The melon fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae is of serious concern inflicting heavy losses to the horticultural industry. It attacks cucurbits right from primordial stages crop up harvest and causing yield loss 30 100%. Sterile Insect Technique a species-specific environmentally non-polluting method insect control that relies on sterilization males using gamma rays systemic release sterile in wild envi...

The Squash bug, Anasa tristis (De Geer), is a major piercing/sucking pest of cucurbits, causing extensive damage to plants and fruits, and transmitting phytopathogens. No genomic resources to facilitate field and laboratory studies of this pest were available; therefore the first de novo exome for this destructive pest was assembled. RNA was extracted from insects challenged with bacterial and ...

The host suitability of five zucchini and three cucumber genotypes to Meloidogyne incognita (MiPM26) and M. javanica (Mj05) was determined in pot experiments in a greenhouse. The number of egg masses (EM) did not differ among the genotypes of zucchini or cucumber, but the eggs/plant and reproduction factor (Rf) did slightly. M. incognita MiPM26 showed lower EM, eggs/plant, and Rf than M. javani...

At least 14 ascorbate oxidase (AO) isoenzymes with isoelectric points in the range of pH 3 /10 have been identified and their expression profile studied in various Cucurbitaceae tissues and during development and ripening of melon fruit (Cucumis melo L. var. reticulatus). At least four acidic AO isoenzymes were mainly located in the apoplastic fraction, whereas 10 basic AO isoenzymes were found...