Entomopathogenic fungi on Hemiberlesia pitysophila

Hemiberlesia pitysophila Takagi is an extremely harmful exotic insect in forest to Pinus species, including Pinus massoniana. Using both morphological taxonomy and molecular phylogenetics, we identified 15 strains of entomogenous fungi, which belong to 9 genera with high diversities. Surprisingly, we found that five strains that were classified as species of Pestalotiopsis, which has been considered plant pathogens and endophytes, were the dominant entomopathogenic fungus of H. pitysophila. Molecular phylogenetic tree established by analyzing sequences of ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer showed that entomopathogenic Pestalotiopsis spp. were similar to plant Pestalotiopsis, but not to other pathogens and endophytes of its host plant P. massoniana. We were the first to isolate entomopathogenic Pestalotiopsis spp. from H. pitysophila. Our findings suggest a potential and promising method of H. pitysophila bio-control.     

Entomopathogen ID: a curated sequence resource for entomopathogenic fungi

We report the development of a publicly accessible, curated nucleotide sequence database of hypocrealean entomopathogenic fungi. The goal is to provide a platform for users to easily access sequence data from taxonomic reference strains. The database can be used to accurately identify unknown entomopathogenic fungi based on sequence data for a variety of phylogenetically informative loci. The database provides full multi-locus sequence alignment capabilities. The initial release contains data compiled for 525 strains covering the phylogenetic diversity of three important entomopathogenic families: Clavicipitaceae, Cordycipitaceae, and Ophiocordycipitaceae. Furthermore, Entomopathogen ID can be expanded to other fungal clades of insect pathogens, as sequence data becomes available. The database will allow isolate characterisation and evolutionary analyses. We contend that this freely available, web-accessible database will facilitate the broader community to accurately identify fungal entomopathogens, which will allow users to communicate research results more effectively.     

医学昆虫的病原真菌

昆虫病原真菌在自然环境中对害虫数量起着抑制作用,在害虫的微生物防治中也占有独特的地位。长期以来,在应用昆虫病原真菌防治人畜害虫方面研究进展较为缓慢,六十年代以来才有较大的发展。本文介绍了近十年的发展概况,并讨论了影响这个研究领域迅速发展的原因及病原真菌在生物防治中应用的潜力。认为尽管至今对这类真菌了解还较少,但通过今后加强有关方面的研究工作,其应用前景是广阔的。     

医学昆虫的病原真菌*

昆虫病原真菌在自然环境中对害虫数量起着抑制作用,在害虫的微生物防治中也占有独特的地位。长期以来,在应用昆虫病原真菌防治人畜害虫方面研究进展较为缓慢,六十年代以来才有较大的发展。本文介绍了近十年的发展概况,并讨论了影响这个研究领域迅速发展的原因及病原真菌在生物防治中应用的潜力。认为尽管至今对这类真菌了解还较少,但通过今后加强有关方面的研究工作,其应用前景是广阔的。     

The lumicins: novel bacteriocins from Photorhabdus luminescens with similarity to the uropathogenic-specific protein (USP) from uropathogenic Escherichia coli

Bacteriocins are proteins produced by bacteria to destroy other bacteria occupying their ecological niche. Photorhabdus luminescens is an insect pathogenic bacterium carried by an entomopathogenic nematode and occupies several different niches in its life cycle. The nematode enters the insect and releases a single strain of P. luminescens. The bacteria then kill the host and the bacteria and nematodes replicate within the cadaver. Strikingly, at the end of the infection the cadaver is still occupied by a single strain of bacterium, suggesting that P. luminescens can destroy other bacteria entering, or present within, the insect. Here we describe four loci encoding 'lumicins' in P. luminescens subsp. akhurstii strain W14. The lumicins are novel bacteriocins capable of killing other strains of Photorhabdus and Escherichia coli. These loci predict killer proteins and multiple dual type immunity proteins with domains similar to pyocins and colicins. The killer proteins are chimeric in nature with multiple domains, one of which is similar to the uropathogenic-specific protein (USP) described from uropathogenic E. coli. The implications of these novel bacteriocins for the lifestyle of Photorhabdus and the potential role of USP as a bacteriocin in E. coli are discussed.     

