Journal of Pest Science最新文献

{"title":"Acute, synergistic and antagonistic effects of some aromatic compounds and essential oils on Planococcus citri by machine learning and feature selection approaches","authors":"Selcuk Ulusoy, Dogancan Kahya, Yasin Nazım Alpkent","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02049-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02049-7","url":null,"abstract":"The individual and combined acute toxic effects of D-limonene, menthol, aromatic compounds, and essential oils from <jats:italic>Salvia rosmarinus Spenn.</jats:italic> , <jats:italic>Mentha spicata</jats:italic> L., and <jats:italic>Salvia sclarea</jats:italic> L. were evaluated against <jats:italic>Planococcus citri</jats:italic> (Risso) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae). Based on a comparison of lethal concentrations, menthol (LC <jats:sub>50</jats:sub> : 0.39 g/L) and <jats:italic>M. spicata</jats:italic> L. (LC <jats:sub>50</jats:sub> : 1.45 g/L) showed the highest efficacy, whereas D-limonene (LC <jats:sub>50</jats:sub> : 14.67 g/L) demonstrated the lowest. The volatile oil ingredients were identified using GC–MS/FID (Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer/Flame Ionization Detector). To predict acute and synergistic effects, the performance of several supervised machine learning algorithms was assessed using K-fold cross-validation. Among the models tested, Random Forest Regression yielded the best predictive performance. Feature selection algorithms indicated that D-limonene, menthol, alpha-pinene, carvone, 1,8-cineole, and sabinene were the primary contributors to acute toxicity. Analysis of the combination index (CI), t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (t-SNE), and heat maps revealed that mixtures of essential oils and aromatic compounds exhibited both synergistic and antagonistic interactions. Notably, structurally similar molecules such as limonene and its cis- and trans-isomers, α-pinene and camphene, camphor and 1,8-cineole, and borneol and isoborneol were predicted to exert predominantly synergistic effects. Machine learning and traditional methods reveal that the synergistic effects of complex essential oil mixtures on <jats:italic>P. citri</jats:italic> remains insufficiently understood. Aromatic compounds and essential oils show diverse biological activities against <jats:italic>P. citri</jats:italic> and may serve as viable alternatives to synthetic pesticides in pest management strategies. Furthermore, machine learning and deep learning may offer more rapid predictions and insights into toxicity profiles.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"15 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148288480","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Interspecific competition between endo- and ectoparasitoids attacking Tuta absoluta","authors":"Angeliki Syropoulou, Judit Arnó, Pablo Urbaneja-Bernat","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02046-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02046-w","url":null,"abstract":"<jats:italic>Tuta absoluta</jats:italic> is a major pest threatening tomato crops worldwide. In the Mediterranean basin, biological control mainly relies on zoophytophagous predators which coexist with larval parasitoids, the native ectoparasitoid <jats:italic>Necremnus tutae</jats:italic> and the recently established South American endoparasitoid <jats:italic>Dolichogenidea gelechiidivoris</jats:italic> . Although both are effective natural enemies of <jats:italic>T. absoluta</jats:italic> , their interactions remain poorly understood. Here, we explored the potential competitive outcomes between these two parasitoids through no-choice, choice, and behavior experiments. In single-species assays, <jats:italic>D. gelechiidivoris</jats:italic> exhibited high larval parasitism (92%) and effectively reduced <jats:italic>T. absoluta</jats:italic> densities, whereas <jats:italic>N. tutae</jats:italic> relied more on host-feeding and host-killing behaviors with lower parasitism (48%). When the parasitoids co-occurred, <jats:italic>T. absoluta</jats:italic> mortality increased to ~ 80% while parasitism for each species decreased by well over 50%. <jats:italic>Necremnus tutae</jats:italic> also showed a preference for host-feeding or killing larvae previously exposed to <jats:italic>D. gelechiidivoris</jats:italic> . This elevated larval mortality was likely driven by high probing activity from <jats:italic>D. gelechiidivoris</jats:italic> in combination with continued host-feeding and host-killing by <jats:italic>N. tutae</jats:italic> . Our findings demonstrated interspecific competition between the two larval parasitoids, emphasizing the importance of considering such dynamics when integrating them into biological control programs against <jats:italic>T. absoluta.</jats:italic>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148288479","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The realized host specificity of Leptopilina japonica and Ganaspis kimorum, adventive larval parasitoids of the invasive Drosophila suzukii in Western Canada","authors":"Paul K. Abram, Jessie Moon, Jessica L. Fraser, Jason Thiessen, Tara D. Gariepy","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02053-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02053-x","url":null,"abstract":"The non-native larval parasitoid wasps <italic>Leptopilina japonica</italic> and <italic>Ganaspis kimorum</italic> (Hymenoptera: Figitidae), which attack larvae of the invasive pest <italic>Drosophila suzukii</italic> (Matsumura) (Diptera: Drosophilidae), were unintentionally introduced to the Pacific Northwest of North America between 10 and 15 years ago, and are now well established. Previous laboratory studies conducted to assess the ecological risk of classical biological control introductions suggested that <italic>G. kimorum</italic> is highly host-specific, whereas <italic>L. japonica</italic> can develop in several other drosophilid species. Information on realized host use of the parasitoids under field conditions in the context of host-parasitoid food webs in their non-native range is limited. A