Predation of Glossiphonia weberi (Blanchard, 1897) on the invasive snail Physella acuta (Draparnaud, 1805) in the presence of an alternative prey

Abstract The North American freshwater snail Physella acuta has invaded and colonized a wide range of freshwater habitats, globally. Resembling other invasive species, P. acuta has several negative impacts on the invaded freshwater ecosystems, which calls for its regulation, preferably through biological control. The malacophagous leech Glossiphonia weberi, native to West Bengal, India, had been previously reported as a potential biocontrol agent of P. acuta. In this experiment, we observed the predation potential and prey preference of G. weberi on P. acuta in the presence of a native snail, Gyraulus convexiusculus. The results suggest that in all instances, G. weberi consumed less G. convexiusculus compared to P. acuta. In complex habitats, G. weberi showed significant prey preference to P. acuta except in the habitat characterized by the presence of pebbles. The complex habitats bear a significant (p < 0.05) negative impact only in the case of predation on P. acuta when present with conspecific but not in heterospecific prey conditions. Therefore, G. weberi qualifies as a useful biological control agent that can affect the colonization and expansion of the invasive snail P. acuta, even in the presence of alternative prey.

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The biology and host specificity of the Echium leaf miner Dialectica scalariella (Zeller) (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae)

Bulletin of Entomological Research ◽

10.1017/s0007485300006994 ◽

1977 ◽

Vol 67 (4) ◽

pp. 627-633 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

A. J. Wapshere ◽

A. A. Kirk

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Close Relation ◽

Control Agent ◽

Leaf Miner ◽

Cultivated Plants ◽

High Fecundity ◽

European Origin ◽

Host Restriction ◽

Wide Range

AbstractThe gracillariid leaf miner Dialectica scalariella (Zell.), which occurs in Mediterranean Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and the Canaries, is a potential biological control agent for the weed Echium plantagineum in Australia. The moth has a high fecundity and oviposits on the leaves of Echium spp. and other Boraginaceae. The larvae destroy the leaves by forming large bulbous blotch mines. There are 5-7 generations per year. Host restriction of D. scalariella to Boraginaceae was tested by exposing a wide range of cultivated plants considered to be most at risk from it because of their close relation to Boraginaceae, because they were of Australian or non-European origin, because they did not occur in the same ecoclimatic region as D. scalariella, because their entomological fauna was poorly known, and because they or related plants were known to be attacked by insects closely related to D. scalariella. The host restriction of the moth was confirmed as only boraginaceous plants were attacked. It was concluded that both in terms of effectiveness and specificity D. scalariella could serve as a biological control agent in Australia for E. plantagineum.

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Application of a Broad Range Lytic Phage LPST94 for Biological Control of Salmonella in Foods

Microorganisms ◽

10.3390/microorganisms8020247 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 247 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Md. Sharifull Islam ◽

Yang Zhou ◽

Lu Liang ◽

Ishatur Nime ◽

Ting Yan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Apple Juice ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Food Products ◽

Control Agent ◽

Chicken Breast ◽

Lytic Phage ◽

Wide Range ◽

Significant Public Health ◽

Different Temperatures

Salmonella, one of the most common food-borne pathogens, is a significant public health and economic burden worldwide. Lytic phages are viable alternatives to conventional technologies for pathogen biocontrol in food products. In this study, 40 Salmonella phages were isolated from environmentally sourced water samples. We characterized the lytic range against Salmonella and among all isolates, phage LPST94 showed the broadest lytic spectrum and the highest lytic activity. Electron microscopy and genome sequencing indicated that LPST94 belongs to the Ackermannviridae family. Further studies showed this phage is robust, tolerating a wide range of pH (4–12) and temperature (30–60 °C) over 60 min. The efficacy of phage LPST94 as a biological control agent was evaluated in various food products (milk, apple juice, chicken breast, and lettuce) inoculated with non-typhoidal Salmonella species at different temperatures. Interestingly, the anti-Salmonella efficacy of phage LPST94 was greater at 4 °C than 25 °C, although the efficacy varied between different food models. Adding phage LPST94 to Salmonella inoculated milk decreased the Salmonella count by 3 log10 CFU/mL at 4 °C and 0.84 to 2.56 log10 CFU/mL at 25 °C using an MOI of 1000 and 10000, respectively. In apple juice, chicken breast, and lettuce, the Salmonella count was decreased by 3 log10 CFU/mL at both 4 °C and 25 °C after applying phage LPST94 at an MOI of 1000 and 10,000, within a timescale of 48 h. The findings demonstrated that phage LPST94 is a promising candidate for biological control agents against pathogenic Salmonella and has the potential to be applied across different food matrices.

