Evidence from Drosophila suggests that Hox genes not only specify regional identity, but have the additional function of repressing antennal development within their normal domains. This is dramatically demonstrated by a series of Hox mutants in the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, and is likely an ancient function of Hox genes in insects.

A recent paper in BMC Biology reports the first large-scale insertional mutagenesis screen in a non-drosophilid insect, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum. This screen marks the beginning of a non-biased, 'forward genetics' approach to the study of genetic mechanisms operating in Tribolium.

background: the main object of this experimental work was to practise laboratory production both adult and the larval stage of hymenolepis diminuta with conventional modification to make further studies easier. materials & method: adults h. diminuta were collected from urban rats in tehran, iran. the beetles became infected using blended gravid segments with flour as bait. cysticercoids have be...

Humans and animals come into contact with various compounds in their natural environment. Most of the encountered substances are neutral, yet some may carry adverse health effects. The ingested food may be a source of harmful substances, including benzoquinones which, as shown by research results cited in this paper, demonstrate toxic, carcinogenic and enterotoxic activity. This group of compou...

Sanitation being an important component of chemical-free management of stored-products pests, the nutritional stress on insects that results from a clean environment may prove advantageous to the use of microbial controls. Dietary stress by food deprivation or suboptimal diet increased susceptibility of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), larvae to Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) V...

Spinosad is a commercial reduced-risk pesticide that is naturally derived. Spinosad's performance was evaluated on four classes of wheat (hard red winter, hard red spring, soft red winter, and durum wheats) against adults of the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica (F.); rice weevil, Sitophilus oryzae (L.); sawtoothed grain beetle, Oryzaephilus surinamensis (L.); red flour beetle, Tribolium...

The insect growth regulator methoprene can be mixed into the matrix used to comprise bags and other packaging materials. Different methodologies were utilized to evaluate the efficacy of different types of methoprene-treated packaging towards Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), the red flour beetle, and T. confusum Jacquelin duVal, the confused flour beetle, two common insect species that infest stor...

Protein-enriched pea flour is toxic and repellent to three major stored grain pests, the rice weevil, Sitophilus oryzae (L.), the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) and rusty grain beetle, Cryptolestes ferrugineus (Stephens). A unique and valuable aspect of the protein-enriched pea flour is that it is not toxic several parasitoids that are associated with two of these insect pests. ...

The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, has been selected for whole genome shotgun sequencing in the next year. In this minireview, we discuss some of the genetic and genomic tools and biological properties of Tribolium that have established its importance as an organism for agricultural and biomedical research as well as for studies of development and evolution. A Tribolium genomic database...