Journal of Economic Entomology (2013) 106, 50-56

Sonia Elvira, M. Angeles Ibargutxi, Noelia Gorria, Delia Muñoz, Primitivo Caballero and Trevor Williams (2013)
Insecticidal characteristics of two commercial Spodoptera exigua nucleopolyhedrovirus strains produced on different host colonies
Journal of Economic Entomology 106 (1), 50-56
Abstract: The insecticidal characteristics of two Spodoptera exigua multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (SeMNPV) strains produced on two different S. exigua colonies were measured using the same two host colonies. These strains constitute the active ingredients of the biological insecticides Vir-ex and Spexit and were produced on insect colonies from Spain and Switzerland. Demographic characteristics of insects from each colony were examined before infection. Larval developmental time, larval survival, and adult sex ratio did not differ between the colonies, whereas mean pupal weight was significantly higher in the Spanish colony insects. After infection, susceptibility to virus occlusion bodies (OBs), time to death, larval weight at death, and total production of OBs/larva varied significantly depending on virus strain and the colony used. Vir-ex OBs produced in Spanish colony larvae had improved insecticidal characteristics in terms in lethal dose and speed of kill metrics than other strain-colony combinations. OB production was significantly higher in Spanish colony insects infected with Spexit compared with Vir-ex infected insects from the Swiss colony, with intermediate values for the other two strain-colony combinations. Virus strain and host colony origin were highly influential in determining the insecticidal characteristics of OBs and should be considered as key parameters that require optimization during the production of SeMNPV-based insecticides.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Trevor Williams, Primitivo Caballero, Delia Muñoz

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
rearing/culturing/mass production

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Spodoptera exigua		Spain (continental)
Spodoptera exigua multiple NPV (entomopathogen)	Spodoptera exigua