A gene from Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki that codes for a Lepidoptera-specific insecticidal toxin (delta-endotoxin) was engineered for expression in Bacillus subtilis. A low-copy-number plasmid vector that replicates in Escherichia coli and B. subtilis was constructed to transform B. subtilis with gene fusions first isolated and characterized in E. coli. Naturally occurring promoter s...

The 130-kilodalton mosquito larvicidal gene, cloned from Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis, was introduced into the cyanobacterium Agmenellum quadruplicatum PR-6 by plasmid transformation. Transformed cells synthesized 130-kilodalton delta-endotoxin protein and showed mosquito larvicidal activity. Results demonstrate a potential use of a cyanobacterium for biological control of mosquitoes.

Seven replication origins from resident plasmids of Bacillus thuringienis subsp. kurstaki HD263 and HD73 were cloned in Escherichia coli. Three of these replication origins, originating from plasmids of 43, 44, and 60 MDa, were used to construct a set of compatible shuttle vectors that exhibit structural and segregational stability in the Cry- strain B. thuringiensis HD73-26. These shuttle vect...

The Portsmouth, Rhode Island Mosquito Control Program used granular Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis to successfully control salt marsh mosquitoes in a 9 acre salt marsh while monitoring for, planning and implementing small scale open marsh water management in the marsh. Single season larviciding costs were roughly 4% that of contracted open marsh water management in this marsh.

Abstract Background Insect pests cause substantial agriculture losses annually, and their regulation through chemical pesticides instigates a prolonged detrimental impact on the environment human health. The upsurge in difficulties such as pesticide residue, soil degradation pest resistance acted pacesetter for research biological control with prime focus entomopathogens. To aid knowing biocont...

Bacillus thuringiensis serovar medellin strain 163-131 and Bacillus thuringiensis serovar jegathesan (B.t.jeg.) strain 367 are very toxic to mosquito larvae. However, they are 10 times less toxic than Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis (B.t.i.) to mosquito larvae under laboratory conditions. Lyophilized powders were produced from these strains and their toxicities were compared to that of ...

Studies were conducted in 1989 and 1990 at Lane, Oklahoma, to evaluate the economic benefits of managing lepidopterous pests of fresh-market cabbage using Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner var. kurstaki, or a pyrethroid insecticide in combination with an economic threshold based on larval density. Marketable cabbage yield and percent head damage were not significantly different among plots spraye...

Formulations of Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bt) with insecticidal activity against the sugarcane borer, Diatraea saccharalis Fabricius (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), were developed and tested under laboratory and field conditions. The formulations were prepared using biodegradable polymers such as modified corn starch as an encapsulating agent, gelatin as an adherent, powdered sugarcane as a fe...