Discovery of parasitic wasps of Sawyer beetles, Monochamus species /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Parasitic wasps and Sawyer beetles, Monochamus species Pine wilt disease is caused by the pinewood nematode (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus), which is primarily vectored by Sawyer beetles, Monochamus spp. 

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Biological control of cabbage pests with Rhabditis blumi nematode /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Caterpillars of some insect pests including Imported cabbage worm (Artogeia rapae; Fig. 1), Diamondback moth (Pluetella xylostella) and Cabbage moth (Mamestra brassicae) cause a tremendous damage to many cruciferous plants including cabbage, radish, collard greens (Fig. 2) and mustard.

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Efficacy of entomopathogenic nematodes against cigarette beetles /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes and cigarette beetles

Cigarette beetle, Lasioderma serricorne is an economically important pest of stored tobacco but it can also cause damage to different cereal grains, oilseeds, flour and different kinds of dry fruits.  A laboratory study showed that the entomopathogenic nematodes including Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, Heterorhabditis megidis, Steinernema carpocapsae and Steinernema feltiae have a potential to use as biological agents against cigarette beetles, L. serricorne (Rumbos and Athanassiou, 2012).

A novel entomopathogenic nematode formulation to attract insect pests /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera and entomopathogenic nematodes

In this formulation, entomopathogenic nematodes were encapsulated in the capsules, which were prepared from several compounds including a polysaccharide extracted from the algae, Laminaria spp. According to Hiltpold et al., (2012), these entomopathogic nematode-filled capsules are easy to apply in the field and from these capsules entomopathogenic nematodes can easily break through, and successfully infect insect pests such as Western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera. Also, these nematode-filled capsules can attract insect pests in the field if they are coated with insect food stimulant or attractants.

Literatures:

Hiltpold, I., Hibbard, B.E., French, B.W. and Turlings, T.C.J. 2012. Capsules containing entomopathogenic nematodes as a Trojan horse approach to control the western corn rootworm. Plant and Soil 358: 10-24.

New entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema australe from an island Isla Magdalena /  by Ganpati Jagdale

New entomopathogenic nematode and its symbiotic bacteria

Based on both the morphological and molecular characteristics, an entomopathogenic Steinernematid nematode isolated from a soil sample collected from Chilean island, Isla Magdalena has been identified as a new species, Steinernema australe (Edgington et al., 2009). This nematode is also symbiotically associated with symbiotic bacteria called Xenorhabdus magdalenensis, which was identified using 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities and a multigene approach (Tailliez et al., 2012).

Literature

Edgington, S., Buddie, A.G., Tymo, L., Hunt, D.J., Nguyen, K.B., France, A.I., Merino, L.M. and Moore, D. 2009. Steinernema australe n. sp. (Panagrolaimomorpha: Steinernematidae), a new entomopathogenic nematode from Isla Magdalena, Chile. Nematology 11: 699-717.

Tailliez, P., Pages, S., Edgington, S., Tymo, L.M. and Buddie, A.G. 2012. Description of Xenorhabdus magdalenensis sp nov., the symbiotic bacterium associated with Steinernema australe. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology 62: 1761-1765.

Research papers presented on entomopathogenic nematodes at 51st SON Annual Meeting /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Research papers on entomopathogenic nematodes and their symbiotic bacteria

Following 12 research papers on entomopathogenic nematodes and their symbiotic bacteria were presented at the Society of Nematologists 51st Annual meeting, which was held in Savannah, Georgia from August 12th -15th, 2012.

