Current Science

Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access

Radio-sterilized Spodoptera litura (Fabr.) as a conducive host for in vivo safe trans­port of viable entomopathogenic nematodes, Steinernema thermophilum as potential parasitoids


Affiliations
1 Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, North Campus, Delhi 110 007, India
 

The potential of a radio-sterilized host, Spodoptera litura (Fabr.), an established noctuid pest, was ascertained for in vivo transport of the viable entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs), Steinernema thermophilum. Radio-sterilization (70 Gy) of the host (pest) was done to avoid any pest population build-up from the host larvae that could inadvertently miss EPN infection. The infective juveniles (IJs) derived from a radio-sterilized host took 67.3 h to induce host mortality, 132 h for incubation, and showed 87.8% parasitization with 98.9 IJs har-vesting per mg host body wt, indicating almost similar parasitizing behaviour of these IJs as control. The findings indicated the suitability of the radio-sterilized host, S. litura, for carrying the IJs (in vivo) in a safe mode, that could retain a substantial degree of infecti-vity to be utilized in the field for managing this serious noctuid pest using biocontrol measures.

Keywords

Biocontrol agents, entomopathogenic nema-todes, host irradiation, pest management, Spodoptera litura, Steinernema thermophilum.
User
Notifications
Font Size

  • Kranthi, K. R., Jadhav, D. R., Kranthi, S., Wanjari, R. R., Ali, S. S. and Russell, D. A., Insecticide resistance in five major insect pests of cotton in India. Crop Prot., 2002, 21, 449–460.

  • Ahmad, M., Arif, M. I. and Ahmad, M., Occurrence of insecticide resistance in field populations of Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Pakistan. Crop Prot., 2007, 26, 809–817.

  • Wang, X. et al., Insecticide resistance and enhanced cytochrome P450 monooxygenase activity in field populations of Spodoptera litura from Sichuan, China. Crop Prot., 2018, 106, 110–116.

  • du Preez, F., Malan, A. P. and Addison, P., Potential of in vivo- and in vitro-cultured entomopathogenic nematodes to infect Lobesia vanillana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) under laboratory conditions. PLoS ONE, 2021, 16, e0242645.

  • Heve, W. K., Adjadeh, T. A. and Billah, M. K., Overview and future research needs for development of effective biocontrol strategies for management of Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel (Diptera: Tephri-tidae) in sub-Saharan Africa. Pest Manage. Sci., 2021, 77, 4224–4237.

  • Acharya, R., Yu, Y. S., Shim, J. K. and Lee, K. Y., Virulence of four entomopathogenic nematodes against the tobacco cutworm Spodoptera litura Fabricius. Biol. Control, 2020, 150, 104348.

  • Narayanan, K. and Gopalakrishnan, C., Effect of entomopathogen-ous nematode, Steinernema feltiae (Rhabditida: Steinernematldae) to the pre-pupa, pupa and adult of Spodoptera litura (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera). Indian J. Nematol., 1987, 17, 273–276.

  • Radhakrishnan, S. and Shanmugam, S., Bioefficacy of entomopa-thogenic nematodes against Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctu-idae) in Bhendi. Int. J. Curr. Microbiol. Appl. Sci., 2017, 6, 2314–2319.

  • Nikoukar, A., Ensafi, P., Lewis, E. E., Crowder, D. W. and Rashed, A., Efficacy of naturally occurring and commercial entomopatho-genic nematodes against sugar beet wireworm (Coleoptera: Elateri-dae). J. Econ. Entomol., 2021, 114, 2241–2244.

  • Barbercheck, M. E. and Millar, L. C., Environmental impacts of en-tomopathogenic nematodes used for biological control in soil. In Nontarget Effects of Biological Control, Springer, Boston, MA, USA, 2000, pp. 287–308.

  • Gozel, C. and Kasap, I., Efficacy of entomopathogenic nematodes against the Tomato leafminer, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidop-tera: Gelechiidae) in tomato field. Turk. Entomol. Derg., 2015, 39, 229–237.

  • Gothama, A. A., Lawrence, G. W. and Sikorowski, P. P., Activity and persistence of Steinernema carpocapsae and Spodoptera exigua nuclear polyhedrosis virus against S. exigua larvae on soybean. J. Nematol., 1996, 28, 68–74.

  • Caoili, B. L., Latina, R. A., Sandoval, R. and Orajay, J. I., Molecu-lar identification of entomopathogenic nematode isolates from the Philippines and their biological control potential against lepidop-teran pests of corn. J. Nematol., 2018, 50, 99–110.

