Cost modelling of Pseudomonas fluorescens and Pseudomonas chlororaphis as biocontrol for competitive exclusion of Salmonella enterica on tomatoes

Published research on process-based models for biocontrol of foodborne pathogens on produce is limited. The aim of this research was to develop cost model estimates for competitive exclusion (CE) process using Pseudomonas fluorescens and Pseudomonas chlororaphis (non-plant pathogenic and non-human pathogen) as biocontrol against Salmonella enterica on tomatoes. Cost estimates were based on material inputs, equipment, facilities, and projected processing conditions of post-harvest packaging of tomatoes. The microbiological data for inactivation of S. enterica was based on published papers. The small-scale processing facility was assumed to have a processing capacity of 2000 kg of tomatoes/hour for 16 h per day, operational 6 days a week, and for 3-months /year. The large-scale facility was assumed to have a processing capacity of 100,000 kg of tomatoes/hour. Estimated initial capital investment costs for small and large-scale models (production facility) were US$391,000 and US$2.1 million. Application of CE for biocontrol of S. enterica on tomatoes was estimated at US$0.0058–0.073/kg of tomatoes during commercial processing operations. This exceeds chlorine wash technology estimated at US$0.00046/kg and is competitive with gaseous chlorine dioxide at US$0.02–0.21/kg. For high-value produce, CE may complement existing technologies increase food safety, reduce storage loses, and extend shelf life of produce.     

Ant community composition and functional traits in new grassland strips within agricultural landscapes

1. Ongoing intensification and fragmentation of European agricultural landscapes dramatically reduce biodiversity and associated functions. Enhancing perennial noncrop areas holds great potential to support ecosystem services such as ant‐mediated pest control.
2. To study the potential of newly established grassland strips to enhance ant diversity and associated functions, we used hand collection data and predation experiments to investigate differences in (a) ant community composition and (b) biocontrol‐related functional traits, and (c) natural pest control across habitats in cereal fields, old grasslands, and new grassland transects of three years of age.
3. Ant species diversity was similar between new and old grasslands, but significantly higher in new grasslands than in surrounding cereal fields. Contrary, ant community composition of new grasslands was more similar to cereal fields and distinct from the species pool of old grasslands. The functional trait space covered by the ant communities showed the same distribution between old and new grasslands. Pest control did not differ significantly between habitat types and therefore could not be linked to the prevalence of functional ant traits related to biocontrol services in new grasslands.
4. Our findings not only show trends of convergence between old and new grasslands, but also indicate that enhancing ant diversity through new grasslands takes longer than three years to provide comparable biodiversity and functionality.
5. Synthesis and applications: Newly established grasslands can increase ant species richness and abundance and provide a consistent amount of biocontrol services in agroecosystems. However, three years after their establishment, new grasslands were still dominated by common agrobiont ant species and lacked habitat specialists present in old grasslands, which require a constant supply of food resources and long colony establishment times. New grasslands represent a promising measure for enhancing agricultural landscapes but must be preserved in the longer term to promote biodiversity and resilience of associated ecosystem services.

     

Seasonal prevalence of the insect pathogenic fungus Colletotrichum nymphaeae in Brazilian citrus groves under different chemical pesticide regimes

We report an endemic entomopathogenic fungus, known in Brazil as the 'salmão' fungus and identified here as Colletotrichum nymphaeae (Sordariomycetes: Glomerellales), infecting populations of citrus orthezia scale, Praelongorthezia praelonga. The seasonal prevalence of this pathogen in P. praelonga populations was investigated in three commercial citrus groves maintained under different pesticide regimes. Two citrus groves included inundative releases of another insect pathogenic fungus, Lecanicillium longisporum. Natural epizootics were consistently observed, with up to 84% infection rates being recorded during the warm rainy season. Temporal progression of C. nymphaeae-induced disease varied among the three pesticide regimes. Low infection levels from C. nymphaeae were associated with intensive application of broad spectrum pesticides. However, the prevalence of C. nymphaeae followed a density-dependent pattern with insect host abundance, irrespective of the pesticide regime. High proportions of Lecanicillium-infected insects were observed following infection peaks of C. nymphaeae and both fungi together contributed to 95% overall mortality of citrus orthezia during the wet season. Hence, the combined effect of both fungi considerably improves the biological control of citrus orthezia. We also surmise that the host abundance, environmental conditions, and application frequency of chemical pesticides in citrus groves exert a great influence in the seasonal prevalence of C. nymphaeae-induced disease. Altogether, these results suggest that C. nymphaeae is an important pathogen of P. praelonga and indicate that frequent use of synthetic pesticides may delay or reduce fungal epizootics.     

