Wholesale container-grown ornamentals are often maintained at the nursery for at least two growing seasons and are subject to infestation by black vine weevil (BVW), Otiorhynchus sulcatus F., for several months each year. Therefore, a potting media amendment aimed at controlling BVW needs to persist for an extended period of time. These studies were conducted to determine the persistence and ec...

Wedetermined that spinosad interacts synergistically with the biocontrol agentMetarhizium anisopliae (Metch) Sorokin to increase the mortality of two wild-collected wireworm species, Agriotes lineatus(L.), andAgriotes obscurus(L.).BioassayswereperformedusingaM.anisopliae isolate originally acquired from a local wireworm cadaver.M. anisopliaewas applied as a soil drench at 3.3 10 and 10 conidia ...

Ixodes scapularis Say adults, nymphs, and larvae were treated with the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae in a combination of field and laboratory experiments to assess sublethal effects of the fungus on I. scapularis fecundity and body mass. Postengorgement and egg mass weights were 33 and 50% lower, respectively, in adult females treated with M. ansiopliae in the field before engo...

Entomopathogenic ascomycete fungi are ubiquitous in soil and on phylloplanes, and are important natural enemies of many soil-borne arthropods including larval western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera, which is a major pest of corn. We measured the prevalence of Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae sensu lato in ten cornfields in Iowa, USA by baiting with larval insects. B....

The variability in esterases of the entomogenous fungus Metarhizium anisopliae was determined electrophoretically on 8.5% polyacrylamide gel. Ten isolates from diverse taxonomic groups of insects were analyzed. The electrophoretic analysis showed differences and similarities between these isolates and it was possible to distinguish six different patterns. The results obtained show a great polym...

Cecropins are the most potent induced peptides to resist invading microorganisms. In the present study, two full length cDNA encoding cecropin2 (Px-cec2) and cecropin3 (Px-cec3) were obtained from P. xylostella by integrated analysis of genome and transcriptome data. qRT-PCR analysis revealed the high levels of transcripts of Px-cecs (Px-cec1, Px-cec2 and Px-cec3) in epidermis, fat body and hem...

The susceptibility of Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) to selected strains of the entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin and Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin was evaluated through bioassays with direct immersion or foliar exposureunder laboratoryconditions.Results showed thatA.planipennisadultswere susceptible toB. bassiana andM. anisop...

The focus of this study was on quantifying fitness attributes, such as spore density and viability, and determining the virulence level against aphid (Aphis gossypii) nymphs of isolates from the fungal species Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae. The fungal isolates were obtained from several insects, including Plutella xylostella, Hypothenemus hampei, Bronstispa longissima, A. gossyp...

Mortality of rice weevil, Sitophilus oryzae (L.) caused by Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin alone and in combination with a neonicotinoid insecticide, acetamiprid was evaluated in laboratory bioassays. Spray application of M. anisopliae alone at a spore concentration of 6 x 10 conidia/ml required 6 days to cause 10 percent mortality whereas 4 x 10 conidia/ml required 8 days to caus...