Location: Invasive Insect Biocontrol & Behavior Laboratory
2019 Annual Report
Accomplishments
1. Discovery of a new insecticidal bacterium. ARS scientists in Beltsville, Maryland, have isolated and characterized a previously unknown species of bacteria that kill insects. The new bacterium, Chromobacterium phragmitis, was found in water and sediment samples collected from low salinity tidal marshes along the Potomac and James rivers in Maryland and Virginia. When grown in liquid cultures, C. phragmitis was found to produce compounds that are orally toxic to larvae of gypsy moth, diamondback moth, seedcorn maggot and red four beetle. The new bacterium has the potential to be developed into a commercial organic insecticide. A patent application covering the use of C. phragmitis for insect control has been filed.
2. Development of attract and kill strategy for cocoa pod borer pest management. The cocoa pod borer (CPB) is a major threat to cocoa production in South-East Asia. Crop losses to farmers can be up to 80%. Until now, management of CPB has heavily relied on pesticide applications, which is neither environmentally sustainable nor economically effective. An ARS scientist in Beltsville, Maryland, has developed an effective attract & kill method using the CPB sex pheromone as the attractant, and cypermethrin as the pesticide, to control CPB populations in cocoa plantations. The attract and kill technology uses 6 to 12 thousand times less attractant than mass trapping or mating disruption technologies, respectively, and 300 times less pesticide than traditional chemical spray treatments. It has great potential to be an efficient, safe, and environmentally friendly alternative in CPB control programs.
Review Publications
Sparks, M., Bottner-Parker, K.D., Gundersen, D.E., Lee, I. 2018. Draft genome sequence of the New Jersey aster yellows strain of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’. PLoS One. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0192379.
Blackburn, M.B., Farrar, R.R., Sparks, M., Kuhar, D.J., Mowery, J.D., Mitchell, A.D., Gundersen, D.E. 2019. Chromobacterium phragmitis sp. nov., an insecticidal bacterium isolated from estuarine marshes. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1099/ijsem.0.003508.
Bredlau, J., Kuhar, D.J., Gundersen, D.E., Kester, K. 2019. The parasitic wasp, Cotesia congregata, consists of two incipient species isolated by asymmetric reproductive incompatibility and hybrid inability to overcome host defenses. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2019.00187.
Farrar, R.R., Gundersen, D.E., Kuhar, D.J., Blackburn, M.B. 2018. Insecticidal activity of Chromobacterium vaccinii. Journal of Entomological Science. 53:339-346.
Feng, Y., Bruton, R.G., Park, A.L., Zhang, A. 2018. Identification of attractive blend for spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii from apple juice. Journal of Pest Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-018-1006-9.
Harrison, R.L., Herniou, E.A., Jehle, J.A., Theilmann, D.A., Burand, J.P., Becnel, J.J., Krell, P.J., Van Oers, M.M., Mowery, J.D., Bauchan, G.R. 2018. ICTV virus taxonomy profile: Baculoviridae. Journal of General Virology. 99:1185-1186.
Lancaster, J., Khrimian, A., Young, S., Lehner, B., Luck, K., Wallingford, A., Ghosh, S.B., Zerbe, P., Marek, P., Sparks, M., Tittiger, C., Kollner, T.G., Weber, D.C., Gundersen, D.E., Kuhar, T., Tholl, D. 2018. De novo formation of an aggregation pheromone precursor by an isoprenyl diphosphate synthase-related terpene synthase in the harlequin bug. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1800008115.
Lancaster, J., Lehner, B., Khrimian, A., Muchlinsky, A., Luck, K., Kollner, T., Weber, D.C., Gundersen, D.E., Tholl, D. 2018. An IDS type sesquiterpene synthase produces the pheromone precursor (Z)-a-bisabolene in Nezara viridula. Journal of Chemical Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-018-1019-0.
Vanhove, W., Zhang, A., Osman, H.I., Vanhoudt, N., Van Damme, P. 2019. Development of an attract-and-kill strategy for Cocoa Pod Borer (Conopomorpha cramerella Snellen) control. Pest Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1080/09670874.2019.1578003.
Zhang, A., Feng, Y., Larson, N., Feldlaufer, M.F. 2018. Eucalyptol detected by aeration from the eggs of the common bed bug (Hemiptera: cimicidae). Journal of Economic Entomology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toy385.
Farrar, R.R., Gundersen, D.E., Kuhar, D.J., Blackburn, M.B. 2018. Insecticidal activity of a recently described bacterium, Chromobacterium sphagni. Journal of Entomological Science. 53:333-338.