  • Acharya, R., Hwang, H. S., Mostafiz, M. M., Yu, Y. S. and Lee, K. Y., Susceptibility of various developmental stages of the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda, to entomopathogenic nematodes. Insects, 2020, 11, 868–880.

  • Yan, X., Shahid Arain, M., Lin, Y., Gu, X., Zhang, L., Li, J. and Han, R., Efficacy of entomopathogenic nematodes against the to-bacco cutworm, Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). J. Econ. Entomol., 2020, 113, 64–72.

  • Cabanillas, H. E. and Raulston, J. R., Evaluation of Steinernema riobravis, S. carpocapsae, and irrigation timing for the control of corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea. J. Nematol., 1996, 28, 75–82.

  • Yadav, A. K. and Lalramliana, Evaluation of the efficacy of three indigenous strains of entomopathogenic nematodes from Meghalaya, India against mustard sawfly, Athalia lugens proxima Klug (Hyme-noptera: Tenthredinidae). J. Parasit. Dis., 2012, 36, 175–180.

  • Kalia, V., Sharma, G., Shapiro-Ilan, D. I. and Ganguly, S., Biocon-trol potential of Steinernema thermophilum and its symbiont Xenorhabdus indica against lepidopteran pests: virulence to egg and larval stages. J. Nematol., 2014, 46, 18–26.

  • Marec, F. and Vreysen, M., Advances and challenges of using the sterile insect technique for the management of pest lepidoptera. In-sects, 2019, 10, 371–397.

  • Bloem, S., Carpenter, J. E. and Hofmeyr, J. H., Radiation biology and inherited sterility in false codling moth (Lepidoptera: Tortrici-dae). J. Econ. Entomol., 2003, 96, 1724–1731.

  • Bloem, S., Bloem, K. A., Carpenter, J. E. and Calkins, C. O., Sea-son-long releases of partially sterile males for control of codling moth, Cydia pomonella (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), in Washington apples. Environ. Entomol., 2001, 30, 763–769.

  • Carpenter, J. E. and Wiseman, B. R., Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepi-doptera: Noctuidae) development and damage potential as affected by inherited sterility and host plant resistance. Environ. Entomol., 1992, 21, 57–60.

  • Seth, R. K., Barik, T. K. and Chauhan, S., Interaction of entomo-pathogenic nematodes, Steinernema glaseri (Rhabditida: Steiner-nematidae), cultured in irradiated hosts, with ‘F1 sterility’: towards management of a tropical pest, Spodoptera litura (Fabr.) (Lepidop-tera: Noctuidae). Biocontrol Sci. Technol., 2009, 19, 139–155.

  • Carpenter, J. E., Hidrayani, and Sheehan, W., Compatibility of F1 sterility and a parasitoid, Cotesia marginiventris (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), for managing Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noc-tuidae): acceptability and suitability of hosts. Fla. Entomol., 1996, 79, 289–295.

  • Seth, R. K. and Barik, T. K., Assessment of infective behaviour and reproductive potential over successive generations of entomopatho-genic nematodes, Steinernema glaseri (Rhabditida: Steinernemati-dae), reared within radiosterilized host larvae, towards Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Biocontrol Sci. Technol., 2009, 19, 111–125.

  • Shapiro-Ilan, D. I. and Glazer, I., Comparison of entomopathogenic nematode dispersal from infected hosts versus aqueous suspension. Environ. Entomol., 1996, 25, 1455–1461.

  • Shapiro-Ilan, D. I., Han, R. and Dolinksi, C., Entomopathogenic nematode production and application technology. J. Nematol., 2012, 44, 206–217.

  • Lewis, E. E., Campbell, J., Griffin, C., Kaya, H. and Peters, A., Behavioral ecology of entomopathogenic nematodes. Biol. Control, 2006, 38, 66–79.

  • Birah, A., Chilana, P., Shukla, U. K. and Gupta, G. P., Mass rearing of greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.) on artificial diet. In-dian J. Entomol., 2008, 70, 389–392.

  • White, G. F., A method of obtaining infective nematode larvae from cultures. Science, 1927, 66, 302–303.

  • Yadav, A. K. and Lalramliana, Soil moisture effects on the activity of three entomopathogenic nematodes (Steinernematidae and Hete-rorhabditidae) isolated from Meghalaya, India. J. Parasit. Dis., 2012, 36, 94–98.

  • Yadav, A. K. and Lalramliana, Efficacy of indigenous entomopatho-genic nematodes from Meghalaya, India against the larvae of taro leaf beetle, Aplosonyx chalybaeus (Hope). J. Parasit. Dis., 2012, 36, 149–154.

