Microbial Ecology (2013) 65, 437-449

María G. Carrillo-Benítez, Ariel W. Guzmán-Franco, Raquel Alatorre-Rosas and Jhony N. Enríquez-Vara (2013)
Diversity and genetic population structure of fungal pathogens infecting white grub larvae in agricultural soils
Microbial Ecology 65 (2), 437-449
Abstract: White grub larvae are important soil-dwelling pests in many regions of Mexico as they attack many important crops such as maize. The use of synthetic chemicals is currently the main control strategy, but they are not always effective; thus, other alternatives are needed. Microbial control using entomopathogenic fungi represents an important alternative strategy, and species within the genera Beauveria and Metarhizium are considered amongst the most promising candidates. Seventeen Beauveria spp. and two Metarhizium spp. isolates were obtained in surveys of white grub larvae from different regions of Guanajuato, Mexico. All isolates were capable of infecting healthy larvae of the white grub Phyllophaga polyphylla in laboratory assays, but mortality never exceeded 50 %. Isolates were identified using morphological and molecular methods. Based on elongation factor1-α and ITS partial gene sequence data, all Beauveria isolates were identified as Beauveria pseudobassiana. Elongation factor1-α and β-tubulin sequence data identified the Metarhizium isolates to be Metarhizium pingshaense. In contrast, three additional Metarhizium isolates obtained the previous year in the same region were identified as M. pingshaense, Metarhizium anisopliae and Metarhizium robertsii. Microsatellite genotyping showed that all B. pseudobassiana isolates were the same haplotype. Enterobacterial Repetitive Intergenic Consensus fingerprinting information confirmed no significant variation amongst the B. pseudobassiana isolates. The ecological role of these isolates and their impact on white grub larvae populations are discussed.
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Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Ariel W. Guzmán-Franco

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
surveys/distribution/isolation

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Phyllophaga polyphylla		Mexico
Metarhizium anisopliae (entomopathogen)			Mexico
Metarhizium pingshaense (entomopathogen)			Mexico
Metarhizium robertsii (entomopathogen)			Mexico
Beauveria pseudobassiana (entomopathogen)	Phyllophaga polyphylla		Mexico