Journal of Economic Entomology (2012) 105, 1164-1170

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Shifeng Sun, Zhongshan Cheng, Jing Fan, Xinghu Cheng and Yi Pang (2012)
The utility of camptothecin as a synergist of Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki and nucleopolyhedroviruses against Trichoplusia ni and Spodoptera exigua
Journal of Economic Entomology 105 (4), 1164-1170
Abstract: We studied the effect of combining microbial pesticides with camptothecin (CPT) on the mortality of two lepidopteran insects: Trichoplusia ni (Hübner) and Spodoptera exigua (Hübner). CPT is an alkaloid that is often used as an anticancer agent. Here, CPT was evaluated as a microbial pesticide synergist of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and insect baculovirus. The toxicity of CPT and its synergistic effects on two microbial pesticides were studied using the diet overlay method. Bioassay results showed that CPT significantly enhances the toxicity of Bt variety kurstaki to S. exigua and T. ni. In addition, CPT strongly enhanced the infectivity of Autographa californica (Speyer) multinucleocapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) and S. exigua nucleopolyhedrovirus (SeMNPV). Using light microscopy, we found that CPT disrupts the peritrophic membrane of T. ni larvae and severely affects the structure of the midgut, resulting in an abnormal gut lumen morphology. We speculate that CPT increases toxicity by affecting the permeability of the peritrophic membrane.
(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): Yi Pang

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
formulation/storage of bioagents

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Spodoptera exigua
	Trichoplusia ni
Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (entomopathogen)	Spodoptera exigua
Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (entomopathogen)	Trichoplusia ni
Alphabaculovirus aucalifonicae (entomopathogen)
Alphabaculovirus spexiguae (entomopathogen)