Florida Entomologist (2020) 103, 452-457

Francelina Aparecida Duarte Rocha, Yaremis Beatriz Meriño-Cabrera, Eliseu José Guedes Pereira, José Cola Zanuncio, Wellington Garcia Campos, José Eduardo Serrão and Maria Goreti Almeida Oliveira (2020)
Effect of natural and artificial diets on protease activity in the midgut of Spodoptera cosmioides and Spodoptera eridania (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) larvae
Florida Entomologist 103 (4), 452-457
Abstract: Spodoptera cosmioides Walker and Spodoptera eridania Stoll (both Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) are herbivorous insects affecting crop yield. Understanding midgut digestive enzyme properties in these caterpillars when feeding on different resources is important for control strategies of these agricultural pests. This study evaluated the activity of midgut digestive enzyme total proteases, trypsin, cysteine proteases, and chymotrypsin in S. cosmioides and S. eridania feeding on natural soybean and cotton leaves and artificial diets. The proteolytic activities of midgut digestive enzymes in S. cosmioides and S. eridania vary according to diet, suggesting adaptation of these caterpillars to different host plants in order to avoid the inhibitory effects of secondary metabolites through the overexpression of proteases. High activities occur for trypsin and total proteases in both insects indicating that these enzymes are potential targets for inhibition in pest control programs.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Full text of article
Database assignments for author(s): Eliseu José G. Pereira, José Cola Zanuncio, José Eduardo Serrao

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
rearing/culturing/mass production
general biology - morphology - evolution

---

Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Spodoptera eridania
	Spodoptera cosmioides