  • Wetchayunt, W., Rattanapan, A. and Phairiron, S., Temperature ef-fect on novel entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema siamkayai Stock, Somsook and Reid (n. sp.) and its efficacy against Spodoptera litura Fabricius (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Commun. Agric. Appl. Biol. Sci., 2009, 74, 587–592.

  • Kung, S. P., Gaugler, R. and Kaya, H. K., Effects of soil tempera-ture, moisture, and relative humidity on entomopathogenic nema-tode persistence. J. Invertebr. Pathol., 1991, 57, 242–249.

  • Kaya, H. K. and Gaugler, R., Entomopathogenetic nematodes. Annu. Rev. Entomol., 1993, 38, 181–206.

  • Carpenter, J. E., Bloem, K. A. and Bloem, S., Applications of F1 sterility for research and management of Cactoblastis cactorum (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Fla. Entomol., 2001, 84, 531–536.

  • Soopaya, R. et al., Radiation biology and inherited sterility of light brown apple moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae): developing a sterile insect release program. J. Econ. Entomol., 2011, 104, 1999–2008.

  • Saeed, Q., Ahmad, F. and Saeed, S., Development and survival of Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) on alternate crops in cotton cropping pattern, with implications to integrated pest man-agement. Environ. Entomol., 2017, 46, 595–601.

  • Morrison 3rd, W. R., Scully, E. D. and Campbell, J. F., Towards developing areawide semiochemical-mediated, behaviorally-based integrated pest management programs for stored product insects. Pest Manage. Sci., 2021, 77, 2667–2682.

  • Wilson, B. E., Successful integrated pest management minimizes the economic impact of Diatraea saccharalis (Lepidoptera: Crambi-dae) on the Louisiana sugarcane industry. J. Econ. Entomol., 2021, 114, 468–471.

  • Llácer, E., Santiago-Álvarez, C. and Jacas, J. A., Could sterile males be used to vector a microbiological control agent? The case of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Beauveria bassiana. Bull. Ento-mol. Res., 2013, 103, 241–250.

  • Kour, S., Singh, R. and Ohri, P., Evaluation of biocontrol potential of Steinernema thermophilum formulation (Biogel) against some important lepidopteran crop pests. Indian J. Nematol., 2021, 51, 61–66.

  • Shapiro-Ilan, D. I., Lewis, E. E., Son, Y. and Tedders, W. L., Supe-rior efficacy observed in entomopathogenic nematodes applied in infected-host cadavers compared with application in aqueous sus-pension. J. Invertebr. Pathol., 2003, 83, 270–272.

  • Ansari, M. A., Hussain, M. A. and Moens, M., Formulation and application of entomopathogenic nematode-infected cadavers for control of Hoplia philanthus in turfgrass. Pest Manage. Sci., 2009, 65, 367–374.

  • Gulzar, S., Usman, M., Wakil, W., Gulcu, B., Hazir, C., Karagoz, M. and Shapiro-Ilan, D. I., Environmental tolerance of entomo-pathogenic nematodes differs among nematodes arising from host cadavers versus aqueous suspension. J. Invertebr. Pathol., 2020, 175, 107452.


Abstract Views: 326

PDF Views: 144




  • Radio-sterilized Spodoptera litura (Fabr.) as a conducive host for in vivo safe trans­port of viable entomopathogenic nematodes, Steinernema thermophilum as potential parasitoids

Abstract Views: 326  |  PDF Views: 144

Authors

Simran Arora
Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, North Campus, Delhi 110 007, India
Priya Yadav
Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, North Campus, Delhi 110 007, India
Ranjana Seth
Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, North Campus, Delhi 110 007, India
Yogendra Singh
Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, North Campus, Delhi 110 007, India
R. K. Seth
Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, North Campus, Delhi 110 007, India

Abstract


The potential of a radio-sterilized host, Spodoptera litura (Fabr.), an established noctuid pest, was ascertained for in vivo transport of the viable entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs), Steinernema thermophilum. Radio-sterilization (70 Gy) of the host (pest) was done to avoid any pest population build-up from the host larvae that could inadvertently miss EPN infection. The infective juveniles (IJs) derived from a radio-sterilized host took 67.3 h to induce host mortality, 132 h for incubation, and showed 87.8% parasitization with 98.9 IJs har-vesting per mg host body wt, indicating almost similar parasitizing behaviour of these IJs as control. The findings indicated the suitability of the radio-sterilized host, S. litura, for carrying the IJs (in vivo) in a safe mode, that could retain a substantial degree of infecti-vity to be utilized in the field for managing this serious noctuid pest using biocontrol measures.

Keywords


Biocontrol agents, entomopathogenic nema-todes, host irradiation, pest management, Spodoptera litura, Steinernema thermophilum.

References





DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv123%2Fi6%2F791-796