  1.  Ali, J.G., Alborn, H.T., Campos-Herrera, R., Kaplan, F.,Duncan, L.W., Rodriguez-Saona, C., Koppenhöfer, A.M. and L.L. Stelinski, L.L. 2012. Herbivore induced plants volatiles and entomopathogenic nematodes as agents of plant indirect defense.
  2. Bal, H.K.,Taylor, R.A.J. and Grewal, P.S.2012. Ambush foraging entomopathogenic nematodes employ ‘sprinting emigrants’ for long distance dispersal in the absence of hosts.
  3. Blackburn, D. andAdams, B.J.2012. Evolution of virulence in an entomopathogenic nematode symbiont.
  4. Campos-Herrera, R., ElBorai, F.E. andDuncan, L.W. 2012. Manipulating soil food webs in aFloridaorganic citrus orchard to enhance biocontrol by entomopathogenic nematodes.
  5. Dillman, A., Mortazavi, A., Hallem, E. and Paul W. Sternberg, P.W. 2012. Host-seeking, olfaction, foraging strategies, and the genomic architecture of parasitism among Steinernema nematodes.
  6. Griffin, C.T., Dillon, A.m.,Harvey, C.D. and C.D. Williams, C.D. 2012. Multitrophic interactions involving entomopathogenic nematodes applied against pine weevils in a forest ecosystem.
  7. Lancaster, J.D, Mohammad, B. and Abebe, E. 2012. Entomopathogenic symbiosis of Caenorhabditis briggsae KT0001 and Serratia sp. SCBI: Analysis of fitness.
  8. Noguez, J., Conner, E.S., Zhou, Y., Ciche, T.A., Ragains, J.R. and Butcher, R.A. 2012.  A novel ascaroside controls the parasitic life cycle of the entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis bacteriophora.
  9. Pathak, E., Campos-Herrera, R., ElBorai, F.E., Stuart,R.J., Graham, J.H. andDuncan, L.W. 2012. Environmental factors affecting community structure of nematophagus fungi and their prey inFloridacitrus groves.
  10. Shapiro-Ilan, D.I., Leskey, T.C., Wright, S.E., Brown,I.and Fall, L. 2012. Entomophathogenic nematodes: Effects of the soil agroecosystem on biological control potential.
  11. Somasekhar Nethi, S. Jagdale, G.B. and Grewal, P.S. 2012. Interactions among entomopathogenic nematodes and other nematode trophic groups and plants in agroecosystems.
  12. Zeng Qi Zhao, Z.Q., Davies, K.A., Brenton-Rule, E.C., Grangier, J., Gruber, M.A.M., Giblin-Davis, R.M. and Lester, P.J. 2012. New Diploscapter sp. (Rhabditida: Diploscapteridae) from the native ant, Prolasius advenus, inNew Zealand.

Seminars on Entomopathogenic Nematodes and Multitrophic interactions in the soil /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Symposium on Entomopathogenic Nematodes and Multitrophic interactions- nematodeinformation Three researchers including Raquel Campos-Herrera, Claudia Dolinski and Ganpati B. Jagdale have organized a Symposium entitled “Entomopathogenic Nematodes and Multitrophic interactions in the Rhizosphere” at the Society of Nematologists 51st Annual meeting, which would be held in Savannah, Georgia from August 12th to 15th 2012.  In this symposium, four seminar on the following research areas will be presented by different speakers starting at  8.0am on Tuesday August 14, 2012, Marriot Riverfront hotel, Savanna, GA.

 

Seminar topics and speakers:

  1. Multitrophic interactions involving entomopathogenic nematodes applied against pine weevils in a forest ecosystem by Christine T. Griffin, A.M. Dillon, C.D. Harvey and C.D. Williams.
  2. Entomophathogenic nematodes: Effects of the soil agroecosystem on biological control potential by David I. Shapiro-Ilan, T.C. Leskey, S.E. Wright, I. Brown, and L. Fall.
  3. Interactions among entomopathogenic nematodes and other nematode trophic groups and plants in agroecosystems by Somasekhar Nethi, G.B. Jagdale and P.S. Grewal.
  4. Herbivore induced plants volatiles and entomopathogenic nematodes as agents of plant indirect defense by Jared G. Ali, H.T. Alborn, R. Campos-Herrera, F. Kaplan, L.W. Duncan, C. Rodriguez-Saona, A.M. Koppenhöfer, and L.L. Stelinski.

Use of real-time PCR in insect nematology /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes and RT-PCR- nematodeinformation

Read following papers on the real-time PCR and Insect Nematology

Bae, S. and Kim, Y. 2003.   Lysozyme of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua: activity induction and cDNA structure. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology B-Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 135: 511-519.

Campos-Herrera R, El-Borai F.E., Stuart R.J., Graham J.H., DuncanL.W. 2011. Entomopathogenic nematodes, phoretic Paenibacillus spp., and the use of real time quantitative PCR to explore soil food webs inFlorida citrus groves. Journal Invertebrate Pathology 108:30-9.

Campos-Herrera, R., Johnson, E. G, El-Borai, F. E., Stuart, R. J., Graham, J. H. and Duncan, L. W.2011. Long-term stability of entomopathogenic nematode spatial patterns in soil as measured by sentinel insects and real-time PCR. Annals of Applied Biology 158: 55-68.

