Identification of insect-specific target genes for development of RNAi based control of the Eucalyptus gall pest Leptocybe invasa Fisher & La Salle (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae)

Background Eucalyptus is grown in around 3.9 Mha in India. Leptocybe invasa Fisher & La Salle (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) has emerged as a serious pest in Eucalyptus causing considerable loss of quality planting materials besides loss in productivity and quality of timber. Current strategies for its control include selected deployment of Eucalyptus clones tolerant to the pest resulting in several productive Eucalyptus genetic resources, not being considered for plantation programmes, as in the case of the widely planted Eucalyptus clone, ITC 10, and ITC 271. The securely ensconced grub within the gall for a period of around 4 months post oviposition makes it refractory to pesticide applications. This feature, however, makes plantincorporated protectants, via RNAi approaches a potential strategy for engineering resistance [1-3]. However, application of RNAi technology requires determination of sequence information of insect-specific genes so that off-target effects in plants as well as human beings are avoided.