The impact of the nematode-parasitic fungus Hirsutella rhossiliensis on the effectiveness of Steinernema carpocapsae, S. glaseri, and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora against Galleria mellonella larvae was assessed in the laboratory. The presence of Hirsutella conidia on the third-stage (J3) cuticle of S. carpocapsae and H. bacteriophora interfered with infection of insect larvae. Conidia on the J...

Dispersal of the nematode Steinernema carpocapsae (All strain), applied on the top or the bottom of soil columns, was tested in the presence or absence of two earthworm species, Lumbricus terrestris or Aporrectodea trapezoides. Nematode dispersal was estimated after a 2-week period with a bioassay against the greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella. Vertical dispersal of nematodes was increased i...

Pesta-pelletized Steinernema carpocapsae (All) nematodes were used in soil treatments in the greenhouse against larvae of Western corn rootworm and prepupae of Colorado potato beetle. The pesta-pellets delivered 100,000 living nematodes/g. Infective-stage nematodes and their associated bacteria survived the pesta-pellet process, emerged from the pellets in large numbers in the soil, and reduced...

Drosophila melanogaster is an excellent model to dissect the molecular components and pathways of the innate anti-pathogen immune response. The nematode parasite Steinernema carpocapsae and its mutualistic bacterium Xenorhabdus nematophila form a complex that is highly pathogenic to insects, including D. melanogaster. We have used symbiotic (carrying X. nematophila) and axenic (lacking X. nemat...

The objective of this study was to determine the susceptibility of the two primary direct insect pests of hazelnuts in Oregon to three species of entomopathogenic nematodes. The entomopathogenic nematodes (Heterorhabditis marelatus Pt. Reyes, Steinernema carpocapsae All and Steinernema kraussei L137) were used in laboratory soil bioassays to determine their virulence against filbertworm, Cydia ...

In laboratory experiments, we investigated how media with varying ratio of peat:sand and two levels of compaction influence dispersal success of entomopathogenic nematode (EPN) species with different foraging strategies: Steinernema carpocapsae (ambusher), Heterorhabditis downesi (cruiser) and Steinernema feltiae (intermediate). Success was measured by the numbers of nematodes moving through a ...

Two entomopathogenic nematodes, Steinernema riobravis and Steinernema carpocapsae, were compared for their ability to parasitize corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) prepupae and pupae in corn plots at the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. The most effective S. riobravis concentration was 200,000 infective juveniles (IJ)/m(2) (95% parasitism), as compared with 100,000 IJ/m(2) (81%), 50,000 IJ...

BACKGROUND Steinernema carpocapsae Weiser, an entomopathogenic nematode (EPN), is a potential biological control agent for the cabbage moth (Mamestra brassicae L.). This research aimed to identify a suitable spray application technique, and to determine whether yeast extract added to an EPN spray has an attracting and/or a feeding stimulant effect on M. brassicae. The biological control capabil...

An insertion between iscA and hscB of the Xenorhabdus nematophila iscRSUA-hscBA-fdx locus, predicted to encode Fe-S assembly machinery, prevented colonization of Steinernema carpocapsae nematodes. The insertion disrupted cotranscription of iscA and hscB, but did not reduce hscBA expression, suggesting that X. nematophila requires coordinated expression of the isc-hsc-fdx locus for colonization.

A steinernematid nematode was isolated from soil samples collected near St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. On the basis of its morphometry and RFLPs in ribosomal DNA spacer, it was designated as a new strain, NF, of Steinernema feltiae. Cellulose acetate electrophoresis was used to separate isozymes of eight enzymes in infective juveniles of S. feltiae NF as well as four other isolates: S. felti...