Temperature influences the virulence of beneficial nematodes against mustard beetles /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Interaction between entomopathogenic nematodes and mustard beetles- Nematodeinformation It has been demonstrated that the virulence of Heterorhabditis indica and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora against the pupae of mustard beetle, Phaedon cochleariae was high at 30oC but the virulence of Steinernema carpocapsae and Steinernema feltiae was high at 25oC (Mahar et al., 2012).

Literature:

Mahar, A.N., Jan, N.D. and Mahar, A.Q. 2012.  Comparative effectiveness of entomopathogenic nematodes against the pupae of mustard beetle, Phaedon cochleariae F. (Chrysomelidae: Coleoptera). Pakistan Journal of Zoology 44: 517-523.

A report of new entomopathogenic nematode species from Florida /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Steinernema phyllophagae- Nematode Information

Last year a new species of entomopathogenic nematode was isolated by Nguyen and Buss (2011) from a white grub (Phyllophaga sp.) and based on morphological and molecular characteristics, it was named as Steinernema phyllophagae.

Literature

Nguyen, K.B., and Buss, E.A. 2011. Steinernema phyllophagae n. sp (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae), a new entomopathogenic nematode from Florida, USA. Nematology 13: 425-442.

Interaction between strawberry crown moth and entomopathogenic nematodes /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Strawberry crown moth and entomopathogenic nematodes- Nematode information In a laboratory assay, when entomopathogenic nematodes including Steinernema carpocapsae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora  are in direct contact, the can cause over 94% mortality of strawberry crown moth (Synanthedon bibionipennis) larvae  but when applied in the field, these nematodes are not in direct contact with insects therefore, they can cause up to 51% insect mortality (Bruck et al., 2008).

Bruck, D.J., Edwards, D.L. and Donahue, K.M.  2008.   Susceptibility of the strawberry crown moth (Lepidoptera : Sesiidae) to entomopathogenic nematodes. Journal of Economic Entomology 101: 251-255.

Control white grub with beneficial nematodes-Nematode information /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Efficacy of entomopathogenic nematodes against white grub, Holotrichia longipennis Today, I read a paper published in Journal of Pest Science by Khatri-Chhetri et al. (2011), who tested the efficacy of two newly isolated entomopathogenic nematode species from Nepal against white grub, Holotrichia longipennis.  This white grub is a very serious pest of many crops including black gram, cabbage, chilies, maize, millet, paddy soybean and tomato. 

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A new entomopathogenic nematode species from South Africa /  by Ganpati Jagdale

An entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema citrae- Nematode Information Galleria-baiting technique (Bedding and Akhurst, 1975), was used to isolate an entomopathogenic nematode from the soil collected from a citrus orchard in South Africa. Based on molecular characteristics, this new nematode was named as Steinernema citrae that  found to be closely related Stienernema feltiae group.

For detail information read following original paper

Bedding, R.A. and R.J. Akhurst. 1975. A simple technique for detection of insect parasitic rhabditid nematodes in soil. Nematologica. 21: 109-110.

Stokwe, N.F., Malan, A.P., Nguyen, K.B., Knoetze, R. and Tiedt, L. 2011. Steinernema citrae n. sp. (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae), a new entomopathogenic nematode from South Africa. Nematology 13: 569-587.

A new entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis atacamensis from Chile /  by Ganpati Jagdale

An entomopathogenic nematode, Heterorhabditis atacamensis- Nematode Information New entomopathogenic nematode species was found in the soil collected from Atacama Desert in Chile and was named after Atacama Desert as Heterorhabditis atacamensis. I like the way nematode taxonomists (Edgington et al., 2011) used individual morphological characteristics to differentiate this new species from other morphologically similar species of entomopathogenic nematodes. For example, these researchers showed that the H. atacamensis differed from H. marelatus, H. downesi and H. amazonensis based on position of hemizonid (a nematode sensory organ), position of excretory pore and female tail terminus shape, and number and position of genital papillae, respectively.  Using molecular techniques, Edgington et al. (2011) were also able to distinguish H. atacamensis from closely related entomopathogenic nematode species, H. safricana.

 Research Paper

Edgington, S., Buddie, A. G., Moore, D., France, A., Merino, L. and Hunt, D. J. 2011. Heterorhabditis atacamensis n. sp (Nematoda: Heterorhabditidae), a new entomopathogenic nematode from the Atacama Desert, Chile. Journal of Helminthology 85: 381-394.