Ciche, T.A. and Sternberg, P.W. 2007.  Postembryonic RNAi in Heterorhabditis bacteriophora: a nematode insect parasite and host for insect pathogenic symbionts. BMC Developmental Biology 7, Article Number: 101.

Ji, D.J. and Kim, Y. 2004.   An entomopathogenic bacterium, Xenorhabdus nematophila, inhibits the expression of an antibacterial peptide, cecropin, of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua. Journal of Insect Physiology 50: 489-496.

Park, D., Ciezki, K., van der Hoeven, R., Singh, S., Reimer, D., Bode, H.B. and Forst, S. 2009. Genetic analysis of xenocoumacin antibiotic production in the mutualistic bacterium Xenorhabdus nematophila. Molecular Microbiology 73: 938-949.

Pathak, E., El-Borai, F.E., Campos-Herrera, R., Johnson, E.G., Stuart, R.J., Graham, J.H. and Duncan, L.W. 2012.  Use of real-time PCR to discriminate parasitic and saprophagous behaviour by nematophagous fungi.  Fungal Biology 116: 563-573.

Shrestha, Y.K. and Lee, K.Y. 2012. Oral toxicity of Photorhabdus culture media on gene expression of the adult sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 109: 91-96.

Son, Y. and Kim, Y. 2011.  Immunosuppression induced by entomopathogens is rescued by addition of apolipophorin III in the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 106: 217-222.

Song, C.J., Seo, S., Shrestha, S. and Kim, Y.  2011. Bacterial Metabolites of an Entomopathogenic bacterium, Xenorhabdus nematophila, inhibit a catalytic activity of phenoloxidase of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella. Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology 21: 317-322.

Torr, P., Spiridonov, S.E., Heritage, S. and Wilson, M.J. 2007. Habitat associations of two entomopathogenic nematodes: a quantitative study using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reactions. Journal of Animal Ecology 76: 238-245.

We know now where infective juveniles store their symbiotic bacteria /  by Ganpati Jagdale

It has been always reported that the infective juveniles of Steinernema spp. carry their symbiotic bacteria, Xenorhabdus spp. in a special intestinal vesicle (Bird and Akhurst, 1983) whereas the infective juveniles of Heterorhabdits spp. carry their symbiotic bacteria, Photorhabdus spp. in the anterior part of the intestine (Boemare et al., 1996) and release them in the body cavity of their insect hosts.

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Why scavengers avoid eating beneficial nematode infected insect cadavers /  by Ganpati Jagdale

As we know that the entomopathogenic (beneficial) nematode infected insect cadavers are like pouches that are filled with different developing stages of entomopathogenic nematodes such as Steinernema spp or Heterorhabditis spp and soup of their multiplying symbiotic bacteria in the genera Xenorhabdus or Photorhabdus, respectively. 

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Steinernema feltiae attracts to cues from slugs /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Scavenging and entomopathogenic nematodes

It has been demonstrated that an entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema feltiae that only infect and kill their insect host but it can also be attracted to the cues released from the slug cadavers suggesting that entomopathogenic nematodes can feed on carcasses of other organisms (Nermut et al., 2012).

Read following literature on scavenging behavior and entomopathogenic nematodes

Baur, M.E., Kaya, H.K. and Strong, D.R. 1998. Foraging ants as scavengers on entomopathogenic nematode-killed insects. Biological Control 12: 231-236.

Foltan, P. and Puza, V. 2009. To complete their life cycle, pathogenic nematode-bacteria complexes deter scavengers from feeding on their host cadaver.  Behavioural Processes 80: 76-79.

Nermut, J., Puza, V. and Mracek, Z. 2012.  The response of Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (Nematoda: Rhabditidae) and Steinernema feltiae (Nematoda: Steinernematidae) to different host-associated cues. Biological Control 61: 201-206.

Puza, V. and Mracek, Z. 2010.   Does scavenging extend the host range of entomopathogenic nematodes (Nematoda: Steinernematidae)?  Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 104: 1-3

San-Blas, E. and Gowen, S.R. 2008.   Facultative scavenging as a survival strategy of entomopathogenic nematodes. International Journal for Parasitology 38: 85-91.

San-Blas, E. and Gowen, S.R. and Pembroke, B. 2008.  Scavenging or infection? Possible host choosing by entomopathogenic nematodes. Nematology 10: 251-259.