An Electrophoretic Analysis of Variation in the Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase and Malate Dehydrogenase of Vibrio cholerae, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio fluvialis

A total of 59 isolates of Vibrio cholerae, V. parahaemolyticus and V. fluvialis were studied using the techniques of enzyme electrophoresis. The enzymes used were malate dehydrogenase (E.C.I. 1.1.37) and glucose-6-phospate dehydrogenase (E.C.I. 1.1.49). The results in general confirmed classical methods of vibrio taxonomy. The three species could be separated from each other and identified by their enzyme variant types.
The term zymovar, a group of strains having similar enzyme variants, is introduced. In the V. cholerae isolates six zymovars were found. All V. cholerae serovar 01 strains were classified in the same zymovar except for some strains of environmental origin, which occurred in another zymovar. In V. fluvialis two zymovars were detected corresponding with biovars 1 and 2 of this organism. All isolates of V. parahaemolyticus gave the same enzyme type.
The technique of enzyme electrophoresis appears to be a useful tool in vibrio taxonomy and used in conjunction with other methods may aid in the elucidation of the systematics of the genus.     

Chemical taxonomy of Torrubiella s. lat.: zeorin as a marker of Conoideocrella

The insect pathogens in the genus Torrubiella s. lat. were recently divided into new genera based on molecular phylogenetic characters. Isolates collected at various locations in Thailand, were tested for their productivity of a hopane-type triterpene, zeorin (6α,22-dihydroxyhopane), when cultured in potato dextrose broth under static conditions. Among the 49 strains of Torrubiella s. lat. species, Conoideocrella luteorostrata (ten strains) and C. tenuis (seven strains), all collected on scale insects (Hemiptera), produced zeorin, whereas another six strains of Orbiocrella petchii (which was recently removed from Torrubiella) failed in the detection of this secondary metabolite. All other Torrubiella s. lat. (26 strains), collected on other insect hosts including leafhoppers (eight strains), Lepidoptera (one strain), and spiders (17 strains), produced no detectable zeorin. Paecilomyces cinnamomeus (nine strains), the anamorph of C. luteorostrata, also produced zeorin. These results correspond with the recent taxonomic reclassification based on multigene phylogeny.     

Entomopathogenic fungi and insect behaviour: from unsuspecting hosts to targeted vectors

The behavioural response of an insect to a fungal pathogen will have a direct effect on the efficacy of the fungus as a biological control agent. In this paper we describe two processes that have a significant effect on the interactions between insects and entomopathogenic fungi: (a) the ability of target insects to detect and avoid fungal pathogens and (b) the transmission of fungal pathogens between host insects. The behavioural interactions between insects and entomopathogenic fungi are described for a variety of fungal pathogens ranging from commercially available bio-pesticides to non-formulated naturally occurring pathogens. The artificial manipulation of insect behaviour using dissemination devices to contaminate insects with entomopathogenic fungi is then described. The implications of insect behaviour on the use of fungal pathogens as biological control agents are discussed.     

Maternal effect and embryonic gene expression for lactate dehydrogenase B (LDH-B), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), and peptidase (PEP-1) during the development of Pleurodeles waltl (urodele amphibian)

The polymorphism of three enzymes [lactate dehydrogenase B (LDH-B), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, (G6PDH), and peptidase-1 (PEP-1)] in Pleurodeles waltl has allowed the expression of the corresponding loci to be followed during the development of spawnings arising from various crosses. A maternal effect lasting up to the late tail-bud stage (approx. stage 28) was shown for PEP-1. A similar situation was observed for LDH-B and G6PDH. The embryonic alleles present retarded expression: from about stage 28 for PEP-1 and G6PDH and from about stages 22 to 24 (the young tail-bud stage) for LDH-B.     

Phylogeny and strain typing of Escherichia coli, inferred from variation at mononucleotide repeat loci

Multilocus sequencing of housekeeping genes has been used previously for bacterial strain typing and for inferring evolutionary relationships among strains of Escherichia coli. In this study, we used shorter intergenic sequences that contained simple sequence repeats (SSRs) of repeating mononucleotide motifs (mononucleotide repeats [MNRs]) to infer the phylogeny of pathogenic and commensal E. coli strains. Seven noncoding loci (four MNRs and three non-SSRs) were sequenced in 27 strains, including enterohemorrhagic (six isolates of O157:H7), enteropathogenic, enterotoxigenic, B, and K-12 strains. The four MNRs were also sequenced in 20 representative strains of the E. coli reference (ECOR) collection. Sequence polymorphism was significantly higher at the MNR loci, including the flanking sequences, indicating a higher mutation rate in the sequences flanking the MNR tracts. The four MNR loci were amplifiable by PCR in the standard ECOR A, B1, and D groups, but only one (yaiN) in the B2 group was amplified, which is consistent with previous studies that suggested that B2 is the most ancient group. High sequence compatibility was found between the four MNR loci, indicating that they are in the same clonal frame. The phylogenetic trees that were constructed from the sequence data were in good agreement with those of previous studies that used multilocus enzyme electrophoresis. The results demonstrate that MNR loci are useful for inferring phylogenetic relationships and provide much higher sequence variation than housekeeping genes. Therefore, the use of MNR loci for multilocus sequence typing should prove efficient for clinical diagnostics, epidemiology, and evolutionary study of bacteria.     

