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Molecular Research on Biological Control of Insects
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Molecular Research on Biological Control of Insects

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 4549

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Jie Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
Interests: biological pesticides; Bacillus thuringiensis; entomopathogenic microorganisms; insecticidal genes; insecticidal molecular mechanism; host response

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biological control is an effective and environmentally friendly measure to control agricultural health and insect pests. Generally, biological control has progressed well and has played an important positive role in reducing the use of chemical pesticides, ensuring the quality and ecological environment safety of agricultural products, and preventing and controlling pests in characteristic crops. In recent years, more and more countries are vigorously developing biological control.

This Special Issue discusses molecular research on biological control agents consisting of microbial insecticides, fungal insecticides, natural enemies, RNA insecticides, insect-resistant crops and other related agents. The specific scope includes the discovery of novel genes and strains and molecular research of insecticidal strains and insect hosts.  

Prof. Dr. Jie Zhang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • discovery of insecticidal genes
  • discovery of insecticidal strains
  • RNA insecticides
  • microbial insecticides
  • fungal insecticides
  • natural enemy of insects
  • insect-resistant crops
  • molecular research of insect pests

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 4252 KiB  
Article
Genomic and Comparative Transcriptomic Analyses Reveal Key Genes Associated with the Biosynthesis Regulation of Okaramine B in Penicillium daleae NBP-49626
by Yueying Wang, Ling Chen, Wei Fang, Zhen Zeng, Zhaoyuan Wu, Fang Liu, Xiaoyan Liu, Yan Gong, Lei Zhu and Kaimei Wang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(4), 1965; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25041965 - 6 Feb 2024
Viewed by 907
Abstract
Restricted production of fungal secondary metabolites hinders the ability to conduct comprehensive research and development of novel biopesticides. Okaramine B from Penicillium demonstrates remarkable insecticidal efficacy; however, its biosynthetic yield is low, and its regulatory mechanism remains unknown. The present study found that [...] Read more.
Restricted production of fungal secondary metabolites hinders the ability to conduct comprehensive research and development of novel biopesticides. Okaramine B from Penicillium demonstrates remarkable insecticidal efficacy; however, its biosynthetic yield is low, and its regulatory mechanism remains unknown. The present study found that the yield difference was influenced by fermentation modes in okaramine-producing strains and performed genomic and comparative transcriptome analysis of P. daleae strain NBP-49626, which exhibits significant features. The NBP-49626 genome is 37.4 Mb, and it encodes 10,131 protein-encoding genes. Up to 5097 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified during the submerged and semi-solid fermentation processes. The oka gene cluster, lacking regulatory and transport genes, displayed distinct transcriptional patterns in response to the fermentation modes and yield of Okaramine B. Although transcription trends of most known global regulatory genes are inconsistent with those of oka, this study identified five potential regulatory genes, including two novel Zn(II)2Cys6 transcription factors, Reg2 and Reg19. A significant correlation was also observed between tryptophan metabolism and Okaramine B yields. In addition, several transporter genes were identified as DEGs. These results were confirmed using real-time quantitative PCR. This study provides comprehensive information regarding the regulatory mechanism of Okaramine B biosynthesis in Penicillium and is critical to the further yield improvement for the development of insecticides. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Research on Biological Control of Insects)
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15 pages, 3567 KiB  
Article
3-(Methylthio)Propionic Acid from Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner Exhibits High Nematicidal Activity against the Root Knot Nematode Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood
by Ling Chen, Yueying Wang, Lei Zhu, Yong Min, Yuxi Tian, Yan Gong and Xiaoyan Liu
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(3), 1708; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25031708 - 30 Jan 2024
Viewed by 1199
Abstract
Root knot nematodes cause serious damage to global agricultural production annually. Given that traditional chemical fumigant nematicides are harmful to non-target organisms and the environment, the development of biocontrol strategies has attracted significant attention in recent years. In this study, it was found [...] Read more.
