Secondary Metabolites of Entomopathogenic Fungi, Biological Alternative for the Control of Agricultural Pests and Disease: Present and Perspectives

The use of entomopathogenic fungi (EF) in recent years has been highly effective against the different orders of insects considered pests of agricultural importance and their conidia have been commonly applied, but it has been reported that these are sensitive to the environmental conditions. For this reason, biopesticides products have been formulated based on secondary metabolites, recently. These biomolecules participate as biological control agent, such as: cyclic depsipeptides, amino acids, polyketides, polyphenols and terpenoids, affecting their morphology, life cycle and insect behavior. The use of secondary metabolites of entomopathogenic fungi opens the possibility of application in a more efficient way for the control of agricultural pests in a compatible with the environment and human health;therefore, it is important to know, analyzing the type of molecules, their effects, and their different methods of application.

Study of the Constraints of Millet Production (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) and the Peasant Perception of Biological Control in the Tahoua Region

Millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) is the Sahelian crop par excellence due to its adaptation to the particular production conditions in this region. Unfortunately, in recent years this crop has been threatened by very strong parasitic pressure and drought during the production period. The objective of this study is to analyze the main constraints of millet production and the solutions known to producers. A survey was carried out in November 2022 with a sample of 298 producers in five municipalities in the Tahoua region. The main constraints are drought and pressure from crop pests (locust, millet ear miner, floricultural insects) according to 57.9% of respondents. The millet ear miner is the most formidable pest according to 55% of respondents. Thus, the average yield obtained in a year of good production without the leafminer is 194 kg/ha and that obtained in a year of millet ear leafminer is around 27 kg to 43 kg/ha depending on the municipality. The yield obtained this last campaign after the attack of this leafminer varies from 64 to 77 kg/ha depending on the municipalities compared to a potential yield of over 1000 kg/ha. More than half of producers (58.1%) are unaware of the existence of biological control compared to only 12.5% who are aware of this alternative method. Work to popularize this technology is necessary in the five municipalities and the entire region in general.

Euborellia annulipes Mortality and Predation on Diatraea saccharalis Eggs after Application of Chemical and Biological Insecticides

Chemical and biological insecticides have been frequently used in sugarcane fields to control insects-pests, including the sugarcane borer, Diatraea saccharalis. Among the products used, those based on chlorantraniliprole and Metarhizium anisopliae entomopathogenic fungus, stand out. Euborellia annulipes is an insect of the order Dermaptera considered a potential predator of sugarcane borer eggs. This study aimed to evaluate the direct and indirect effects of the bioinsecticide based on M. anisopliae (Metarril®) and the chemical insecticide chlorantraniliprole (Altacor®) on the mortality of E. annulipes nymphs and adults, the predation and feeding preference of earwigs in eggs treated with the formulated products. Predator mortality was evaluated for seven days after treatment, while the effect on predation was analyzed by preference tests with and without choice, using prey eggs. The products tested were selective to the predator, causing ≤ 2% mortality and not affecting predation. The application of M. anisopliae on sugarcane borer eggs favored the food preference of fourth-instar nymphs, males, and females of the predator. Our results show that Metarril® and Altacor® can be used to control D. saccharalis when associated with the predator E. annulipes.

Silencing transformer and transformer-2 in Zeugodacus cucurbitae causes defective sex determination with inviability of most pseudomales

transformer is a switch gene for sex determination in many insects, which cooperates with transformer-2 that is expressed in both sexes to regulate female differentiation, particularly in dipterans. Zeugodacus cucurbitae(Coquillett) is a very destructive pest worldwide, however, its sex determination pathway remains largely uncharacterized. Here, we show that the female sex ratio is sharply reduced with knockdown of either transformer or transformer-2 by RNA interference in early embryos of Z. cucurbitae. Most of the males grown from the embryos with transient transformer and transformer-2 suppression mated with wild-type females and produced mixed sex progeny, with one exception that produced only female progeny, and all of the few remaining males failed to mate with wild-type females and produced no progeny. The exceptional male and those males with mating failure were XX pseudomales as determined by the detection of Y chromosome-linked Maleness-on-the-Y, indicating that most XX pseudomales are not viable. The phenotypes of transformer and transformer-2 suggest that they play a key role in regulating sex determination and are required for female sexual development of Z. cucurbitae. Our results will be beneficial to the understanding of sex determination in Z. cucurbitae and can facilitate the development of genetic sexing strains for its biological control.