Resistance of Pulmonate slug, Limax pseudoflavus to slug-parasitic nematode /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Slugs and slug- parasitic nematodes

According to Rae et al. (2008), slug parasitic nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita was not effective against the pulmonate Slug species, Limax pseudoflavus because nematode infective juveniles were encapsulated and killed in the slug shells due to the immune response of slug, Limax pseudoflavus.

Read following papers about interaction between different slug species and the slug-parasitic nematode.

Grewal, S.K., Grewal, P.S. and Hammond, R.B. 2003.  Susceptibility of North American native and non-native slugs (Mollusca : Gastropoda) to Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (Nematoda : Rhabditidae).  Biocontrol Science and Technology  13: 119-125.

Nermut, J., Puza, V. and Mracek, Z. 2012.  The response of Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (Nematoda: Rhabditidae) and Steinernema feltiae (Nematoda: Steinernematidae) to different host-associated cues. Biological Control 61: 201-206.

Rae, R., Verdun, C., Grewal, P., Robertson, J.F. and Wilson, M.J.  2007.  Biological control of terrestrial molluscs using Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita - progress and prospects. Pest Management Science 63: 1153-1164.

Rae, R.G., Robertson, J.F. and Wilson, M.J.  2006. The chemotactic response of Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (Nematoda : Rhabditida) to cues of Deroceras reticulatum (Mollusca : Gastropoda).  Nematology 8: 197-200.

Rae, R.G., Robertson, J.F. and Wilson, M.J.  2008. Susceptibility and immune response of Deroceras reticulatum, Milax gagates and Limax pseudoflavus exposed to the parasitic nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 97: 61-69.

Rae, R.G., Robertson, J.F. and Wilson, M.J.  2009. Chemoattraction and host preference of the gastropod parasitic nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita.  Journal of Parasitology 95: 517-526.

Ross, J.L., Ivanova, E.S., Sirgel, W.F., Malan, A.P. and Wilson, M.J.  Diversity and distribution of nematodes associated with terrestrial slugs in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Journal of Helminthology 86: 215-221.

Small, R.W. and Bradford, C. 2008.  Behavioural responses of Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (Nematoda : Rhabditida) to mucus from potential hosts. Nematology 10: 591-598.

Insecticidal and antimicrobial compounds from Xenorhabdus budapestensis /  by Ganpati Jagdale

It has been reported that an entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema bicornutum is effective against western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Ebssa et al., 2004) and western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera (Toepfer et al., 2005).  The infective juveniles of S. bicornutum carry symbiotic bacteria, Xenorhabdus budapestensis in their gut (Lengyel et al., 2005) and use them to kill their insect host.

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New slug-parasitic nematodes from South Africa /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Slug-parasitic nematodes

Recently, three new species of slug-parasitic nematodes namely Angiostoma sp., Phasmarhabditis sp. SA1 and Phasmarhabditis sp. SA2 have been reported from Western Cape Province of South Africa (Ross at al., 2012). These slug-parasitic nematodes were recovered during a survey and identified using both morphological and molecular techniques.

Literature

Ross, J.L., Ivanova, E.S., Sirgel, W.F., Malan, A.P. and Wilson, M.J. 2012. Diversity and distribution of nematodes associated with terrestrial slugs in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Journal of Helminthology 86: 215-221.

A new technique for identification of entomopathogenic nematodes and bacteria /  by Ganpati Jagdale

Entomopathogenic nematodes

Recently, San-Blas et al. (2011; 2012) demonstrated that Fourier transform mid-infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflection (FTIR/ATR) can be used for identification of entomopathogenic nematodes and their symbiotic bacteria.  Although this technique can make a distinction between different species of nematodes or symbiotic bacteria, its rapidity not known.

Read following papers for detail information on FTIR/ATR technique.

San-Blas, E., Cubillan, N., Guerra, M., Portillo, E. and Esteves, I. 2012. Characterization of Xenorhabdus and Photorhabdus bacteria by Fourier transform mid-infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflection (FT-IR/ATR). Spectrochimica Acta Part a-Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy 93: 58-62.

San-Blas, E., Guerra, M., Portillo, E., Esteves, I., Cubillan, N. and Alvarado, Y. 2011.  ATR/FTIR characterization of Steinernema glaseri and Heterorhabditis indica. Vibrational Spectroscopy 57: 220-228.

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.