Binding and pore formation constitute key steps in the mode of action of Bacillus thuringiensis delta-endotoxins. In this work, we present a comparative analysis of toxin-binding capacities of proteolytically processed Cry3A, Cry3B and Cry3C toxins to brush border membranes (BBMV) of the Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata (CPB), a major potato coleopteran-insect pest. Competition ...

The Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata, is a serious agricultural pest that is difficult to control due to its rapid evolution of resistance to most insecticides. Knockdown resistance (kdr) has been identified as the chief mechanism of resistance against pyrethroid insecticides in CPB and is due to a single nucleotide polymorphism, L1014F, of the voltage-sensitive sodium ch...

*Correspondence: Yongqiang Zhang, Biotechnology Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 12 South Zhongguancun Street, Beijing 100081, China [email protected]; Guirong Wang, State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan West Road, Beijing 100193, China...

Laboratory, small-field plot, and commercial-scale experiments were completed, using Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York Colorado potato beetle, (CPB) Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say), populations to determine if "antifeedant fungicides" might reduce the suitability of potato for CPB while simultaneously protecting potato from early and late blight. In the laboratory. fungicides formulated f...

Pads of beetles are covered with long, deformable setae, each ending in a micrometric terminal plate coated with secretory fluid. It was recently shown that the layer of the pad secretion covering the terminal plates is responsible for the generation of strong attractive forces. However, less is known about the fluid itself because it is produced in an extremely small quantity. We present here ...

RNA interference (RNAi) is a naturally occurring phenomenon in eukaryotes in which a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) suppresses the expression of a target gene. RNAi has markedly changed the way in which functional genetics studies are performed, especially in non-model organisms. In insects, the efficacy of RNAi is influenced by several factors, including the species and the methods of dsRNAs deli...