Coffee Leaf Rust(Hemileia vastatrix)Disease in Coffee Plants and Perspectives by the Disease Control

Coffee Leaf Rust(CLR)is caused by Hemileia vastatrix in Coffea spp.It is one of the most dangerous phytopathogens for coffee plantations in terms of coffee productivity and coffee cup quality.In this review,we resume the problem of CLR in Mexico and the pathogenesis of H.vastatrix.The review abord plant-pathogen interactions which lead a compatible or incompatible interactions and result in CLR disease or resistance,respectively.The review abord Coffea spp.defense response pathways involved in H.vastatrix pathogenicity.Additionally,current measures to control H.vastatrix proliferation and germination were aborded focused on phytosanitary actions,and biological and chemical control.Finally,new trendlines to reduce the impact of CLR as nanoparticles and nanotechnology were analyzed.

Identification and Characterization of Lysobacter enzymogenes as a Biological Control Agent Against Some Fungal Pathogens

Strain OH11, a Gram-negative, nonspore forming, rod-shaped bacterium with powerful antagonistic activity, was isolated from rhizosphere of green pepper in Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences of China and characterized to determine its taxonomic position. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that strain OH11 belongs to the Gammaproteobacteria and had the highest degree of sequence similarity to Lysobacter enzymogenes strain C3 （AY074793） （99%）, Lysobacter enzymogenes strain N4-7 （U89965） （99%）, Lysobacter antibioticus strain （AB019582） （97%）, and Lysobacter gummosus strain （AB16136） （97%）. Chemotaxonomic data revealed that strain OHI 1 possesses a quinine system with Q-8 as the predominant compound and C15：0 iso, C17：1 iso ω9c as the predominant iso-branched fatty acids, all of which corroborated the assignment of strain OH11 to the genus Lysobacter. Results of DNA-DNA hybridization and physiological and biochemical tests clearly showed that strain OH11 was classified as Lysobacter enzymogenes. Strain OH11 could produce protease, chitinase, and β-1,3-glucanase. It showed strong in vitro antifungal activity against Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotinia scletotiorum, and several other phytopathogenic fungi. This is the first report of identification and characterization of Lysobacter enzymogenes as a biological control agent of plant diseases in China.

Potential of Steinernema carpocapsae(Weiser) as a biological control agent against potato tuber moth, Phthorimaea operculella(Zeller)(Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

The entomopathogenic nematode,Steinernema carpocapsae,was evaluated for control of the potato tuber moth,Phthorimaea operculella,under laboratory conditions.We evaluated different concentrations of S.carpocapsae for control of 2 nd,3 rd,and 4 th instar P.operculella.The median lethal concentration(LC50)of S.carpocapsae infective juveniles(IJs)to 2 nd,3 rd and 4 th instar larvae of P.operculella was 200,363,181 IJs mL–1,respectively.With the extension of treatment time,the cumulative mortality increased for 2 nd,3 rd,and 4 th instar larvae and pupae of P.operculella.Fourth instars were the most susceptible for all observation periods.Therefore,our results suggest that S.carpocapsae could be an effective biological control agent for P.operculella.

Control of Lymantria dispar L. by biological agents

The experiment on control of Lymantria dispar L by using different kinds ofbiological measures, including nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) of Lymantria dispar L., BtMP-342,sex-attractant as well as botanical insecticide, was carried out in the forest regions of InnerMongolia in 2003. Two concentrations (2.632x10^6 PIB ? ml^(-1) and 2.632x10^7 PIB ?ml^(-1)) of Lymantria dispar L. NPV were sprayed on the 2rd-instar-larvae of L. dispar and 70% and77.8% control effect were obtained respectively. BtMP0-342 was applied to the 3rd- and 4th-instarlarvae and the control effect was around 80%. The sex-attractant provided by Canada Pacific ForestryResearch Center also showed a good result in trapping L. dispar adults. The self-produced botanicalinsecticide, which was extracted from a kind of poisonous plant distributed in Daxing'an Mountains,China, exhibited a good control result in controlling the larvae of L. dispar, and 82% mortalitywas observed when spraying primary liquid of the botanical insecticide on the 3rd-5th-instar-larvaein lab.

