Protozoosis caused by Vairimorpha necatrix (Microsporia, Nosematidae) in larvae of Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae)

Vairimorpha necatrix was detected among laboratory cultured and field collected Spodoptera frugiperda larvae. Weak infections were not always fatal. In the case of fatal infections among diseased larvae, white patches were formed by agglomerations of adipose tissue beneath the transparent integument. The mid-gut of S. frugiperda larvae presented the first site of histological alterations caused by V. necatrix. The migration of the pathogen, probably occured in the form of agglomerations, from the epithelial cells to the body cavity. Adipose tissue appears to be the principal site for the pathogen development. The nerve ganglia, muscle fibres and epidermis also presented histological alterations due to the pathogen propagation