Root knot nematodes cause serious damage to global agricultural production annually. Given that traditional chemical fumigant nematicides are harmful to non-target organisms and the environment, the development of biocontrol strategies has attracted significant attention in recent years. In this study, it was found that the Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner strain NBIN-863 exhibits strong fumigant nematicidal activity and has a high attraction effect on Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood. Four volatile organic compounds (VOCs) produced by NBIN-863 were identified using solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The nematicidal activity of four VOCs, namely, N-methylformamide, propenamide, 3-(methylthio)propionic acid, and phenylmalonic acid, was detected. Among these compounds, 3-(methylthio)propionic acid exhibited the highest direct contact nematicidal activity against M. incognita, with an LC50 value of 6.27 μg/mL at 24 h. In the fumigant bioassay, the mortality rate of M. incognita treated with 1 mg/mL of 3-(methylthio)propionic acid for 24 h increased to 69.93%. Furthermore, 3-(methylthio)propionic acid also exhibited an inhibitory effect on the egg-hatching of M. incognita. Using chemotaxis assays, it was determined that 3-(methylthio)propionic acid was highly attractive to M. incognita. In pot experiments, the application of 3-(methylthio)propionic acid resulted in a reduction in gall numbers, decreasing the number of galls per gram of tomato root from 97.58 to 6.97. Additionally, the root length and plant height of the treated plants showed significant increases in comparison with the control group. The current study suggests that 3-(methylthio)propionic acid is a novel nematicidal virulence factor of B. thuringiensis. Our research provides evidence for the potential use of NBIN-863 or its VOCs in biocontrol against root knot nematodes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Research on Biological Control of Insects)
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14 pages, 6853 KiB  
Article
Identification of 2,4-Di-tert-butylphenol as a Novel Agonist for Insect Odorant Receptors
by Shinhui Lee, Sanung Eom, Minsu Pyeon, Myungmi Moon, Jihwon Yun, Jaehyeong Lee, Yong-Seok Choi and Junho H. Lee
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(1), 220; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25010220 - 22 Dec 2023
Viewed by 827
Abstract
Odorant molecules interact with odorant receptors (ORs) lining the pores on the surface of the sensilla on an insect’s antennae and maxillary palps. This interaction triggers an electrical signal that is transmitted to the insect’s nervous system, thereby influencing its behavior. Orco, an [...] Read more.
Odorant molecules interact with odorant receptors (ORs) lining the pores on the surface of the sensilla on an insect’s antennae and maxillary palps. This interaction triggers an electrical signal that is transmitted to the insect’s nervous system, thereby influencing its behavior. Orco, an OR coreceptor, is crucial for olfactory transduction, as it possesses a conserved sequence across the insect lineage. In this study, we focused on 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol (DTBP), a single substance present in acetic acid bacteria culture media. We applied DTBP to oocytes expressing various Drosophila melanogaster odor receptors and performed electrophysiology experiments. After confirming the activation of DTBP on the receptor, the binding site was confirmed through point mutations. Our findings confirmed that DTBP interacts with the insect Orco subunit. The 2-heptanone, octanol, and 2-hexanol were not activated for the Orco homomeric channel, but DTBP was activated, and the EC50 value was 13.4 ± 3.0 μM. Point mutations were performed and among them, when the W146 residue changed to alanine, the Emax value was changed from 1.0 ± 0 in the wild type to 0.0 ± 0 in the mutant type, and all activity was decreased. Specifically, DTBP interacted with the W146 residue of the Orco subunit, and the activation manner was concentration-dependent and voltage-independent. This molecular-level analysis provides the basis for novel strategies to minimize pest damage. DTBP, with its specific binding to the Orco subunit, shows promise as a potential pest controller that can exclusively target insects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Research on Biological Control of Insects)
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17 pages, 8127 KiB  
Article
Enterobacter Strain IPPBiotE33 Displays a Synergistic Effect with Bacillus thuringiensis Bt185
by Liang Mi, Ziqiong Gu, Ying Li, Wenyue Xu, Changlong Shu, Jie Zhang, Xi Bai and Lili Geng
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(18), 14193; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241814193 - 16 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1098
Abstract
The discovery and isolation of new non-Bt insecticidal bacteria and genes are significant for the development of new biopesticides against coleopteran pests. In this study, we evaluated the insecticidal activity of non-Bt insecticidal bacteria, PPBiotE33, IPPBiotC41, IPPBiotA42 and IPPBiotC43, isolated from the peanut [...] Read more.
The discovery and isolation of new non-Bt insecticidal bacteria and genes are significant for the development of new biopesticides against coleopteran pests. In this study, we evaluated the insecticidal activity of non-Bt insecticidal bacteria, PPBiotE33, IPPBiotC41, IPPBiotA42 and IPPBiotC43, isolated from the peanut rhizosphere. All these strains showed insecticidal activity against first- and third-instar larvae of Holotrichia parallela, Holotrichia oblita, Anomala corpulenta and Potosia brevitarsis. IPPBiotE33 showed the highest toxicity among the four strains and exhibited virulence against Colaphellus bowringi. The genome of IPPBiotE33 was sequenced, and a new protein, 03673, with growth inhibition effects on C. bowringi was obtained. In addition, IPPBiotE33 had a synergistic effect with Bacillus thuringiensis Bt185 against H. parallela in bioassays and back-inoculation experiments with peanut seedlings. IPPBiotE33 induced a decrease in hemocytes and an increase in phenol oxidase activity in H. parallela hemolymph, known as the immunosuppressive effect, which mediated synergistic activity with Bt185. This study increased our knowledge of the new insecticidal strain IPPBiotE33 and shed new light on the research on new insecticidal coaction mechanisms and new blended pesticides. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Research on Biological Control of Insects)
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