New entomopathogenic nematode, Oscheius carolinensis found in vermicompost /  by Ganpati Jagdale

New entomopathogenic nematode, Oscheius carolinensis- Nematode Information Based on morphological and molecular characteristics, the nematode isolated from vermicompost using Galleria bait method (Bedding and Akhurst, 1975) has been described as a new entomopathogenic nematode species, Oscheius carolinensis (Ye et al., 2010).  This nematode is also pathogenic to cabbage butterfly (Pieris rapae) and mealworms (Tenebrio molitor).

 Literature

Bedding, R.A. and R.J. Akhurst. 1975. A simple technique for detection of insect parasitic rhabditid nematodes in soil. Nematologica. 21: 109-110.

Ye, W., Torres-Barragan, A. and Cardoza, Y.J. 2010. Oscheius carolinensis n. sp. (Nematoda: Rhabditidae), a potential entomopathogenic nematode from vermicompost. Nematology 12: 121-135.

Entomopathogenic nematodes kill their insect hosts within 24 hours /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic Nematode Virulence- Nematode information It is well known fact that the infective juveniles of both Steinernema spp. and Heterorhabditis spp. enter their insect host through natural openings such as mouth, anus and spiracles and eventually reach in the insect body cavity.  As insects do not have a closed circulatory system like animals, their body cavity acts as an open circulatory system, which is filled with the blood that is technically called as hemolymph.

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Entomopathogenic nematodes for the control of wireworm, Agriotes lineatus /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes and Wireworms, Agriotes lineatus- Nematode Information Wireworm, Agriotes lineatus cause a tremendous loss to potato yields throughout the world. As biological control agent, entomopathogenic nematodes can serve as a safe alternative to chemical pesticides in managing wireworms and helping to increase potato yields.  It has been shown that the entomopathogenic nematode, Heterorhabditis bacteriophora can cause over 67% mortality of wireworm, Agriotes lineatus within three weeks of application (Ansari et al., 2009).

Literature

Ansari, M.A., Evans, M. and Butt, T.M. 2009. Identification of pathogenic strains of entomopathogenic nematodes and fungi for wireworm control. Crop Protection 28: 269-272.

Control sugarcane billbug, Sphenophorus levis with beneficial nematodes /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes and the sugarcane billbug, Sphenophorus levis- Nematode Information Sugarcane is grown as an important cash crop in many countries but insect pests like the sugarcane billbug, Sphenophorus levis can cause a tremendous yield loss to this crop. Entomopathogenic nematodes have a great potential to use as a biological control agent against the sugarcane bill bugs. Recently, Giometti et al. (2011) reported that entomopathogenic nematodes including Steinernema brazilense strain IBCB n6 and three strains of Heterorhabditis sp. (IBCB n10, IBCB n24 and IBCB n44) were highly virulent causing over 60% mortality of adults of the sugarcane billbug. Sphenophorus levis.  

Publications:

Giometti, FHC, Leite, LG., Tavares, FM., Schmit, F.S., Batista, A. and Dell'Acqua, R. 2011.  Virulence of entomopathogenic nematodes (Nematoda: Rhabditida) against Sphenophorus levis (Coleoptera: Curculionidae).   Bragantia 70: 81-86.

How entomopathogenic nematodes enter into host body- Nematode information? /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes- Mode of Infection In the soil environment, infective juveniles of entomopathogenic nematodes (Figure 1.) are always searching for the insect hosts to infect, kill, feed and reproduce.  Once the infective juveniles of both Steinernematid (Steinernema spp.) and Heterorhabditid (Heterorhabditis spp.) nematodes locate any larval, pupal or adult stages of their insect host, they will rush to find any easy entry routes/points to enter into the insect host body. 

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Why some insect-parasitic nematodes are called entomopathogenic nematodes? /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic Nematodes- Nematode Information Insect-parasitic nematodes that belong to both Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae families are also called as entomopathogenic nematodes because they cause disease to their insect hosts with the help of mutualistically associated symbiotic bacterial pathogens.

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Biological control of stored grain pests with Entomopathogenic nematodes /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Stored grain/ product pests: Nematode Information Several stored grain/product insect pests like Indian meal moth (Plodia interpunctella), Mediterranean flour moth (Ephestia kuehniella), Sawtoothed grain beetle (Oryzaephilus surinamensis), Mealworms (Tenebrio molitor), Red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) and Warehouse beetle (Trogoderma variabile) attack and destroy large quantities of stored grains and products during long-term storage in farm bins, grain processing facilities, warehouses, retail stores, and eventually also on the consumer shelves. 

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Virulence Mechanisms of symbiotic bacteria Photorhabdus and Xenorhabdus spp /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes and their symbiotic bacteria- Nematode Information

Molecular studies demonstrated that the closely related Photorhabdus, symbiotic bacteria of Heterorhabditis nematodes and Xenorhabdus, symbiotic bacteria of Steinernematid nematodes have developed totally different molecular strategies for the same objective of virulence to insects and symbiosis with the nematode.

