Twenty-three coffee (Coffea arabica) genotypes were evaluated for relative resistance against coffee white stem borer (Xylotrechus quadripes) and coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix) at coffee orchard of Horticulture Research Station, Malepatan, Pokhara during three consecutive years from 2016 to 2019. The monthly observation on the emergence of this borer showed that coffee genotypes "Yellow caturra" and “Tekisic” were highly infested with coffee white stem borer as compared to the other genotypes. However, no infestation was observed in genotypes Catimor, San Ramon, Indo Tim-Tim, Ketisic, Pacas, Syangja special and both Vermelo and Amarillo group. Similarly, genotypes Catimor, Indo Tim-Tim and San Ramon determined to be resistant against coffee leaf rust. While, coffee germplasm- Ketisic was also recorded as relatively resistant against coffee leaf rust. These results have important implications for the development of coffee white stem borer and leaf rust resistant high yielding coffee variety in future.

Gravid females have numerous factors to take into consideration when choosing to lay eggs. The number of eggs laid per clutch compared to the number of clutches may impact the survival and fitness of her future offspring under conditions of varying temperature and humidity. Temperature and humidity interact to influence conditions of desiccation that may prevent eggs from successfully eclosing. The trade-off between clutch size and the number of clutches per female would be expected to vary under these conditions such that species more susceptible to egg desiccation should choose fewer and larger, compared to species that are less susceptible. Calliphora vicina Robineau-Desvoidy eggs are least susceptible to desiccation, followed by Lucilia sericata Meigen, with Phormia regina Meigen eggs as the most susceptible to desiccation, thus we expect P. regina females to lay the fewest, largest clutches compared to L. sericata and C. vicina. Individual females were released into an arena on a temperature gradient ranging from 10-40 °C under high (75-85%) and low (24-35%) relative humidity. Lucilia sericata laid either 1 clutch with 107 ± 10 eggs or 2 clutches of 50 ± 17 eggs. Both C. vicina and P. regina oviposited up to 3 clutches. Calliphora vicina laid 98 ± 24 eggs within 1 clutch, 55 ± 13 eggs when 2 clutches were oviposited, and 43 ± 12 when 3 clutches were laid. Lastly, P. regina laid 1 clutch of 86 ± 26 eggs, 42 ± 13 eggs when 2 clutches were oviposited, and 33 ± 4 eggs when 3 clutches were laid. Across all 3 species, clutch sizes ranged from 2-216 eggs per clutch. Despite our predictions, humidity did not affect clutch size (F_1,86=0.1394, p=0.709), or the number of clutches laid (F_1,86=0.2371, p=0.627). This suggests that each species has different oviposition strategies that impact their egg-laying behaviour.

20-hydroxyecdysone (20E), the active form of the steroid hormone ecdysone, is crucial in the female reproductive physiology of insects, as it participates in the regulation of several processes throughout oogenesis, including the maintenance of the germinal stem cell niche, follicle differentiation, or choriogenesis, among others. Its role in oogenesis has mostly been studied in holometabolan species with meroistic ovaries, although the exact role is still largely unknown. To further explore the function of 20E in the oogenesis of a phylogenetically basal species, and have a wider evolutionary perspective of its function, we use the cockroach Blattella germanica, a hemimetabolous insect with panoistic ovaries, as a model. Injection of 20E in newly emerged last instar nymphs caused an increase in the number of differentiated ovarian follicles and inhibited the expression of some Halloween genes in the ovaries. By depleting the Ecdysone Receptor (EcR) expression in sixth instar nymphs, we observed an upregulation of the Halloween genes in the ovaries. Moreover, the germarium of EcR-depleted nymphs appears swollen, and there is more expression of EcR in the first differentiated ovarian follicles. The results obtained suggest that EcR expression in the ovary is independent of 20E levels in hemolymph, and its role changes in the different ovarian cell lines.

Diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) is an important pest of crucifers distributed along different climatic regions across the world. To understand the effect of elevated temperatures on the survival rate and development of diamondback moth on cauliflower, an experiment was conducted evaluating six different temperatures (31, 32, 33, 34, 35 and 36°C) in Open Top Chambers during 2019- 2020. Survival and longevity were recorded at daily intervals. Results revealed that the total life cycle of P. xylostella was longest at 31°C and it declined with increasing temperatures. However, P. xylostella did not complete its development at 35 and 36°C. Fifty percent mortality was observed after 24.4 days at 31°C, after 22.6 days at 32°C, and after 14 days at 34°C. Increasing temperatures significantly reduce the survival rate of P. xylostella, but temperatures above 34°C were found to be lethal affecting the growth and development of P. xylostella. The most probable reason for the incomplete development of the insects at higher temperature was the inability of the larvae to consume adequate nitrogen to support the temperature dependent development rate.

