Efficacy of Wheat Insecticide Seed Treatments on Bird Cherry-Oat Aphids

Bird Cherry-Oat Aphids, Rhopalosiphumpadi (Linnaeus), (BCOA) are a major agricultural pest for wheat due to their ability to transferBarley Yellow Dwarf Virus (BYDV), which can stunt growth when introduced to seedlings (Wegulo, 2013). These aphids, which will remain infective throughout their lives, are capable of asexual reproduction thus populations can grow exponentially and BYDV can spread rapidly throughout a field (Whitworth & Ahmad, 2008) ”). However, seed treatments, the application of pesticides to “seeds or vegetative propagation materials,” are an effective way to defend crops from pests like BCOA during their most vulnerable life cycle stages. (Paulsrudet al, 2001). Chemical companies are always seeking to develop ever more effective treatments. This research compared the effectiveness of an experimental treatment to that of Poncho®, a proven aphid pesticide. The results showed that the BCOA populations on the plants treated with the experimental pesticide did not decline. In fact, they increased at a faster rate than the untreated control. This indicates that the experimental treatment is not suitable for the control of aphids

Effect of Selected Essential Oils on Brown Recluse Spider Control

Loxosceles reclusa isconsidered a pest throughout its range in the US due mostly to the effects of its venomous bite (Sandidge and Hopwood, 2005). Management techniques include the use of pesticides to target this dangerous synanthropic organism. Essential oils, commonly used for various health benefits, have been previously used as a method of pest control (Koulet al, 2008). Studies have shown varying results when tested on different insects and pests (Regnault-Roger et al, 2011). Their effect on L. reclusa is still undetermined. Thus, we tested the potential of essential oils as an effective method of control for L. reclusa. Results from our experiment indicated that the selected essential oils had a varied effect with overall low mortality

Efficacy of Selected Insecticide Seed Treatments on Bird Cherry-Oat Aphids in Wheat

Bird Cherry-Oat Aphids, Rhopalosiphumpadi (Linnaeus) (BCOA) are common in Kansas wheat fields and may vector Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus, causing awidevariety of problems including stunted and non-reproductive wheat (Whitworth and Ahmad, 2008). This experiment consisted of an experimental seed treatment and compared it to a control and a seed treatment already commercially available.Results showed that although the experimental treatment didn't provide control; seeds with CruiserMaxx® seed treatment were protected until 22 days after planting.The results indicate that the aphids these common seed treatments are fighting against were not as effective as previously determined

New Chemistry Insecticide Seed Treatments to Control Hessian Fly, Mayetiola destructor

The Hessian fly (HF), Mayetiola destructor (Say), has been a periodical pest in Kansas for the past 100+ years (Dean and McCulloch, 1915). Plant resistance and insecticide seed treatments are the best and most consistent grower-controlled management tools and conventional insecticide seed treatments have been very effective (Wilde et al. 2001). However, new chemistries are periodically needed to retard resistance and it must be determined if these new chemistries are as effective as those that are commercially available. The treatments tested in this experiment did not provide effective or acceptable control of HF larvae. Because the HF is an important pest of wheat worldwide, the development and screening of these new insecticides will help Kansas wheat producers as well as wheat producers in all wheat producing regions of the world (Stuart et al., 2012)

Massive Shift in Gene Expression during Transitions between Developmental Stages of the Gall Midge, Mayetiola Destructor

Citation: Chen, M. S., Liu, S. Z., Wang, H. Y., Cheng, X. Y., El Bouhssini, M., & Whitworth, R. J. (2016). Massive Shift in Gene Expression during Transitions between Developmental Stages of the Gall Midge, Mayetiola Destructor. PLoS One, 11(5), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0155616Mayetiola destructor is a destructive pest of wheat and has six developmental stages. Molecular mechanisms controlling the transition between developmental stages remain unknown. Here we analyzed genes that were expressed differentially between two successive developmental stages, including larvae at 1, 3, 5, and 7 days, pupae, and adults. A total of 17,344 genes were expressed during one or more of these studied stages. Among the expressed genes, 38-68% were differently expressed between two successive stages, with roughly equal percentages of up-and down-regulated genes. Analysis of the functions of the differentially expressed genes revealed that each developmental stage had some unique types of expressed genes that are characteristic of the physiology at that stage. This is the first genome-wide analysis of genes differentially expressed in different stages in a gall midge. The large dataset of up-and down-regulated genes in each stage of the insect shall be very useful for future research to elucidate mechanisms regulating insect development and other biological processes