These findings were presented by An, R. and Grewal, P.S. at the 50th annual meeting of the Society of Nematologists held in Corvallis, Oregon from July 17-20, 2011.

Occurrence of entomopathogenic nematodes in Egypt: Nematode Information /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes from Egypt

The occurrence and distribution of entomopathogenic nematodes including Heterorhabditis indica, Steinernema abbasi and Steinernema carpocapsae have been reported from four geographical regions (Northern, Middle, Southern and Sinai Peninsula) of Egypt.

These findings were presented by Abu-Shady, N.M., Shamseldean, M.M., Abd-Elbary, N.A. and Stock, S.P. at the 50th annual meeting of the Society of Nematologists held in Corvallis, Oregon from July 17-20, 2011.

Entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema siamkayai from Thailand /  by Ganpati Jagdale

An entomopathogenic nematode from Thailand:Nematode Information Based on the morphological and molecular studies, entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema siamkayai was reported as a new species from Thailand in 1998.

Publication:

  1. Stock, S.P., Somsook, V. and Reid, A.P. 1998. Steinernema siamkayai n. sp. (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae), an entomopathogenic nematode from Thailand. Systematic Parasitology 41: 105-113.

Entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema siamkayai reported from India- Nematode information /  by Ganpati Jagdale

A warm-adapted entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema siamkayai Tiruchirappalli strain can cause 45-100% larval mortality of various insect species including Galleria mellonella, Spodoptera exigua, Ceratitis capitata, Cydia splendana and Tenebrio molitor when tested under laboratory conditions at temperatures between 15- 37C (Raja et al., 2011).

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Entomopathogenic nematodes for the biological control of Colorado potato beetles- Nematode information /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes and Colorado potato beetle

  • Colorado potato beetles (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) are a most damaging pest of potatoes but they can also cause a significant damage to tomatoes and eggplants.
  • Generally, both adults and larvae feed voraciously on leaves causing hundreds of millions dollars in yield loss each year in the United States.
  • Many chemical insecticides have been recommended to control these beetles but unfortunately beetles have an ability to develop resistance to insecticides.
  • Entomopathogenic nematodes as biological control agents could provide an alternative to chemical pesticides in management of Colorado potato beetles.
  • As entomopathogenic nematodes naturally found soil, they are very effective against soil dwelling stages of host insect pests.  For example, mature larvae of Colorado potato beetle that moves in the soil for pupation can be a very good target for entomopathogenic nematodes.
  • Commercially available entomopathogenic nematode species including Steinernema carpocapsae, Steinernema feltiae, Heterorhabditis megidis, Heterorhabditis marelata and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora have showed a very high efficacy against adult, larval and prepupal stages of Colorado potato beetles when tested in soil under laboratory conditions.

Publications:

  1. Ebrahimi, L., Niknam, G. and Lewis, E. E. 2011.   Lethal and sublethal effects of Iranian isolates of Steinernema feltiae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora on the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata.  Biocontrol 56: 781-788.
  2. Ebrahimi, L.,Niknam, G.and Dunphy, G.B. 2011. Hemocyte responses of the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, and the greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella, to the entomopathogenic nematodes, Steinernema feltiae andHeterorhabditis bacteriophora . Journal of Insect Science 11, Article Number: 75.
  3. Armer, C.A., Berry, R.E., Reed, G.L. and Jepsen, S.J. 2004.  Colorado potato beetle control by application of the entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis marelata and potato plant alkaloid manipulation. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata. 111: 47-58.
  4. Berry, R.E., Liu, J. and Reed, G. 1997.  Comparison of endemic and exotic entomopathogenic nematode species for control of Colorado potato beetle (Coleoptera : Chrysomelidae). Journal of Economic Entomology. 90: 1528-1533.
  5. Cantelo, W.W. and Nickle, W.R. 1992. Susceptibility of prepupae of the Colorado potato beetle (coleoptera, chrysomelidae) to entomopathogenic nematodes (Rhabditida, Steinernematidae, Heterorhabditidae). Journal of Entomological Science. 27: 37-43.
  6. Nickle, W.R., Connick, W.J. and Cantelo, W.W. 1994. Effects of pesta-pelletized Steinernema-carpocapsae (all) on western corn rootworms and colorado potato beetles. Journal of Nematology. 26: 249-250.
  7. Trdan, S., Vidrih, M., Andjus, L. and Laznik, Z. 2009. Activity of four entomopathogenic nematode species against different developmental stages of Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae. Helminthologia. 46: 14-20.