Glycoalkaloids (GAs) are produced by many plant species and have high biological activity. In plants, they act as natural protectants against pathogens and herbivores. The studies of GAs in insects are focused mainly on the lethal and sublethal effects. There are only a few studies concerning the mechanisms of GAs action in these organisms and, thus, their activity remains largely unknown. The aim of our studies was to determine whether these compounds have impact on insect metabolism. The metabolism is tightly connected with nutrition, and as that GAs may be ingested together with nutrients, it seems that they also should affect metabolism. To check if tested compounds change metabolic activity of insect cells thus, have an impact on availability of nutrients for other tissues, we analyzed the levels of free amino acids, carbohydrates, and glycerol in insect haemolymph. In the research, three GAs in concentrations 10^-8 and 10^-5 M were tested: solanine, chaconine and tomatine. The content of nutrients was determined in the haemolymph of T. molitor larvae injected with the tested compounds. The assays were performed by RP-HPLC technique. The preliminary analysis revealed the effect of the tested compounds on carbohydrates, amino acids and lipid content in haemolymph. These results suggest that GAs have impact on insect physiology and influence on nutrient balance in haemolymph. Taken together, this research provides important insights into GAs action in insect tissues.

In Israel, arugula (Eruca sativa) plants reveal a clear ecotypic differentiation in floral attraction traits: petal color that ranges from the yellow, being dominant in the Mediterranean habitat, to the cream being dominant in the desert habitat. The Mediterranean habitat is characterized by greater floral diversity than the desert habitat, and honey bees (Apis mellifera) are the main pollinator in the Mediterranean habitat. Diamondback moths (DBM) (Plutella xylostella) are more prevalent in the desert habitat than in the Mediterranean habitat. Whereas adult moths are pollinators, the larvae are specialist herbivores on E. sativa. Pollination and herbivory are traditionally studied in isolation from each other, in this study we consider both processes, with the aim of testing whether the yellow ecotype would have an advantage in the Mediterranean habitat. Previous research confirmed that naïve honey bees are initially more attracted to the yellow flower morph than to the cream one. However, in the present study, we found that the yellow ecotype produces lower quantities of nectar, and at lower total dissolved solids (TDS) concentrations, than the cream one. Furthermore, when bees could forage on the plants (and experience the associated rewards), they shifted to equal visitation between the two ecotypes. Intriguingly, inducing the plant’s defense system (by administration of methyl jasmonate) reduced nectar volume and concentration in the cream morph while increasing it in the yellow morph. Overall, our results suggest trade-offs between floral advertisement, reward, and secondary metabolites production, mediated by herbivory and affecting pollination. To study the outcome of competition between the two morphs in the Mediterranean habitat, we are running a long-term (four seasons) semi-field experiment in which the evolutionary process is mediated by honey bee pollination. Seed production, seed germination rate, and paternity (by ecotype-specific genetic markers) is determined from the outcome of the first generation, and used to establish the “selected” population of ecotypes for the second generation. We believe our study will lead to a better understanding of interactions involved in the evolution of diversity in Eruca sativa populations.

The insect successional wave is a primary method to estimate the time elapsed since death. Several studies have shown that antemortem consumption of opioids affects maggot growth rates. However, there are no published data that investigate the effect of antemortem opioids uses on successional patterns. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of methadone on the successional patterns of insects on rabbit carcasses. During this successional study, 15 and 12 insect taxa were recorded on carcasses for 15 d sampling intervals during spring and winter 2018, respectively. Chrysomya albiceps and Calliphora vicina were the most frequent fly species. These two species preferred to lay eggs on the control carcasses earlier than the treated carcasses. Lucilia cuprina was observed exclusively on the remains of untreated carcasses, while Saprinus chalcites was recorded only from the remains of treated rabbits. Permutation analyses based on the Mantel test for the similarity values of taxa between treated and untreated carcasses in the spring and winter were 0.64 (P = 0.009) and 0.69 (P = 0.003), respectively. Permutation analyses for the two most dominant fly species between the treated and untreated carcasses in the spring and winter were 0.51 (P = 0.05) and 0.49 (P = 0.09), respectively. The results revealed that the overall pattern of insect succession was similar between the treated and untreated rabbit carcasses. However, the patterns of succession of Chrysomya albiceps and Calliphora vicina were slightly different between both treated and untreated carcasses and this could have an influence on the PMI estimation.

