Pest Management Science (2018) 74, 2444-2449

Christoph Lüthi, Fernando Alvarez-Alfageme and Jörg Romeis (2018)
The bean α-amylase inhibitor αAI-1 in genetically modified chickpea seeds does not harm parasitoid wasps
Pest Management Science 74 (11), 2444-2449
Abstract:
BACKGROUND
Legumes have been genetically engineered to express α-amylase inhibitor 1 (αAI-1) from common bean in their seeds. Whereas the genetically modified (GM) seeds are immune to multiple bruchid pest species, the cosmopolitan bruchid Acanthoscelides obtectus is tolerant to αAI-1 and their larvae develop normally inside the seeds. Hymenopteran bruchid parasitoids, the most important natural enemies of bruchids, might thus be exposed to αAI-1 when attacking A. obtectus larvae developing inside GM seeds. Exposure might reduce parasitoid fitness, resulting in a decline in the natural control of A. obtectus, and thus promote the spread of this pest. We investigated the impact of the presence of αAI-1 in legume seeds on parasitoid fitness in tritrophic experiments with αAI-1 GM or non-GM chickpea seeds, A. obtectus, and three parasitoid species. Additionally, we investigated the exposure of parasitoids to αAI-1 using a fourth, highly sensitive parasitoid species.
RESULTS
Parasitoid fitness was not affected when A. obtectus was used in GM chickpea seeds as hosts, and this lack of effects was probably attributable to the fact that exposure of the parasitoids to αAI-1 was negligible.
CONCLUSION
We conclude that the release of GM chickpeas containing αAI-1 should not harm this important group of non-target insects.
(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): Jörg Romeis

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
resistance to pesticides

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Acanthoscelides obtectus