Evaluation of the efficiency of using Salmonella Kentucky and Escherichia coli O119 bacteriophages in the treatment and prevention of salmonellosis and colibacillosis in broiler chickens

Phage therapy is considered an alternative modality in the treatment of different bacterial diseases. However, their therapeutic and preventive roles against infections caused by Salmonella Kentucky and Escherichia coli O119 were of little attention. In this study, two phages were isolated, characterized and assessed for their potential therapeutic and preventive roles against S. Kentucky and E. coli O119 infections in broilers. Commercial 1-day-old arboacres broiler chicks were assigned to seven groups: Group Ӏ was as a negative control, groups (П and Ш) were assigned as positive controls by the challenge of S. Kentucky and E. coli O119, respectively. The remaining four groups (IV, V, VI and VII) were administrated with five repeated phage doses to determine the effect of multiple doses. Phages were administrated in groups (IV and VI) after challenging with S. Kentucky and E. coli O119, respectively to assess their therapeutic role; moreover, their preventive role was evaluated through administration in groups (V and VII) before challenging with S. Kentucky and E. coli O119, respectively. Sampling was done from different organs at three time points and revealed that phage-treated groups had lower colony forming units of S. Kentucky and E. coli. Our results suggest that bacteriophages are efficient in the treatment and prevention of salmonellosis and colibacillosis in broiler farms.     

Survey of entomopathogenic nematodes and associate bacteria in Thailand and their potential to control Aedes aegypti

Aedes aegypti is an insect vector that transmits several viruses affecting humans worldwide. Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) and their symbiotic bacteria are organisms with the potential to control many insects. In this study, we did a survey aimed to identify EPNs and their symbiotic bacteria and evaluate the larvicidal activity of bacteria against Ae. aegypti. We collected 540 soil samples from 108 sites in Phitsanulok Province, lower northern Thailand. Baiting techniques and White traps were used to isolate EPNs from soil samples. By sequencing of 28S rDNA and internal transcribed spacer regions, 51 EPN isolates were identified as Steinernema surkhetense (35 isolates), Heterorhabditis indica (14 isolates) and Heterorhabditis sp. SGmg3 (two isolates). Based on sequencing of a partial region of the recA gene, 35 isolates of Xenorhabdus were identified as Xenorhabdus stockiae, and 20 Photorhabdus isolates were identified as Photorhabdus luminescens subsp. akhurstii (10 isolates), P. luminescens subsp. hainanensis (seven isolates) and P. asymbiotica subsp. australis (three isolates). Screening for larvicidal activity of bacteria against Ae. aegypti was performed in the laboratory. Xenorhabdus WB5.4 and Xenorhabdus WB12.5, which were closely related to X. stockiae, resulted in high mortality of Ae. aegypti (99.99% and 70%, respectively) at 96 hr after exposure. Comparing with control groups, mortality of Ae. aegypti larvae was low (1.11%–6.67%) after exposure for 24–96 hr. Our findings showed the potential of X. stockiae for controlling Ae. aegypti. Further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms through which these bacteria kill Ae. aegypti larvae.     