Genes Expressed Differentially in Hessian Fly Larvae Feeding in Resistant and Susceptible Plants

Citation: Chen, M. S., Liu, S. Z., Wang, H. Y., Cheng, X. Y., El Bouhssini, M., & Whitworth, R. J. (2016). Genes Expressed Differentially in Hessian Fly Larvae Feeding in Resistant and Susceptible Plants. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 17(8), 14. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms17081324The Hessian fly, Mayetiola destructor, is a destructive pest of wheat worldwide and mainly controlled by deploying resistant cultivars. In this study, we investigated the genes that were expressed differentially between larvae in resistant plants and those in susceptible plants through RNA sequencing on the Illumina platform. Informative genes were 11,832, 14,861, 15,708, and 15,071 for the comparisons between larvae in resistant versus susceptible plants for 0.5, 1, 3, and 5 days, respectively, after larvae had reached the feeding site. The transcript abundance corresponding to 5401, 6902, 8457, and 5202 of the informative genes exhibited significant differences (p <= 0.05) in the respective paired comparisons. Overall, genes involved in nutrient metabolism, RNA and protein synthesis exhibited lower transcript abundance in larvae from resistant plants, indicating that resistant plants inhibited nutrient metabolism and protein production in larvae. Interestingly, the numbers of cytochrome P450 genes with higher transcript abundance in larvae from resistant plants were comparable to, or higher than those with lower transcript abundance, indicating that toxic chemicals from resistant plants may have played important roles in Hessian fly larval death. Our study also identified several families of genes encoding secreted salivary gland proteins (SSGPs) that were expressed at early stage of 1st instar larvae and with more genes with higher transcript abundance in larvae from resistant plants. Those SSGPs are candidate effectors with important roles in plant manipulation

Spitzer Observations of the HII Region NGC 2467: An Analysis of Triggered Star Formation

We present new Spitzer Space Telescope observations of the region NGC 2467, and use these observations to determine how the environment of an HII region affects the process of star formation. Our observations comprise IRAC (3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8.0 um) and MIPS (24 um) maps of the region, covering approximately 400 square arcminutes. The images show a region of ionized gas pushing out into the surrounding molecular cloud, powered by an O6V star and two clusters of massive stars in the region. We have identified as candidate Young Stellar Objects (YSOs) 45 sources in NGC 2467 with infrared excesses in at least two mid-infrared colors. We have constructed color-color diagrams of these sources and have quantified their spatial distribution within the region. We find that the YSOs are not randomly distributed in NGC 2467; rather, over 75% of the sources are distributed at the edge of the HII region, along ionization fronts driven by the nearby massive stars. The high fraction of YSOs in NGC 2467 that are found in proximity to gas that has been compressed by ionization fronts supports the hypothesis that a significant fraction of the star formation in NGC 2467 is triggered by the massive stars and the expansion of the HII region. At the current rate of star formation, we estimate at least 25-50% of the total population of YSOs formed by this process.Comment: Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal, set to appear in Volume 701; 18 pages, 13 figures, 4 tables. This version reflects a few major changes made in the accepted version, including new figure

"AmaRosa," a Red Skinned, Red Fleshed Fingerling with High Phytonutrient Value

The diversity of traits in varieties of potato outside of its South American birthplace is a small subset of that available in the Andean center of origin. Among the traits that evoke most interest are skin and flesh pigments. Recent studies have pointed to the high antioxidant activity and potential healthful benefits from these pigments or other antioxidant compounds. The market for potatoes with unusual color patterns has been supplied largely by heirloom varieties of uncertain origin and the highly successful Yukon Gold. Interest has intensified and been transformed into a focused effort in the breeding of specialty varieties, remarkable for their unusual colors. The purpose of this paper is to describe a new potato variety in the Fingerling Class with red skin and red flesh.This is the publisher’s final pdf. The article is copyrighted by the Potato Association of America and published by Springer. It can be found at: http://www.springerlink.com/content/1099-209x/Keywords: Fingerling, ORAC, Anthocyanin, Antioxidant