BACKGROUND The MEAM1 (B biotype) Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) is one of the most widespread and damaging whitefly cryptic species. Our previous studies discovered that the MEAM1 whitefly indirectly benefits from interactions with the tomato yellow leaf curl China virus (TYLCCNV) via accelerated ovarian development and increased fecundity. However, the physiological mechanism of begomoviruse-infec...

the occurrence of the hymenopterous parasitoid of the sugarcane whitefly, neomaskellia andropogonis corbett (hem.: aleyrodidae), in iran is newly reported. the aphelinid species, eretmocerus delhiensis mani, which was reared from nymphs of the sugarcane whitefly, belongs to the subfamily aphelininae and tribe eretmocerini.

Herbivory defense systems in plants are largely regulated by jasmonate-(JA) and salicylate-(SA) signaling pathways. Such defense mechanisms may impact insect feeding dynamic, may also affect the transmission-acquisition relationship among virus, plants and vectoring insects. In the context of the tomato - whitefly - Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus (TYLCV) biological model, we tested the impact of...

BACKGROUND Some species of the whitefly Bemisia tabaci complex cause tremendous losses to crops worldwide through feeding directly and virus transmission indirectly. The primary salivary glands of whiteflies are critical for their feeding and virus transmission. However, partly due to their tiny size, research on whitefly salivary glands is limited and our knowledge on these glands is scarce. ...

A viruses and silverleaf whitefly can completely devastate cantaloupe crops, causing serious economic losses to growers. The California Melon Research Advisory Board (2003) lists the management and control of aphid-borne viruses and whitefly as a top pest-management research priority. At the UC Kearney Research and Extension Center (KREC), we studied the use of reflective plastic mulch and stra...

Plants have evolved a variety of ways to defend themselves against biotic attackers. This has resulted in the presence of substantial variation in defense mechanisms among plants, even within a species. Genome-wide association (GWA) mapping is a useful tool to study the genetic architecture of traits, but has so far only had limited exploitation in studies of plant defense. Here, we study the g...

The whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) is a widely distributed pest of many important food and fiber crops. This whitefly is also a vector of more than 70 plant-infecting viruses. A cell line was established in vitro using embryonic tissues from the eggs of Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius), B biotype (pseudonym B. argentifolii Bellows & Perring), and referred to as 'Btb(Ba)97, Hunter-Polston'. Cell ...

The effect of Bt-cotton, i.e. genetically modified cotton that contain genes expressing delta-endotoxin, on aphid, whitefly, chrysopid and coccinellid populations was determined with a two-year field study at a cotton farm near Marble Hall, South Africa. Although Bt-cotton is lepidopteran specific, non-lepidopteran arthropod populations may be indirectly influenced by the endotoxin. Abundance o...

Whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) are sap-sucking insect pests, and some cause serious damage in agricultural crops by direct feeding and by transmitting plant viruses. Whiteflies maintain close associations with bacterial endosymbionts that can significantly influence their biology. All whitefly species harbor a primary endosymbiont, and a diverse array of secondary endosymbionts. In this st...

Control of the whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Genn.) agricultural pest and plant virus vector relies on the use of chemical insecticides. RNA-interference (RNAi) is a homology-dependent innate immune response in eukaryotes, including insects, which results in degradation of the corresponding transcript following its recognition by a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) that shares 100% sequence homology. In t...