Background Cotton(Gossypium spp.) is an important commercial crop being cultivated worldwide, but its production is hampered by many insect pests. The cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, is a key pest with increasing...Background Cotton(Gossypium spp.) is an important commercial crop being cultivated worldwide, but its production is hampered by many insect pests. The cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, is a key pest with increasing resistance to chemical insecticides. To explore eco-friendly management alternatives, this study evaluates the pathogenic potential of indigenous entomopathogenic fungi, isolated from cotton-growing regions of Tamil Nadu, India, via the ‘Galleria bait method'.Results Five entomopathogenic fungi were isolated and identified as Beauveria spp. based on cultural and morphological features. Molecular characterization by amplification of internal transcribed spacer-ribosomal DNA(ITS-rDNA) regions confirmed the isolates as B. bassiana. Among them, isolate B5(accession number: PP503009) exhibited the highest virulence, inducing 96.67% mortality at 7 days after treatment(DAT) with the concentration of 1 × 10^(8) spores·mL^(-1). The median lethal concentration(LC_(50)) and median lethal time(LT_(50)) values were 9.75 × 10^(4) spores·mL^(-1) at 7 DAT and 72.31 h at 1 × 10^(8) spores·mL^(-1), respectively. Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) images highlighted a progression of infection stages of B5, including spore attachment(24 h post infection(hpi)), hyphal penetration(48 hpi), and conidiogenesis(72 hpi).Conclusion The isolate B5 proved to be a promising candidate for the development of biopesticides for sustainable cotton aphid management in Tamil Nadu, India.展开更多
文摘Background Cotton(Gossypium spp.) is an important commercial crop being cultivated worldwide, but its production is hampered by many insect pests. The cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, is a key pest with increasing resistance to chemical insecticides. To explore eco-friendly management alternatives, this study evaluates the pathogenic potential of indigenous entomopathogenic fungi, isolated from cotton-growing regions of Tamil Nadu, India, via the ‘Galleria bait method'.Results Five entomopathogenic fungi were isolated and identified as Beauveria spp. based on cultural and morphological features. Molecular characterization by amplification of internal transcribed spacer-ribosomal DNA(ITS-rDNA) regions confirmed the isolates as B. bassiana. Among them, isolate B5(accession number: PP503009) exhibited the highest virulence, inducing 96.67% mortality at 7 days after treatment(DAT) with the concentration of 1 × 10^(8) spores·mL^(-1). The median lethal concentration(LC_(50)) and median lethal time(LT_(50)) values were 9.75 × 10^(4) spores·mL^(-1) at 7 DAT and 72.31 h at 1 × 10^(8) spores·mL^(-1), respectively. Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) images highlighted a progression of infection stages of B5, including spore attachment(24 h post infection(hpi)), hyphal penetration(48 hpi), and conidiogenesis(72 hpi).Conclusion The isolate B5 proved to be a promising candidate for the development of biopesticides for sustainable cotton aphid management in Tamil Nadu, India.