Fire Blight Disease Caused by Erwinia amylovora on Rosaceae Plants in Kyrgyzstan and Biological Agents to Control This Disease

Erwinia amylovora species were isolated from the blossoms, exudates, infected fruits, leaves and bent branches of diseased apple, pear and hawthorn trees, selected in the Chy, Osh and Jalal Abad regions. Biochemical and pathogenicity tests, alongside PCR analyses, were conducted to identify the local isolates of Erwinia amylovora. The alternative antagonistic microorganisms which combat bacterium E. amylovora were tested within in vitro and in vivo conditions. The results revealed the ability of Streptomyces antagonistic bacteria to decrease fire blight severity on pear and apple trees during the first stage of the fire blight disease in leaf tissues. Streptomyces strain C1-4 suppressed E. amylovora disease symptoms in the leaf tissues and excised apple and pear shoots. The incidence of fire blight on leaves was reduced by about 70% with two applications of bacterial antagonists. Further studies at different locations in Kyrgyzstan, using large scale application, would allow for stronger recommendations to be made, including studies and recommendations on their ability to prevent disease and to use them as main components in an integrated pest management program.

Integrated Biological Control of Tobacco Bacterial Wilt (<i>Ralstonia solanacearum</i>) and Its Effect on Rhizosphere Microbial Community

Biological control agents and soil amendments have been applied to control tobacco bacterial wilt, but the mechanism is not well-known. In the present study, a field experiment was performed to investigate the soil physicochemical properties, disease index (DI) and disease incidence of tobacco bacterial wilt, and rhizosphere microbial community. The results show that the control efficacy of single application of antagonistic bacteria and calcium cyanamide was 46.43% and 51.92%, respectively. While the combined control efficacy of antagonistic bacteria and calcium cyanamide was 65.79%. Besides, the combined application of antagonistic bacteria and calcium cyanamide could increase soil pH, total N alkaline N, and exchangeable Ca, which were negatively associated with the microbial diversity, soil-borne pathogenic microorganisms, and incidence of tobacco bacterial wilt. Additionally, the combination of antagonistic bacteria and calcium cyanamide can improve the proportion of some antagonistic microbial species, and these antagonistic microbial species were inversely associated with the DI of tobacco bacterial wilt. In conclusion: The integrated measure may influence soil microbial communities through enhancing soil physicochemical properties and rebuild healthy soil microbial community structure to mitigate tobacco bacterial wilt. The current study presented valuable insights into the mechanisms enhancing soil health in the integrated measure.

The Main Biological Hazards in Animal Biosafety Level 2 Facilities and Strategies for Control

Concern about the biological hazards involved in microbiological research, especially research involving laboratory animals, has increased in recent years. Working in an animal biosafety level 2 facility （ABSL-2）, commonly used for research on infectious diseases, poses various biological hazards. Here, the regulations and standards related to laboratory biosafety in China are introduced, the potential biological hazards present in ABSL-2 facilities are analyzed, and a series of strategies to control the hazards are presented.

Effect of Diet,Photoperiod and Host Density on Parasitism of Anisopteromalus calandrae on the Tobacco Beetle and Biological Parameters of the Parasitoid

Lasioderma serricorne is known to be pest of tobacco, besides of attacking other products in storage. Anisopteromalus calandrae is an ectoparasitoid of coleopteran larvae also parasitizing the tobacco beetle. This study was aimed to evaluate the parasitism of A. calandrae on different densities of L. serricorne larvae grown in different diets and photoperiods, and to record the longevity and reproductive potential of A. calandrae. Individuals of L. serricorne were raised in three diets: wheat flour (F);wheat flour and brewer’s yeast (FY) and wheat flour and dried tobacco (FT). Different amounts of host larvae (10, 20, 50 and 100) for each diet were exposed to a couple of parasitoids. The same larval densities from diet F were exposed for 24 h to a couple of adult parasitoids maintained in three photoperiods (0:24, 12:12 and 24:0 - scotophase: photophase). The highest values of apparent parasitism were in the density of 50 larvae in the FY diet (96.34%) and 100 F (92.91%). There was no significant difference in the parameters in each photoperiod in all larval densities. However, the treatment in which hosts and parasitoids always remained in scotophase, was the one that had a significantly higher sex ratio. Females had longer longevity than males surviving for up to 25 days. On the fourth day of larvae exposure occurred, the maximum number of offspring generated. It is inferred that A. calandrae has potential to be used as a control agent for coleopterans that attack stored products.