Future prospects for application of insect pathogens as a component of integrated pest management in tropical root crops

Insect pests and phytophagous mites cause a considerable loss to tropical root crops in the field. Major pests include the sweet potato weevil Cylas puncticollis, cassava mealybug Phenacoccus manihoti, cassava green spider mite Mononychellus tanajoa, yam beetle Heteroligus meles, and taro hornworm Hippotion celerio. Field and laboratory evaluation experiments indicate that entomopathogenic microorganisms may be adequately used in the management of insect and mite pests in root crops. The highest promise probably lies with fungal pathogens (Beauvaria bassiana, Hirsutella thompsonii, Metarhizium anisopliae, Nomuraea rileyi, Entomophthora thaxteriana, and E. parvispora), but bacterial (Bacillus thuringiensis), microsporidian (Nosema locustae) nematode (Steinernema feltiae) and even viral (Baculoviruses) pathogens may be exploited in an integrated pest management programme of tropical root crop pests.     

Human brain pyridoxal-5'-phosphate phosphatase (PLPP):protein transduction of PEP-1-PLPP into PC12 cells

Pyridoxal-5'-phosphate phosphatase (PLPP) catalyzes the dephosphorylation of pyridoxal-5'-phosphate (PLP). A human brain PLPP gene was fused with a PEP-1 peptide and produced a genetic in-frame PEP-1-PLPP fusion protein. The purified PEP-1-PLPP fusion protein was efficiently transduced into PC12 cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner when added exogenously to culture media. Once inside the cells, the transduced PEP-1-PLPP fusion protein was stable for 36 h. The concentration of PLP was markedly decreased by the addition of exogenous PEP-1-PLPP to media pretreated with the vitamin B(6) precursors; pyridoxine, pyridoxal kinase and pyridoxine-5'-phosphate oxidase into cells. The results suggest that the transduction of the PEP-1-PLPP fusion protein can be one mode of PLP level regulation, and to replenish this enzyme in the various neurological disorders related to vitamin B(6).     

Distribution of restriction endonucleases among some entomopathogenic strains of Bacillus sphaericus

The restriction enzyme Bsp TI, an isoschizomer of Hae III (recognition site GGCC), has been detected in eight strains of serotype 5a5b and two serotype 3 strains of the entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus sphaericus . Strains from other serotypes contained the enzymes Bsp TII and Bsp TIII, which digested pBR322 DNA into similar banding patterns after agarose gel electrophoresis but differed in their susceptibility to methylation of the substrate. Strains from serotypes 9, 25 and 26a26b were lacking in restriction enzyme activity. There was little correlation between phage typing and restriction enzyme activity, suggesting that restriction and modification are not responsible for phage specificity among entomopathogenic B. sphaericus strains.     

Molecular phylogeny of the Entomophthoromycota

The Entomophthoromycota is a ubiquitous group of fungi best known as pathogens of a wide variety of economically important insect pests, and other soil invertebrates. This group of fungi also includes a small number of parasites of reptiles, vertebrates (including humans), macromycetes, fern gametophytes, and desmid algae, as well as some saprobic species. Here we report on recent studies to resolve the phylogenetic relationships within the Entomophthoromycota and to reliably place this group among other basal fungal lineages. Bayesian Interference (BI) and Maximum Likelihood (ML) analyses of three genes (nuclear 18S and 28S rDNA, mitochondrial 16S, and the protein-coding RPB2) as well as non-molecular data consistently and unambiguously identify 31 taxa of Entomophthoromycota as a monophyletic group distinct from other Zygomycota and flagellated fungi. Using the constraints of our multi-gene dataset we constructed the most comprehensive rDNA phylogeny yet available for Entomophthoromycota. The taxa studied here belong to five distinct, well-supported lineages. The Basidiobolus clade is the earliest diverging lineage, comprised of saprobe species of Basidiobolus and the undescribed snake parasite Schizangiella serpentis nom. prov. The Conidiobolus lineage is represented by a paraphyletic grade of trophically diverse species that include saprobes, insect pathogens, and facultative human pathogens. Three well supported and exclusively entomopathogenic lineages in the Entomophthoraceae center around the genera Batkoa, Entomophthora and Zoophthora, although several genera within this crown clade are resolved as non-monophyletic. Ancestral state reconstruction suggests that the ancestor of all Entomophthoromycota was morphologically similar to species of Conidiobolus. Analyses using strict, relaxed, and local molecular clock models documented highly variable DNA substitution rates among lineages of Entomophthoromycota. Despite the complications caused by different rates of molecular evolution among lineages, our dating analysis indicates that the Entomophthoromycota originated 405±90million years ago. We suggest that entomopathogenic lineages in Entomophthoraceae probably evolved from saprobic or facultatively pathogenic ancestors during or shortly after the evolutionary radiation of the arthropods.     