云南芒果采后炭疽病病原菌的鉴定及室内生防菌的筛选

随着对云南芒果需求量的增加,其种植面积日趋扩大,并不断引入新品种,这也导致云南省芒果炭疽病害发生日趋加重。为了有针对性地开展芒果炭疽病的生物防治,采用组织块分离法分离芒果采后炭疽病病原菌,通过形态学观察初步鉴定,并遵循柯赫氏法则对病原菌进行验证。随后,利用rDNA-ITS序列和系统发育树分析明确病原菌的分类学地位。最后,采用5种生防细菌对病原菌进行拮抗试验。通过对芒果采后炭疽病病原菌进行分离鉴定,确定胶孢炭疽菌(Colletotrichum gloeosporioides)是引起云南芒果采后炭疽病的病原菌,该菌株内转录间隔区(internal transcribed spacer,ITS)序列长度为536 bp,登录号为MH744668;5株生防细菌对芒果炭疽病病原菌都有一定的抑菌作用,具有较好的生防开发潜能,其中抗生素溶杆菌L-44的抑菌效果最好,抑制率达53.7%。研究结果为云南省芒果采后病害的生物防治提供了新的思路。     

Performance of Sclerodermus brevicornis,a parasitoid of invasive longhorn beetles,when reared on rice moth larvae

Biological control efficiency can be improved by developing effective mass‐rearing systems to produce large numbers of high‐quality parasitoids. This study explored an alternative host for rearing Sclerodermus brevicornis (Kieffer) (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae), a potential biocontrol agent for the suppression of exotic and invasive wood‐boring longhorn beetle (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) populations in the European agroforestry ecosystems. We tested larvae of the rice moth, Corcyra cephalonica Stainton (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), as host for the parasitoid. We quantified the probability and timing of host attack and parasitism as well as reproductive success, offspring production, and the characteristics of adult offspring. As S. brevicornis is a quasi‐social species (multiple females, communally produced offspring broods), we also explored the effects of varying the number of females to which individual hosts were presented, with the aim of determining the optimal female‐to‐host ratio. As time to host attack can be a limiting factor in S. brevicornis rearing protocols, we tested the use of adult females of another bethylid species, Goniozus legneri Gordh, to paralyse C. cephalonica larvae prior to presentation. We identified the conditions within our experiment that maximized offspring production per host and offspring production per adult female parasitoid. We found that C. cephalonica is suitable as a factitious host and, as it is considerably more straightforward for laboratory rearing than cerambycid species, it is a good candidate for adoption by future S. brevicornis mass‐rearing and release programmes.     

Entomophagous insects – an introduction

This special issue contains papers presented at the 6th International Entomophagous Insects Conference. Entomophagous insects consume other insects. They are a fundamental component of ecosystems and are extensively used as biocontrol agents. The first article reviews the role of ladybirds in biological control and the second reviews the biological control of stink bugs. The following nine research articles cover the rearing, behavior, life history, and ecology of parasitoid and predator species.     

Spawning habits and embryonic development of the banded lampeye killifish Aplocheilichthys spilauchen (Duméril 1861) in ex situ fresh and brackish water environments

Aside from ornamental uses, there is growing interest in using killifishes for a multiplicity of purposes including baitfish and mosquito biocontrol. This experiment explored the spawning habits and embryonic development of the banded lampeye, Aplocheilichthys spilauchen in ex situ freshwater (0.04‰) and brackish water (5.01‰) to ascertain the captive breeding prospects for mosquito control in areas where they occur. Significantly higher number of eggs were laid in the brackish water than the freshwater (X² = 1613.0, P < 0.05), and black mop was the most preferred spawning substrate, followed by green, blue and white mops. Microscopic monitoring of embryos revealed that cleavage occurred within the first 30 min after fertilization, organogenesis commenced on average in the 25th hour and hatching in approximately 230 h. Although freshwater eggs were relatively bigger than brackish water eggs and certain embryonic developmental stages occurred faster in the freshwater than brackish water, these differences were overall not significant and had no effects on the development and hatching. The observed outcome that A. spilauchen can be optimally propagated with black mops in brackish water offers a significant step in its use for the mosquito biocontrol programme, as well as other potential uses not yet explored.