Adaptive Walking of a Quadrupedal Robot Based on Layered Biological Reflexes

A multiple-legged robot is traditionally controlled by using its dynamic model.But the dynamic-model-based approach fails to acquire satisfactory performances when the robot faces rough terrains and unknown environments.Referring animals＇ neural control mechanisms,a control model is built for a quadruped robot walking adaptively.The basic rhythmic motion of the robot is controlled by a well-designed rhythmic motion controller（RMC） comprising a central pattern generator（CPG） for hip joints and a rhythmic coupler（RC） for knee joints.CPG and RC have relationships of motion-mapping and rhythmic couple.Multiple sensory-motor models,abstracted from the neural reflexes of a cat,are employed.These reflex models are organized and thus interact with the CPG in three layers,to meet different requirements of complexity and response time to the tasks.On the basis of the RMC and layered biological reflexes,a quadruped robot is constructed,which can clear obstacles and walk uphill and downhill autonomously,and make a turn voluntarily in uncertain environments,interacting with the environment in a way similar to that of an animal.The paper provides a biologically inspired architecture,with which a robot can walk adaptively in uncertain environments in a simple and effective way,and achieve better performances.

Controlling Dengue: Effectiveness of Biological Control and Vaccine in Reducing the Prevalence of Dengue Infection in Endemic Areas

With the increased prevalence of dengue infection in tropical countries, concerned members of the public are now pressing their local health ministries to act immediately and effectively in managing the rising numbers of reported cases. This includes reviews of the methodologies and the effectiveness of current combative systems to find other possible novel approaches that might yield better results. One of those novel approaches is the integration of a parasite into mosquito vector, manipulating the parasite-host interaction to reduce the transmission of dengue in endemic hotspots. Another alternative is by Sanofi-Pasteur’s dengue vaccine that showed over 60.8% success rate in reducing severe dengue infection in children aged 9 - 16 during its final clinical implementation phase. This report will compare and contrast these two novel ideas to determine which of the approaches are more likely to be effective in the long run. The aspects covered will include the application, effectiveness, functionality, and problems with these approaches. The results could then be utilised by governments or organizations to select precise and effective methods in reducing the prevalence of dengue infections in their countries.

Primary Study on Biological Control Potential of Trichoderma harzianum TL-1

Trichoderma harzianum is a widely used biocontrol fungus. The growth promoting effect of strain Trichoderma harzianum TL-1 on tomato and pepper and its biological control effects against tomato seedling damping-off and pepper blight were investigated through pot experiments. The results showed that the stain TL-1 had significant promotion effect on growth of pepper and tomato in sterilized and natural soils. With the application dose of 3. 0 and 0. 5g/ pot,their dry weight were increased up to 46% and 150% compared with control,respectively. In addition,TL-1 had good control effects against tomato seedling damping-off and pepper blight. Compared with fungicide treatment,TL-1 treatment could control diseases for long term,without repeat occurrence of diseases.

Evaluation of Selected Chemical,Biological Fungicides,and Induced Resistance to Control White Rot(Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.)on Tomato