two-year field study in coastal British Columbia, Canada was conducted, using complementary sampling methods to document host–parasitoid associations and quantify parasitoid specificity with respect to drosophilid communities inhabiting ripe and rotting fruit. Consistent with the previous laboratory findings, <italic>G. kimorum</italic> was reared exclusively from <italic>D. suzukii</italic>, while <italic>L. japonica</italic> emerged primarily from <italic>D. suzukii</italic> but also from <italic>D. melanogaster</italic> and, less frequently, from members of the <italic>D. obscura</italic> species group. <italic>Leptopilina japonica</italic> shared some host species with the resident parasitoid species <italic>L. heterotoma</italic> and <italic>Asobara</italic> cf. <italic>rufescens</italic>. A particularly striking result was the extent to which almost all drosophilid and parasitoid taxa in this study’s host–parasitoid trophic webs were non-native, complicating the interpretation of ‘nontarget’ ecological effects of <italic>L. japonica</italic>. These results provide field-based evidence of realized host use by these two non-native larval parasitoids of <italic>D. suzukii</italic> that can inform their future use in classical and augmentative biological control programs.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"108 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148290306","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Do cover crops influence beneficial and herbivorous arthropod communities across growing seasons?","authors":"Adegboyega Fajemisin, Satinderpal Kaur, Alejandro Vasquez, Alexis Racelis, Rupesh Kariyat","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02051-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02051-z","url":null,"abstract":"Cover crops provide multiple ecosystem services in agriculture, yet their influence on arthropod communities remains poorly understood, especially in commercial farming. Despite their potential benefits, it remains unexplored how cover crops affect arthropod community dynamics across multiple growing seasons. We conducted a two-year study across three commercial farms in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas, to examine how cover crops influence arthropod community composition and abundance, whether beneficial arthropods (natural enemies and pollinators) persist into cash-crop phases, and how cover crops affect natural enemy–herbivore relationships. We compared arthropod communities between cover-crop treatments and control plots and tracked responses through subsequent cash-crop phases. We sampled arthropods and classified them into functional groups, including natural enemies, herbivores, and pollinators. Total arthropod abundance declined 45% between years across all treatments, and year-to-year variation exceeded treatment effects for all functional groups. Arthropod community composition differed between sampling years, and year influenced composition more strongly than cover-crop treatment. Natural enemy abundance showed no treatment effects but declined 43% between years and remained stable during transitions from cover crops to cash crops. Pollinator abundance declined 74% between years, with no treatment effects and only minor carryover into the subsequent cash-crop phase. Natural enemies and herbivores correlated positively, with stronger relationships in cash-crop phases than in cover-crop phases. These findings show that temporal variation outweighed management effects, which suggests that cover-crop effectiveness for supporting arthropod communities might depend on environmental conditions, landscape context, and management practices. Multi-year studies are essential to understand how cover crops influence arthropod-mediated ecosystem services in commercial agriculture.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"30 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148290307","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Heavy metal contamination promotes herbivore resistance of an invasive plant over native congener through disrupting volatile-mediated tritrophic interactions","authors":"Tiantian Lin, Wanci He, Guoqing Zhu, Yingjie Zhao, Yan Wang, Klaas Vrieling, Bo Li, Tao Li","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02055-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02055-9","url":null,"abstract":"Soil heavy metal pollution, intensified by human activities, threatens ecosystems and may facilitate biological invasions. However, its impact on volatile organic compound (VOC)-mediated plant–insect interactions in the context of plant invasion remains largely unclear. In this study, we first investigated differences in herbivore damage and egg-laying between the invasive weed <italic>Alternanthera philoxeroides</italic> and its native congener <italic>Alternanthera sessilis</italic> across terrestrial habitats with varying levels of soil cadmium (Cd) contamination. We further compared the quantity and composition of leaf constitutive plant volatiles (CPVs) and herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) between the two species under Cd exposure, and tested the olfactory and oviposition responses of a specialist herbivore, a generalist herbivore, and a natural enemy across multiple trophic levels. Field surveys showed that in habitats with high soil Cd pollution, <italic>A. philoxeroides</italic> exhibited less leaf area consumption and fewer herbivore eggs than <italic>A. sessilis</italic>. Laboratory bioassays revealed that soil Cd pollution reduced the olfactory and oviposition attractiveness of <italic>A. philoxeroides</italic> to both specialist and generalist herbivores, while enhancing its appeal to predatory beetles. Cd exposure increased both CPV and HIPV emissions from <italic>A. philoxeroides</italic> and altered their compositions. These VOC changes were strongly correlated with the olfactory and oviposition behaviors of both herbivores and the predator. Methyl salicylate was identified as the key compound driving these insect preference shifts, highlighting its critical role in mediating plant–insect interactions under soil Cd pollution. These findings indicate that soil heavy metal pollution may enhance plant invasiveness by disrupting VOC-mediated tritrophic interactions, potentially undermining biological control strategies.