Phylogeny and Strain Typing of Escherichia coli, Inferred from Variation at Mononucleotide Repeat Loci

Multilocus sequencing of housekeeping genes has been used previously for bacterial strain typing and for inferring evolutionary relationships among strains of Escherichia coli. In this study, we used shorter intergenic sequences that contained simple sequence repeats (SSRs) of repeating mononucleotide motifs (mononucleotide repeats [MNRs]) to infer the phylogeny of pathogenic and commensal E. coli strains. Seven noncoding loci (four MNRs and three non-SSRs) were sequenced in 27 strains, including enterohemorrhagic (six isolates of O157:H7), enteropathogenic, enterotoxigenic, B, and K-12 strains. The four MNRs were also sequenced in 20 representative strains of the E. coli reference (ECOR) collection. Sequence polymorphism was significantly higher at the MNR loci, including the flanking sequences, indicating a higher mutation rate in the sequences flanking the MNR tracts. The four MNR loci were amplifiable by PCR in the standard ECOR A, B1, and D groups, but only one (yaiN) in the B2 group was amplified, which is consistent with previous studies that suggested that B2 is the most ancient group. High sequence compatibility was found between the four MNR loci, indicating that they are in the same clonal frame. The phylogenetic trees that were constructed from the sequence data were in good agreement with those of previous studies that used multilocus enzyme electrophoresis. The results demonstrate that MNR loci are useful for inferring phylogenetic relationships and provide much higher sequence variation than housekeeping genes. Therefore, the use of MNR loci for multilocus sequence typing should prove efficient for clinical diagnostics, epidemiology, and evolutionary study of bacteria.     

Multilocus sequence type system for the plant pathogen Xylella fastidiosa and relative contributions of recombination and point mutation to clonal diversity

Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) identifies and groups bacterial strains based on DNA sequence data from (typically) seven housekeeping genes. MLST has also been employed to estimate the relative contributions of recombination and point mutation to clonal divergence. We applied MLST to the plant pathogen Xylella fastidiosa using an initial set of sequences for 10 loci (9.3 kb) of 25 strains from five different host plants, grapevine (PD strains), oleander (OLS strains), oak (OAK strains), almond (ALS strains), and peach (PP strains). An eBURST analysis identified six clonal complexes using the grouping criterion that each member must be identical to at least one other member at 7 or more of the 10 loci. These clonal complexes corresponded to previously identified phylogenetic clades; clonal complex 1 (CC1) (all PD strains plus two ALS strains) and CC2 (OLS strains) defined the X. fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa and X. fastidiosa subsp. sandyi clades, while CC3 (ALS strains), CC4 (OAK strains), and CC5 (PP strains) were subclades of X. fastidiosa subsp. multiplex. CC6 (ALS strains) identified an X. fastidiosa subsp. multiplex-like group characterized by a high frequency of intersubspecific recombination. Compared to the recombination rate in other bacterial species, the recombination rate in X. fastidiosa is relatively low. Recombination between different alleles was estimated to give rise to 76% of the nucleotide changes and 31% of the allelic changes observed. The housekeeping loci holC, nuoL, leuA, gltT, cysG, petC, and lacF were chosen to form the basis of a public database for typing X. fastidiosa (www.mlst.net). These loci identified the same six clonal complexes using the strain grouping criterion of identity at five or more loci with at least one other member.     

