potensi Beauveria bassiana sebagai Agens Hayati Spodoptera litura Fabr. pada Tanaman Kedelai

Agrikultura ◽

10.24198/agrikultura.v29i1.16925 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 29 (1) ◽

pp. 43

Author(s):

Ayu Rosmiati ◽

Cecep Hidayat ◽

Efrin Firmansyah ◽

Yati Setiati

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Beauveria Bassiana ◽

Spodoptera Litura ◽

Biocontrol Agent ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Control Agent ◽

Spore Density ◽

Randomized Design ◽

Completely Randomized Design ◽

Spore Densities

ABSTRACTThe Potency of Beauveria bassiana as a biological control agent of Spodoptera lituraThe attack of Spodoptera litura can result in the decrease of soybean yield, so that the soybean production cannot fulfill the demand of soybean. The objective of the study was to examine the potency of Beauveria bassiana as a biological control agent of Spodoptera litura. The research was conducted at the Pest Laboratory, Departement of Agrotechnology, UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung from January to March 2017. The research was carried out using Completely Randomized Design (RBD) with six treatments of B. bassiana spore density and four replications. The treatments were spore densities of 100 (control), 102, 104, 106, 108, and 1010/ml aquades that applied to the instar II of S. litura larvae. The advanced test used was Duncan's advanced test of 5%. The results showed that the B. bassiana density spore of 1010/ml aquades caused the highest S. litura larvae mortality of 82.50% and the lowest weight of food eaten by S. litura larvae of 0.79 g.Keywords: Biocontrol Agent, Beauveria bassiana, Spodoptera litura, SoybeanABSTRAKSerangan Spodoptera litura dapat menurunkan hasil tanaman kedelai, sehingga produksi tanaman kedelai belum bisa memenuhi permintaan kedelai di Indonesia. Tujuan penelitian ini untuk menguji patogenitas Beauveria bassiana sebagai agens hayati pengendali Spodoptera litura. Penelitian dilaksanakan di Laboratorium Hama Jurusan Agroteknologi, UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung dari Januari sampai Maret 2017, menggunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL) dengan enam perlakuan kerapatan spora B. bassiana dan empat ulangan. Perlakuan tersebut adalah kerapatan spora 100 (kontrol), 102, 104, 106, 108, dan 1010/ml aquades yang diaplikasikan pada larva S. litura instar II. Uji lanjut yang digunakan adalah Uji lanjut Duncan taraf 5%. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa kerapatan spora B. bassiana 1010 /ml aquades menyebabkan mortalitas larva S. litura sebesar 82,50% dan bobot pakan yang dimakan oleh larva S. litura paling rendah sebesar 0,79 g.Kata Kunci: Agens hayati, Beauveria bassiana, Spodoptera litura, Kedelai

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Identification of Loci Associated with Enhanced Virulence in Spodoptera litura Nucleopolyhedrovirus Isolates Using Deep Sequencing

Viruses ◽

10.3390/v11090872 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (9) ◽

pp. 872 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Zwart ◽

Ali ◽

Strien ◽

Schijlen ◽

Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Positive Selection ◽

Central Asia ◽

Spodoptera Litura ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Control Agent ◽

Chinese Isolate ◽

Speed Of Kill ◽

Reading Frame ◽

Synonymous Mutations

Spodoptera litura is an emerging pest insect in cotton and arable crops in Central Asia. To explore the possibility of using baculoviruses as biological control agents instead of chemical pesticides, in a previous study we characterized a number of S. litura nucleopolyhedrovirus (SpltNPV) isolates from Pakistan. We found significant differences in speed of kill, an important property of a biological control agent. Here we set out to understand the genetic basis of these differences in speed of kill, by comparing the genome of the fast-killing SpltNPV-Pak-TAX1 isolate with that of the slow-killing SpltNPV-Pak-BNG isolate. These two isolates and the SpltNPV-G2 reference strain from China were deep sequenced with Illumina. As expected, the two Pakistani isolates were closely related with >99% sequence identity, whereas the Chinese isolate was more distantly related. We identified two loci that may be associated with the fast action of the SpltNPV-Pak-TAX1 isolate. First, an analysis of rates of synonymous and non-synonymous mutations identified neutral to positive selection on open reading frame (ORF) 122, encoding a viral fibroblast growth factor (vFGF) that is known to affect virulence in other baculoviruses. Second, the homologous repeat region hr17, a putative enhancer of transcription and origin of replication, is absent in SpltNPV-Pak-TAX1 suggesting it may also affect virulence. Additionally, we found there is little genetic variation within both Pakistani isolates, and we identified four genes under positive selection in both isolates that may have played a role in adaptation of SpltNPV to conditions in Central Asia. Our results contribute to the understanding of the enhanced activity of SpltNPV-Pak-TAX1, and may help to select better SpltNPV isolates for the control of S. litura in Pakistan and elsewhere.

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