Skip to main content
Article
Growth, Development, and Survival of Nosema pyrausta-Infected European Corn Borers (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) Reared on Meridic Diet and Cry1Ab
Journal of Economic Entomology
  • B. J. Reardon, Iowa State University
  • Richard L. Hellmich, Iowa State University
  • Douglas V. Sumerford, United States Department of Agriculture
  • Leslie C. Lewis, Iowa State University
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2004
DOI
10.1603/0022-0493-97.4.1198
Abstract

Transgenic corn, Zea mays L., hybrids expressing crystal protein endotoxin genes fromBacillus thuringiensis Berliner are an increasingly popular tactic for managing the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner), in North America. O. nubilalis populations also are often vulnerable to the ubiquitous entomopathogenic microsporidium Nosema pyrausta(Paillot). We examined the effect of feeding meridic diet incorporated with purified Cry1Ab on growth, development, and survival of Nosema-infected and uninfected neonate O. nubilalis. Infected larvae developed more slowly than uninfected larvae. Increasing the concentration of Cry1Ab in diet reduced larval development, and this effect was amplified by microsporidiosis. Infected larvae weighed significantly less than uninfected larvae. The relationship among Nosema infection, Cry1Ab concentration, and larval weight was fitted to an exponential function. The LC50 of infected larvae was one-third that of uninfected larvae, indicating that infected larvae are more vulnerable to toxin. This work has implications for resistance management of O. nubilalis and demonstrates that it is important to determine whether N. pyrausta is present when testing susceptibility of larvae to transgenic corn hybrids.

Comments

This article is from Journal of Economic Entomology; 97 (2004); 1198-1201; doi: 10.1603/0022-0493-97.4.1198

Rights
Works produced by employees of the U.S. Government as part of their official duties are not copyrighted within the U.S. The content of this document is not copyrighted.
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Citation Information
B. J. Reardon, Richard L. Hellmich, Douglas V. Sumerford and Leslie C. Lewis. "Growth, Development, and Survival of Nosema pyrausta-Infected European Corn Borers (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) Reared on Meridic Diet and Cry1Ab" Journal of Economic Entomology Vol. 97 Iss. 4 (2004) p. 1198 - 1201
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/richard_hellmich/17/