Five weekly applications of Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin, a genetically engineered isolate of Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Raven), and aldicarb (Temik) were compared for control of Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) in an irrigated desert cropping system. B. thuringiensis was applied using low and high label rates (1.17 and 7.0 l ha−1). B. bassiana was applied...

Declining populations of kudzu bug, Megacopta cribraria (F.), in the southeastern United States have been observed since 2013 and are generally attributed to increased prevalence of natural enemies. Beauveria bassiana (Bals.-Criv.) Vuill. infects kudzu bugs in North America, but the level of pest suppression has not been reported. Beauveria bassiana is sensitive to classes of fungicides used to...

BACKGROUND The fungal pathogen, Beauveria bassiana, is an efficient biocontrol agent against a variety of agricultural pests. A thorough understanding of the basic principles of insect-fungus interactions may enable the genetic modification of Beauveria bassiana to enhance its virulence. However, the molecular mechanism of insect response to Beauveria bassiana infection is poorly understood, le...

The entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria (Cordyceps) bassiana holds much promise as a pest biological control agent. B. bassiana produces at least three in vitro single cell infectious propagules, including aerial conidia, vegetative cells termed blastospores and submerged conidia, that display different morphological, biochemical and virulence properties. Populations of aerial conidia, blastospor...

Commercial strains of entomopathogenic fungi were evaluated for control of chilli thrips, Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), an invasive pest of ornamental and vegetable plants in the Caribbean and southeastern United States. In laboratory assays, LC50 values against adult S. dorsalis were 5.1 × 10(4) CFU/mL for Beauveria bassiana GHA, with higher values 3.1 × 10(5) for Metar...

entomopathogenic fungi may be affected by pesticides used to protect crop plants. the in vitro compatibility of beauveria bassiana and metarhizium anisopliae with three fungicides and 16 insecticides was evaluated. the formulations of pesticides were tested in three concentrations (mean concentration (mc), half mc and twice the mc). all tested fungicides, at three concentrations, were incompati...

Transcriptional control of the cell cycle by forkhead (Fkh) transcription factors is likely associated with fungal adaptation to host and environment. Here we show that Fkh2, an ortholog of yeast Fkh1/2, orchestrates cell cycle and many cellular events of Beauveria bassiana, a filamentous fungal insect pathogen. Deletion of Fkh2 in B. bassiana resulted in dramatic down-regulation of the cyclin-...