Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) are small worms whose ecological behaviour consists to invade, kill insects and feed on their cadavers thanks to a species-specific symbiotic bacterium belonging to any of the genera Xenorhabdus or Photorhabdus hosted in the gastro-intestinal tract of EPNs. The symbiont provides a number of biological functions that are essential for its EPN host including the ...

The plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar, is a major pest of pome and stone fruit. Our objective was to determine the ability of Steinernema feltiae and Steinernema riobrave to control C. nenuphar larvae in soil. Nematodes were applied at 100 infective juveniles/ cm in peach orchards at two locations (Byron, GA and Quincy, FL) in 2002 and 2003. Treatments were compared to an untreated control ...

We conducted a transcriptomic and small RNA analysis of infective juveniles (IJs) from three behaviourally distinct Steinernema species. Substantial variation was found in the expression shared gene orthologues, revealing signatures that correlate with behavioural states. Ninety-seven percent predicted microRNAs are novel to each Surprisingly, our data provide evidence new family non-coding tra...

E. E. Del Valle, P. Lax, J. Rondán Dueñas, and M. E. Doucet. 2013. Effects of insect cadavers infected by Heterorhabditis bacteriophora and Steinernema diaprepesi on Meloidogyne incognita parasitism in pepper and summer squash plants. Cien. Inv. Agr. 40(1):109-118. The effects of insect cadavers infected with three isolates of Heterorhabditis bacteriophora and one isolate of Steinernema diaprep...

Mechanized production and delivery of biological pesticides presents challenges because the biological agents must remain viable during these processes. This study evaluates the effect of flow through an abrupt contraction, where flow characteristics similar to that found within bioprocesses and spray equipment are developed, on damage to a benchmark biological pest control agent, entomopathoge...