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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Byron, Georgia » Fruit and Tree Nut Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #326564
Research Project: New Tools for Managing Key Pests of Pecan and Peach

Location: Fruit and Tree Nut Research

Title: Biological control and nutrition: food for thought

Author
item BLACKBURN, DANA - Brigham Young University
item Shapiro Ilan, David
item ADAMS, BYRON - Brigham Young University

Submitted to: Biological Control
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/10/2016
Publication Date: 4/11/2016
Citation: Blackburn, D., Shapiro-Ilan, D.I., Adams, B. 2106. Biological control and nutrition: food for thought. Biological Control. 97:131-138.

Interpretive Summary: Chemical pesticides are used frequently to combat arthropod pests that plague crops; however, these compounds come with potential risks to the environment and human health. Research efforts have focused on using natural biological agents as an alternative to these chemical insecticides. These biological control agents include a wide range of organisms including predators, parasitoids, and other insect-killing pathogens/microbes (bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and viruses). Despite commercial availability of these biocontrol agents their widespread use is still limited due to biological and economic difficulties. Aside from conservation biocontrol, the success of introducing biological control agents into the field can be highly dependent on the ability to mass-produce these organisms. Efficient mass-production relies heavily on the environment in which the agent is grown. Nutrition can play a significant role in important biocontrol traits such as colonization and survival, tolerance to environmental stress, reproduction, and longevity. Therefore, to increase biocontrol potential nutritional aspects should be considered prior to commercial production. This review aims to explore the role nutrition plays in the production and efficacy of biocontrol agents by summarizing the effect nutrition has on important biocontrol traits, specifically traits in insect-killing organisms including predators, parasitoids, and microbial agents.

Technical Abstract: Chemical pesticides are used frequently to combat arthropod pests that plague crops; however, these compounds come with potential risks to the environment and human health. Research efforts have focused on using natural agents as an alternative to these chemical insecticides. These biological control agents include a wide range of organisms including predators, parasitoids, and other entomopathogens (bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and viruses). Despite commercial availability of these biocontrol agents their widespread use is still limited due to biological and economic difficulties. Aside from conservation biocontrol, the success of introducing biological control agents into the field can be highly dependent on the ability to mass-produce these organisms. Efficient mass-production relies heavily on the environment in which the agent is grown. Nutrition can play a significant role in important biocontrol traits such as colonization and survival, tolerance to environmental stress, reproduction, and longevity. Therefore, to increase biocontrol potential nutritional aspects should be considered prior to commercial production. This review aims to explore the role nutrition plays in the production and efficacy of biocontrol agents by summarizing the effect nutrition has on important biocontrol traits, specifically traits in entomopathogenic organisms including predators, parasitoids, and microbial agents.