Tomato(Solanum lycopersicum)is one of the most widely grown and consumed as fresh vegetable in the world.Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.is one of the most destructive diseases and affects more than 500 plant species.This study was conducted for“Evaluation of Selected Chemical,Biological Fungicides,and Induced Resistant to Control White Rot(Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.)on Tomato”.The experiment was conducted at the Royal University of Agriculture and divided into two sections.The first section conducted under in vitro condition consists of four treatments T1 control treatment,T2 copper hydroxide,T3 azoxystrobin+difenoconazole,T4 metalaxyl+mancozeb in Nagoya Laboratory,and had been starting from 11st May to 15th May 2020.Section two was conducted in a pot in net-house which started from 1st January 2019 to 19th February 2019 and 1st January to 19th February 2020 and arranged in RCBD(Randomized Completely Block Design)with six replications and nine treatments.T0 negative control,T1 inoculate but not treatment,T2 metalaxyl+mancozeb,T3 azoxystrobin+difenoconazole,T4 copper hydroxide,T5 acibenzolar-S-methyl,T6 chicken dung+Trichoderma harzianum,T7 acibenzolar-S-methyl+chicken dung+Trichoderma harzianum,T8 acibenzolar-S-methyl+metalaxyl+mancozeb.Data were collected on colonizing diameter in vitro.For pot experiment collected on disease incidence,incubation period Based on the result under in vitro condition metalaxyl+mancozeb highly inhibited germination of Sclerotium rolfsii when compared with another treatment.However,the application of copper hydroxide seems less effective compared with control.For in pot experiment,when treated after symptom of southern blight appeared to seem less effective on the severity of southern blight.In contrast,when applied as a protectant and curative when symptoms appeared only systemic fungicide azoxystrobin+difenoconazole significantly reduced the severity of Sclerotium rolfsii and delayed incubation period while compared with other treatments(p<0.05)and was followed by metalaxyl+mancozeb,whereas,copper hydroxide,acibenzolar-S-methyl,chicken dung+Trichoderma harzianum,acibenzolar-S-methyl+chicken dung+Trichoderma harzianum,acibenzolar-S-methyl+metalaxyl+mancozeb were less effective(p>0.05).Based on the three experiments we can assume that fungicide is more effective in reducing the growth of the pathogen and delaying the incubation period of fungal colonization when compared with biological control and induced resistance.

An Attenuated Strain of Cucumber Green Mottle Mosaic Virus as a Biological Control Agent against Pathogenic Viral Strains

Cucumber green mottle mosaic virus (CGMMV), a member of the Tobamovirus genus, causes a severe disease of cucurbits. In the Moscow region of Russian Federation, the incidence of infection on cucumber plants in greenhouses is high;however, the virus is poorly studied. In this work, the full-length genomes of two pathogenic MC-1 and MC-2 strains of CGMMV isolated from cucumber plants grown in greenhouses in the Moscow region and the attenuated VIROG-43M strain were sequenced. Comparison of VIROG-43M nucleotide sequence with those of the pathogenic strains revealed three missense mutations. Their role in attenuation is discussed. For the first time, in a number of trials conducted under laboratory conditions and in commercial greenhouses, the efficiency of the attenuated VIROG-43M strain as a biocontrol agent for cucumber plant protection resulting in significant yield gain was demonstrated. Phylogenetic analysis with 83 full-length CGMMV coat protein genes isolated in 16 different countries showed that Russian strains are related to isolates from Spain, Greece, USA and Israel.

Biological control of rice disease and insect by chitinase-producing bacterium X2-23

Enriched by the-medium containingchitin and cell wall of Phizoctoniasolani AG-1,a bacterium X2-23 withhigher chitinase activity was isolatedfrom 166 chitinase-producing bacteria.It could distinctly inhibit the fungi

Biological Control of Erosion of Banana Drains in Côte D’ivoire

The erosion of drains is a major limitation of the quality, the increasing of banana production and the environmental protection of industrial banana in C&#244;te d'Ivoire. It leads inundations, death of banana trees and significant loss of production. Thence, the construction and the maintenance of drain costs too much and causes injure, snake bite, physical traumatisms, many diseases, … These events compromise the sustainable production of banana by reducing seriously worker’s the activities and finally increase the cost of production. The aim of the present work is to contribute to the sustainable development and human capacity building in the third world nations as far as banana production is concerned. The methods used so far to address this phenomenon proved inefficient. The technology innovation in this area has been to grow grass on the outer edges of the channels drained water. This resulted in a systematic reduction of erosion. Better still, it helped fertilize the soil, reduce the deportations of fertilizer and improve the quality of landscape of the plantations. Stenotaphrum secondatum is the best vegetable specie adapted to the biological control against water erosion of drains.

The Use and Exchange of Biological Control Agents for Food and Agriculture

The report sets out to summarize the past and current situation regarding the practice of biologicalcontrol inrelationtothe use and exchange of genetic resources relevant for BCAs.It considers the twomain categories of biological control:classical and augmentative.Allowing access to BCAs for use inanother country imposes no risk of liability to the source country.Local scientific knowledge abouthabitats,fauna andflora,can be