A growing body of evidence suggests that Nosema ceranae is one of the causes of the increased honeybee mortality reported in recent years. However, few drugs are known to be active against this parasite, which can generate adverse effects at individual and colony level. The main objective of this study was to investigate, under laboratory conditions, the possible antiparasitic effect of the metabolites extracted from one fungal specie of the genus Trichoderma. Isolated fractions or complete secretome (fresh or lyophilized) of the fungal strain were extracted. We carried out in vitro test to evaluate the direct effect of the secretome or the compounds extracted on the viability of N. ceranae spores by means of using microscopy techniques with fluorescent probes. The findings show that the fresh complete secretome and one isolated fraction are not toxic for bees, but also have promising bioactivity against the pathogen. Both treatments presented a significant inactivation of spores (68.2 % and 92.1 % respectively) after a 24-hour exposition period. In addition, the antiparasitic activity of the treatments after lyophilisation also showed a significant reduction in the spore viability (36.3 % and 46.6 % respectively). The experimental data suggests that the fraction tested may diminish the viability of spores present in infected bees without altering honeybee survival. Results of the research represent a further step towards the development of a possible therapeutic alternative for the control of this disease.

The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is an important pest of maize nowadays spread worldwide. In some regions there are FAW populations resistant to some Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxins used in transgenic crops. This populations may have altered susceptibilities and post-exposure responses to some insecticides useful for pest management, like chlorantraniliprole. We determined the lethal toxicity and sublethal effects of chlorantraniliprole to a susceptible (LabSS) and Cry1F-Bt-resistant (RHX11) population of FAW. Based on the insecticide label rate, serial concentrations were used to expose the insects using the leaf-dip method. Leaves of non-Bt maize in V4–V9 growth stage were immersed in the concentrations for 5s. After drying, the leaf sections were placed with a third instar larva to the experimental unit (n = 32 replications). Mortality was assessed after 96h, and the survivors were weighted and reared on artificial diet. Using the estimates of survival rate to pupation, development time and pupal weight, a fitness index was determined. The LC₅₀ value of chlorantraniliprole for the susceptible and resistant population was 0.04 and 0.17 mg/l a.i., respectively. The resistance ratio of the RHX11 population was 4.5, indicating a low level (<10 fold) of resistance to chlorantraniliprole. The resistant insects had larval weight and fitness index values higher than the susceptible ones at low insecticide concentrations, with a similar decline in the values as the concentration increased. The insects of both populations were all killed at the label-rate concentration. The Bt-resistant insects had lower susceptibility to chlorantraniliprole and a higher post-exposure performance compared to the susceptible ones, but they are likely to be killed when applying the label rate of the insecticide. These results are useful to understand the changes in FAW performance associated with Bt-resistance development.

Composition of subfamilies in leaf beetles can be used for faunistic comparisons of large zoogeographic units. In the Arctic and alpine regions of Palaearctic subfamily Chrysomelinae is dominating and composition of its genera (subgenera) is very peculiar. Several genera are typically and exclusively alpine, others include alpine species in exact subgenera. The most speciose genus Oreomela Jcbs. (over 80 species) is distributed throughout the high mountains of Central Asia, with the centre of diversity in Tien-Shan and its northern limit in the mountains of South Siberia. Genus Xenomela Weise (11 species) is restricted to Tien-Shan, Parambrostoma Chen (7 species) is distributied in the southern slope of the Himalayas. Genus Oreothassa Jcbs. with two species and monotypic Apterocuris Jcbs. are endemic to Altai Mts. Genus Suinzona Chen (20 species) is distributed mainly in the Hengduan Mountain region of China. Sclerophaedon Weise demonstrates unique situation with three centers of diversity, in Europe, China (Sichuan, Gansu) and Nepal. True alpine communities in Europe host the diverse genus Oreina Chevr. (24 species). Outside European mountains two alpine species of Oreina are represented Altai-Sayan Mountains. In alpine zone of the Urals represented by alpine tundra communities Oreina is absent but Chrysolina demonstrates peculiar composition of subgenera: Pleurosticha + Arctolina + Pezocrosita + Crositops. Both Pleurosticha and Arctolina are typical arctic-alpine subgenera of Northern Asia. West Sayan hosts endemic subgenus Paraheliostola L.Medv. and composition of Chrysolina subgenera there is Pleurosticha + Paraheliostola + Chrysocrosita. Chrysocrosita is common for the Sayans with Mongolian Altai and the Far Eastern mountains. Therefore genus-level taxonomic composition of alpine leaf beetles reveals both distinguishing features of exact mountain systems and their interconnections.