Project description:Megalurothrips usitatus (Bagnall) is one of the most harmful pests of leguminous plants. In order to expand our knowledge on the infection of M. usitatus by entomopathogenic fungi, two newly identified isolates of Akanthomyces attenuatus (Zare & Gams) were tested for their pathogenicity against M. usitatus. Both isolates of A. attenuatus (SCAUDCL-38 and SCAUDCL-56) were isolated from soil and were identified by morphological and molecular analyses. The adult females of M. usitatus were treated with five different concentrations (1 × 104, 1 × 105, 1 × 106, 1 × 107, and 1 × 108 conidia/mL) of the isolates. Our results revealed 76.25% and 57.5% mortality of M. usitatus after five days of treatment with 1 × 108 conidia/mL of SCAUDCL-38 and SCAUDCL-56, respectively. The median lethal concentrations (LC50) of SCAUDCL-38 and SCAUDCL-56 calculated through linear regression analysis after five days of fungal treatment of M. usitatus were 1.9 × 106 and 1.5 × 107 conidia/mL, respectively, whereas the median lethal time (LT50) observed for 1 × 108 conidia/mL of SCAUDCL-38 and SCAUDCL-56 were 3.52 days and 4.9 days, respectively. A. attenuatus isolates SCAUDCL-38 and SCAUDCL-56 are highly pathogenic strains of M. usitatus. These findings offer valuable information on the development and commercialization of alternative control measures against M. usitatus.
| S-EPMC6627670 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Development of matrine and Akanthomyces attenuatus against whitefly
Project description:BackgroundBemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) is a serious pest of crops in different regions of the world. Our recent studies on the joint application of Akanthomyces attenuatus (a pathogenic insect fungus) and matrine (a botanical insecticide) against B. tabaci have shown promising results. Using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq), we identified differentially expressed genes involved in whitefly responses to single or mixed applications of A. attenuatus and matrine.MethodsIn this study, we compared the transcriptome profiles of B. tabaci treated with individual and combined treatments of A. attenuatus and matrine to determine variations in gene expression among whiteflies in response to different treatments.ResultsTranscriptomic data analysis showed differential expression of 71, 1194, and 51 genes in response to A. attenuatus (BtA), matrine (BtM), and A. attenuatus + matrine (BtAM) treatment, respectively. A total of 65 common differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between whiteflies treated with A. attenuatus (BtA) and matrine (BtM). A comparison of DEGs across the three treatments (BtA, BtM, and BtAM) revealed two common DEGs. The results also revealed that AMPK signaling, apoptosis, and drug metabolism pathways are likely involved in whitefly defense responses against A. attenuatus and matrine infection. Furthermore, a notable suppression of general metabolism and immune response genes was observed in whiteflies treated with A. attenuatus + matrine (BtAM) compared to whiteflies treated with individual A. attenuatus (BtA) or matrine (BtM) treatments.ConclusionDynamic changes in the number of differentially expressed genes were observed in B. tabaci subjected to different treatments (BtA, BtM, and BtAM). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the molecular interactions between whitefly and individual or combined treatments of A. attenuatus and matrine. These results will further improve our knowledge of the infection mechanism and complex biochemical processes involved in the synergistic action of A. attenuatus and matrine against B. tabaci.