Soybean dwarf virus (SbDV) causes serious dwarfing, yellowing and sterility in soybean (Glycine max). The soybean cv. Adams is tolerant to SbDV infection in the field and exhibits antibiosis to foxglove aphid (Aulacorthum solani), which transmits SbDV. This antibiosis (termed "aphid resistance") is required for tolerance to SbDV in the field in segregated progenies of Adams. A major quantitativ...

Green peach aphid (Myzus persicae) and pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) are two phylogenetically closely related agricultural pests. While pea aphid is restricted to Fabaceae, green peach aphid feeds on hundreds of plant species from more than 40 families. Transcriptome comparison could shed light on the genetic factors underlying the difference in host range between the two species. Furthermore...

Aphids feed on the phloem sap of plants, and are the most common honeydew-producing insects. While aphid honeydew is primarily considered to comprise sugars and amino acids, its protein diversity has yet to be documented. Here, we report on the investigation of the honeydew proteome from the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum. Using a two-Dimensional Differential in-Gel Electrophoresis (2D-Dige) app...

Field surveys of soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura, and its natural enemies, as well as natural enemy exclosure experiments, were conducted during 2003 and 2004 in soybean fields near Langfang, China. In 2003, aphid density increased six-fold during 12 d in July from 66+/-12 per 10 plants to a seasonal peak of 401+/-79 per 10 plants. Aphid density remained high for another 10 d and declin...

Ant-aphid interactions may affect host plants in several ways, however, most studies measure only the amount of fruit and seed produced, and do not test seed viability. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the effects of the presence of ant-aphid interactions upon host plant productivity and seed viability in two different contexts: isolated and within an arthropod community. For this...

The Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia (Mordvilko) (Homoptera: Aphididae), has been a major economic pest of small grains in the western United States since its introduction in 1986. Recently, a new Russian wheat aphid biotype was discovered in southeastern Colorado that damaged previously resistant wheat, Triticum aestivum L. Biotype development jeopardizes the durability of plant resistance...

Facilitating the evolution of new gene functions, gene duplication is a major mechanism driving evolutionary innovation. Gene family expansions relevant to host/symbiont interactions are increasingly being discovered in eukaryotes that host endosymbiotic microbes. Such discoveries entice speculation that gene duplication facilitates the evolution of novel, endosymbiotic relationships. Here, usi...

It has been claimed that plant architecture can alter aphid reproductive rates, but the mechanism driving this effect has not been identified. We studied interactions between plant architecture, aphid density, environmental conditions, and nutrient availability on the reproduction of pea aphids [Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris)] using four near-isogenic peas (Pisum sativum L.) that differ in morpho...

Aphids commonly harbor bacterial facultative symbionts that have a variety of effects upon their aphid hosts, including defense against hymenopteran parasitoids and fungal pathogens. The soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is infected with the symbiont Arsenophonus sp., which has an unknown role in its aphid host. Our research goals were to document the infection fre...

Schizaphis graminum (green bug; GB) and Sipha flava (yellow sugarcane aphid; YSA) are two cereal aphid species with broad host ranges capable of establishing on sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and several switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) cultivars. Switchgrass and sorghum are staple renewable bioenergy crops that are vulnerable to damage by aphids, therefore, identifying novel targets to control aphids...