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Insects
Special Issues
Targeting Insects: A Focus on Viruses and Toxic Proteins
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Targeting Insects: A Focus on Viruses and Toxic Proteins

A special issue of Insects (ISSN 2075-4450). This special issue belongs to the section "Insect Pest and Vector Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2022) | Viewed by 6338

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Wataru Mitsuhashi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
The University Museum, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
Interests: insect viruses; microorganisms infecting insects; microbial insecticides
Dr. Kotaro Konno

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8634, Japan
Interests: insect–plant interaction; plant toxin; insect adaptation; defense protein; plant defense; insect midgut; chemical ecology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Compared with chemical insecticides (synthetic pesticides), entomopathogenic microbes including viruses are generally safe and friendly to the environment as agents or potential agents for insect pest control. As is often the case with many proteins that are produced by microbes and plants, and the examples of the proteins are Cry toxins produced by the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, viral enhancing proteins, and plant-defense proteins showing toxic or growth-inhibitory effects on insects. Such proteins target midgut cells, the peritrophic matrix, and the other parts of insects. These microbes and proteins may be used in sprays and the toxin gene-induced crops to suppress insect pests or enhance microbial insecticides. To expand the use of such natural materials, their ability to suppress pests needs to be drastically strengthened or the cost of production decreased by achieving their efficient in vitro production or reducing labor.

This issue will present the current status of basic and applied studies of insect viruses and proteins that are toxic to insects or growth-inhibitory effects in them that are produced by microbes and plants and to discuss the future perspective of studies and use of them, which includes uses other than for pest control.

Dr. Wataru Mitsuhashi
Dr. Kotaro Konno
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Insects is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • insect viruses
  • Bacillus thuringiensis
  • δ-endotoxins
  • plant defense proteins
  • peritrophic matrix
  • insect midgut
  • insect adaptation and detoxification

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 6061 KiB  
Article
Presence of Spodoptera frugiperda Multiple Nucleopolyhedrovirus (SfMNPV) Occlusion Bodies in Maize Field Soils of Mesoamerica
by Trevor Williams, Guadalupe del Carmen Melo-Molina, Jaime A. Jiménez-Fernández, Holger Weissenberger, Juan S. Gómez-Díaz, Laura Navarro-de-la-Fuente and Andrew R. Richards
Insects 2023, 14(1), 80; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects14010080 - 13 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2583
Abstract
The occlusion bodies (OBs) of lepidopteran nucleopolyhedroviruses can persist in soil for extended periods before being transported back on to the foliage for transmission to the host insect. A sensitive insect bioassay technique was used to detect OBs of Spodoptera frugiperda multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus [...] Read more.
The occlusion bodies (OBs) of lepidopteran nucleopolyhedroviruses can persist in soil for extended periods before being transported back on to the foliage for transmission to the host insect. A sensitive insect bioassay technique was used to detect OBs of Spodoptera frugiperda multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (SfMNPV) in 186 soil samples collected from maize fields in the southern Mexican states of Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo, as well Belize and Guatemala. Overall, 35 (18.8%) samples proved positive for SfMNPV OBs. The frequency of OB-positive samples varied significantly among Mexican states and countries (p < 0.05). Between 1.7 and 4.4% of S. frugiperda larvae that consumed OB-positive samples died from polyhedrosis disease. Restriction endonuclease analysis using PstI and HindIII confirmed that the soil-derived isolates were strains of SfMNPV and that genetic diversity was evident among the isolates. The prevalence of OB-positive soil samples did not differ with altitude or extension (area) of the maize field, but it was significantly higher in fields with the presence of living maize plants compared to those containing dead plants or crop residues (p < 0.05). Georeferenced soil samples were used to identify soil types on digitized soil maps. Lithosol and Luvisol soils had a higher than average prevalence of OB-positive samples (42–45% positive) (p = 0.006), as did Andosol, Gleysol, and Vertisol soils (33–60% OB-positive), although the sample sizes were small (<5 samples) for the latter three soils. In contrast, Cambisol soils had a lower than average prevalence of OB-positive samples (5% positive). Bioassays on Acrisol, Fluvisol, Phaeozem, and Rendzina soils resulted in intermediate levels of OB-positive samples. We conclude that certain soil types may favor OB persistence and virus-mediated biological pest control. The soil is also likely to provide a valuable source of genetic diversity for the design of virus-based insecticides against this pest. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Targeting Insects: A Focus on Viruses and Toxic Proteins)
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11 pages, 2843 KiB  
Communication
The Biocontrol Agent Pyemotes zhonghuajia Has the Highest Lethal Weight Ratio Compared with Its Prey and the Most Dramatic Body Weight Change during Pregnancy
by Yi-Chai Chen, Tai-An Tian, Yi-Hui Chen, Li-Chen Yu, Ji-Feng Hu, Xiao-Fei Yu, Jian-Feng Liu and Mao-Fa Yang
Insects 2021, 12(6), 490; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects12060490 - 25 May 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2965
Abstract
Pyemotes spp. are small, toxic, ectoparasitic mites that suppress Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and Lepidoptera plant pests. To explore their potential use as a biocontrol agent, we studied the reproductive development, paralytic process, time to lethality and mortality, and searching ability of Pyemotes zhonghuajia on [...] Read more.
Pyemotes spp. are small, toxic, ectoparasitic mites that suppress Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and Lepidoptera plant pests. To explore their potential use as a biocontrol agent, we studied the reproductive development, paralytic process, time to lethality and mortality, and searching ability of Pyemotes zhonghuajia on different developmental stages of the oriental leafworm moth, Spodoptera litura. Pyemotes zhonghuajia gained 14,826 times its body weight during pregnancy. One single P. zhonghuajia female could rapidly kill one S. litura egg and first to third instar larvae, but not fourth to sixth instar larvae, prepupae, or pupae within 720 min. Pyemotes zhonghuajia could develop on eggs, first to sixth larvae, and pupae, but only produced offspring on the eggs and pupae. A single P. zhonghuajia female (an average weight of 23.81 ng) could paralyze and kill one S. litura third instar larvae (an average weight of 16.29 mg)—680,000 times its own weight. Mites significantly affected the hatch rate of S. litura eggs, which reduced with increasing mite densities on S. litura eggs. Releasing 50 or 100 P. zhonghuajia in a 2 cm searching range resulted in significantly higher mortality rates of S. litura first instar larvae within 48 h compared to second and third instar larvae in searching ranges of 4.5 and 7.5 cm within 24 h. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to reveal that P. zhonghuajia undergoes the greatest changes in weight during pregnancy of any adult female animal and has the highest lethal weight ratio of any biocontrol agent. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Targeting Insects: A Focus on Viruses and Toxic Proteins)
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