Identification of an avirulent Entamoeba histolytica strain with unique tRNA-linked short tandem repeat markers

Highly polymorphic, non-coding short tandem repeats (STR) are scattered between the tRNA genes in Entamoeba histolytica in a unique tandemly arrayed organization. STR markers that correlate with the virulence of individual E. histolytica strains have recently been reported. Here we evaluated the usefulness of tRNA-linked STR loci as genetic markers in identifying virulent and avirulent strains of E. histolytica from 37 Japanese E. histolytica samples (12 diarrheic/dysenteric, 20 amebic liver abscess (ALA), and 5 asymptomatic cases). Twenty three genotypes, assigned by combining the STR sequence types from all 6 STR loci, were identified. One to 8 new STR sequence types per locus were also discovered. Genotypes found in asymptomatic isolates were highly polymorphic (4 out of 5 genotypes were unique to this group), while in symptomatic isolates, almost half of the genotypes were shared between diarrhea/dysentery and ALA. One asymptomatic isolate (KU27) showed unique STR patterns in 4 loci. This strain, though associated with the typical pathogenic zymodeme II, failed to induce amebic liver abscess by animal challenge, which suggests that inherently avirulent E. histolytica strains exist, that are associated with unique genotypes. Furthermore, STR genotyping and in vivo challenge of 2 other asymptomatic isolates (KU14 and KU26) verified the covert virulence of these strains.     

Further studies of genetic variation in Schistosoma mansoni

Genetic studies on the human blood fluke Schistosoma mansoni were undertaken using starch gel electrophoresis to detect new gene loci and allelic variation. The number of enzyme staining systems useful with S. mansoni was increased from 14 to 34. It was found that unmated female worms stained as well as male worms. Three new polymorphic loci, fructose biphosphatase (FBP), gly-leu dipeptide peptidase (PEP-4), and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (G3PDH) were detected. This brings the known number of polymorphic loci to 10 for this species. One locus (FBP) was found to be polymorphic in the PR-1 strain of S. mansoni. This strain was previously reported to be invariant.     

两种昆虫激素对鹿儿岛被毛孢表观形态的影响

昆虫激素不仅能调控昆虫的生长发育,而且也是昆虫免疫系统的重要调节因子,因此当虫生真菌入侵昆虫寄主体腔并定殖时可能会受其影响。但定殖过程中虫生真菌与昆虫激素之间的直接作用关系尚不清楚。本研究利用不同浓度的蜕皮激素(20E)和保幼激素(JH)模拟鳞翅目昆虫家蚕体内的主要激素水平,对虫生真菌鹿儿岛被毛孢Hirsutella satumaensis进行培养,观察其表观形态特征的变化。结果表明,两种昆虫激素对鹿儿岛被毛孢的表观形态均有不同程度的影响。添加20E和JH培养后,鹿儿岛被毛孢菌落直径和菌丝生物量的变化差异不大;孢子的萌发率稍有下降;而菌落产生的色素和产孢量与对照组相比则呈现显著性变化。菌落色素圈和分生孢子的粘液厚度会随两种激素浓度的增加而增大,而产孢量随激素浓度增加呈先增加后降低的趋势,这说明鹿儿岛被毛孢定殖昆虫血体腔的过程中两种昆虫激素会抑制真菌的生长,而虫生真菌会适应性地做出应答反应,这对于进一步理解虫生真菌在昆虫血体腔中的定殖机理有重要意义。     

Isolation and characterization of entomopathogenic bacteria from soil samples from the western region of Cuba

The use of insect pathogens is a viable alternative for insect control because of their relative specificity and lower environmental impact. The search for wild strains against dipterans could have an impact on mosquito control programs. We have made an extensive screening of soil in western Cuba to find bacteria with larvicidal activity against mosquitoes. A total of 150 soil samples were collected and isolates were identifying using the API 50 CHB gallery. Phenotypic characteristics were analyzed by hierarchical ascending classification. Quantitative bioassays were conducted under laboratory conditions following the World Health Organization protocol in order to ascertain the toxicity and efficacy of isolates. The protein profiles of the crystal components were determined by SDS‐PAGE. Eight hundred and eighty‐one bacterial isolates were obtained, and 13 isolates with entomopathogenic activity were isolated from nine samples. Nine isolates displayed higher entomopathogenic activity against both Cx. quinquefasciatus and Ae. aegypti compared with the reference strain 266/2. All toxic isolates showed higher biological potency than the 266/2 strain. These isolates with high entomopathogenic activity displayed a protein pattern similar to the B. thuringiensis var. israelensis IPS‐82 and 266/2 strains. These results are a valuable tool for the control of Diptera of medical importance.