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Article
Entomopathogenic Fungi as Bioinsecticides
Frontiers in Industrial Mycology
  • Donald W. Roberts, Utah State University
  • Ann E. Hajek
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-1992
Disciplines
Abstract

As early as 900 A.D., it was known in the Orient that fungi could grow in insects (Steinhaus, 1975). The pioneering work of Bassi with Beauveria bassiana in silkworms in 1834 proved that fungi could actually cause infectious diseases in insects. From the 1880s through the early 1900s, the spectacular epizootics caused by entomopathogenic fungi—fungi-infecting insects—led to studies of their potential use for pest control. Interest in fungi as pest control agents waned, however, as chemical insecticides were used more frequently. More recently, owing to the myriad difficulties that have been gradually encountered in the development and use of chemical insecticides, the field of biological control has been undergoing a renaissance. In particular, our knowledge of entomopathogenic fungi is at present increasing rapidly.

Citation Information
Roberts, D.W. and A.E. Hajek. 1992. Entomopathogenic fungi as bioinsecticides. pp. 144-159. In: Frontiers in Industrial Mycology (G.F. Leatham, ed.), Chapman and Hall, New York.