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An Insight into the Role of Trissolcus mitsukurii as Biological Control Agent of Halyomorpha halys in Northeastern Italy

Insects ◽

10.3390/insects11050306 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 306 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Davide Scaccini ◽

Martina Falagiarda ◽

Francesco Tortorici ◽

Isabel Martinez-Sañudo ◽

Paola Tirello ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Field Performance ◽

Egg Parasitoid ◽

Control Agent ◽

The Other ◽

Invasive Pest ◽

Halyomorpha Halys ◽

Wide Range ◽

Northeastern Italy

Sustainable strategies such as classical or augmentative biological control are currently being evaluated for the long-term management of the alien invasive pest Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae). A three-year study carried out in northeastern Italy was performed to investigate the distribution and field performance of the H. halys egg parasitoid Trissolcus mitsukurii (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), in comparison with other parasitoid species. In the study area, adventive populations of T. mitsukurii were present since 2016, representing the earliest detection of this species in Europe. Trissolcus mitsukurii was the most abundant parasitoid and showed a higher “parasitoid impact” (i.e., number of parasitized eggs over the total number of field-collected eggs) compared to the other species, i.e., Anastatus bifasciatus (Geoffroy) (Hymenoptera: Eupelmidae), Trissolcus basalis (Wollaston) and Trissolcus kozlovi Rjachovskij (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae). The hyperparasitoid Acroclisoides sinicus (Huang and Liao) (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) was also recorded. Phylogenetic analysis of T. mitsukurii population distinguished two clades, one covering samples from Italy, Japan and China, the other from South Korea. The present study provides promising results for the biological control of a pest that is having a dramatic impact on a wide range of crops worldwide.

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Association of L-form Bacteria with Plants and their Application in Biological Control of Phytopathogenic Fungi and Bacteria: A Review

Journal of Advances in Microbiology ◽

10.9734/jamb/2021/v21i1030395 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 77-86

Author(s):

P. W. H. K. P. Daulagala

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Control Agent ◽

Phytopathogenic Fungi ◽

Plant Diseases ◽

World Population ◽

Wide Range ◽

Rigid Cell Wall ◽

Plant Disease Management ◽

Phytopathogenic Fungi And Bacteria

L-form bacteria with modified or no cell walls are a special group of bacteria derived or induced from cell walled forms following suppression of their rigid cell wall. They have been used to establish non-pathogenic symbioses with a wide range of plants. These L-form-plant symbioses have been shown to confer resistance against the subsequent challenge of the associated plants by both fungal and bacterial pathogens. As the world population increases, the demand for food also increases and hence control of plant diseases is of paramount importance in producing enough agricultural crops to fulfil the food demand. Plant disease management using chemical fungicides and pesticides etc. is not an ecofriendly approach and hence researchers look for alternative options such as the use of biocontrol agents which are ecofriendly and sustainable. This review paper highlights the published information on the potential of applying L-form bacteria as a biological control agent in management of plant diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms.

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Molecular Characterization and Pathogenicity of Trichoderma Isolates to Meloidogyne javanica

10.5772/intechopen.99035 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ricardo R. Balardin ◽

Cristiano Bellé ◽

Daiane Dalla Nora ◽

Rodrigo F. Ramos ◽

José Carlos V. Rodrigues ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Biological Control ◽

Molecular Characterization ◽

Biological Control Agent ◽

Meloidogyne Javanica ◽

Control Agent ◽

High Potential ◽

Wide Range ◽

Elisa Plate ◽

Trichoderma Isolates

Nematodes are considered a serious problem for agriculture. Nematodes of the Meloidogyne genus can attack a wide range of plants, needing different management methods to decrease its population. Fungi from the Trichoderma genus has been related to have potential as biological control agents. However, before an organism is used as biological control agent, first it is necessary to prospect, characterize and test its potential as biocontrol agent, so the objective of this work was to characterize and test fungi isolates of the Trichoderma genus to control M. javanica. We obtained forty isolate to carry out this experiment. We extracted the DNA of each isolate to discover which species we were testing, by doing a PCR and sequencing. We tested in vitro their parasitism effect using ELISA plate. Also, we extracted their filtrate to see if their metabolites have potential to reduce nematode population by showing a high mortality or inhibiting hatching. The results confirmed the high potential of the fungi of Trichoderma genus as a biological agent to control Meloidogyne javanica.

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