We compared the morphology of the primary olfactory center, the antennal lobe (AL), in 2 homopteran insects, Hyalesthes obsoletus Signoret (Homoptera: Cixiidae) and Scaphoideus titanus Ball (Homoptera: Cicadomorpha). The comparison between the ALs of the 2 species is particularly interesting considering that, although both use volatile cues to locate their host plants, their feeding behavior di...

The evolutionary divergence of the galling habit of aphids (Homoptera: Fordinae) that induce different gall types on Pistacia spp. (Anacardiaceae) trees in the Mediterranean region was examined. The phylogenetic cladogram of the aphids that was based on sequences of mitochondrial genes (COI and COII) was constructed. Placing gall traits on the single parsimony cladogram suggests that gall types...

Nine microsatellite loci were isolated from the genome of Laodelphax striatellus (Homoptera: Delphacidae) by constructing (TC)(6)(AC)(5) and (AG)(6)(AC)(5) compound SSR-enriched libraries using suppression-PCR procedures. These loci were found to be highly polymorphic, with 13 to 30 alleles per locus in the three populations that we investigated (Jiangsu, Shandong and Zhejiang). The observe...

We assessed the effects of cultivating two genetically modified (GM) glyphosate-tolerant soybean varieties (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) derived from Event 40-3-2 and a Japanese conventional variety on arthropods under field conditions, with weed control using glyphosate and conventional weed control for two years. Plant height and dry weight of the conventional variety were significantly larger tha...

Insect pests can reduce wheat yield by direct feeding and transmission of plant viruses. Here we report results from laboratory and field phenotyping studies on a wide range of wheat, including landraces from the Watkins collection deriving from before the green revolution, more modern cultivars from the Gediflux collection (north-western Europe) and modern UK Elite varieties, for resistance to...