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"124 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148288493","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Association of Beauveria bassiana with maize alters volatile organic compounds and enhances attraction of the egg parasitoid Telenomus podisi","authors":"Mirian Fernandes Furtado Michereff, Rogerio Biaggioni Lopes, Isadora Alexopoulos Quevedo, Clenilson Martins Rodrigues, Raúl Alberto Laumann, Miguel Borges, Maria Carolina Blassioli-Moraes","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02057-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02057-7","url":null,"abstract":"Entomopathogenic fungi can associate with plants and influence plant defence mechanisms, promoting growth and affecting interactions among crops, herbivores and natural enemies. This study evaluated the effects of maize plant colonisation by <italic>Beauveria bassiana</italic> on direct and indirect plant defences. For this, we evaluated (i) the survival and reproductive biology of the stink bug <italic>Diceraeus melacanthus</italic> on seed-inoculated, foliar-inoculated and non-inoculated maize plants, (ii) the influence of fungal inoculation on maize volatile organic compound emissions and (iii) the subsequent influence of maize volatiles in the searching behaviour of the egg parasitoid <italic>Telenomus podisi.</italic> Fungal colonisation was confirmed in more than 75% of foliar-treated plants. Fungus-treated plants (foliar spray or seed-treated) showed no significant effects on <italic>D. melacanthus</italic> survival or on female fecundity and fertility. Behavioural bioassays using a Y-olfactometer showed that <italic>T. podisi</italic> female parasitoids exhibited no preference for fungus-treated plants 24 h after inoculation, compared to untreated plants or clean air. However, 120 h post-inoculation, parasitoids were significantly attracted to foliar-inoculated plants over untreated plants or clean air controls. At this time point, foliar-inoculated plants emitted higher levels of methyl salicylate and lower levels of (<italic>E</italic>)-<italic>β</italic>-farnesene and (<italic>E</italic>,<italic>E</italic>)-<italic>α</italic>-farnesene compared to the other treatments. These results indicate that association with <italic>B. bassiana</italic> can modify maize volatile signalling and enhance attraction of a key egg parasitoid. Such fungus-mediated modulation of plant indirect defences may contribute to the compatibility between entomopathogenic fungi and natural enemies in integrated pest management programmes.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"30 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148290308","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"RNAi-mediated gene silencing reduces survival and Xylella fastidiosa load in the insect vector Philaenus spumarius","authors":"Cecilia Parise, Monica Marra, Pierluigi Perfetto, Luciana Galetto, Daniele Cornara, Domenico Bosco","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02050-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02050-0","url":null,"abstract":"The spittlebug <italic>Philaenus spumarius</italic> (L.) (Hemiptera: Aphrophoridae) is the main epidemiologically relevant vector of the xylem-limited bacterium <italic>Xylella fastidiosa</italic> (Lysobacterales (Xanthomonadales): <italic>Xanthomonas</italic>) in all the European outbreaks described so far. Current vector control strategies yield inconsistent results in terms of reduction of bacterial spread, and alternative control tools are urgently needed. RNA interference (RNAi) is a post-transcriptional gene silencing mechanism that can be triggered by administering double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) molecules to a target organism. Exogenous application of dsRNAs to crops has emerged as a powerful and sustainable tool in agriculture to control insect pests. Here, we evaluated survival probability and transcript reduction upon injection of spittlebug adults with dsRNAs targeting six candidate essential genes. Thereafter, we evaluated acquisition and inoculation efficiency as well as bacterial load following silencing of proton ATPase (ATPase) and Transient Receptor Potential mucolipin-3like isoform X1 (TRPML). The administration of dsATPase caused the highest mortality among the target genes tested, 83 and 96% at 5 and 10 days post injection, respectively. Micro-injection of dsATPase into insects prior to <italic>X. fastidiosa</italic> transmission experiments showed no change in transmission rates, but the insects harboured significantly lower bacterial populations than the control group, suggesting a possible alteration of feeding and fluid dynamics within the vector foregut affecting bacterial growth. Although delivering dsRNAs to sap-sucking insects is challenging, the development of RNAi-based tools paves the way for the control of vector insects and the pathogens they transmit.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"31 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148291426","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development and field evaluation of a lure-and-infect strategy integrating attractants with Beauveria bassiana for controlling Bactrocera dorsalis","authors":"Jingpeng Xie, Lin Zhang, Xianli Lu, Ying Fu, Yingxue Guan, Huan Liu, Jian Wen, Fengqin Cao","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02054-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02054-w","url":null,"abstract":"The wide host range and strong dispersal ability of <italic>Bactrocera dorsalis</italic> make it a persistent challenge for fruit and vegetable production in tropical and subtropical regions. Conventional control methods, including attractant-based trapping and entomopathogenic fungi, each has inherent limitations when used alone. This study developed and evaluated a lure-and-infect strategy integrating attractants with a highly virulent entomopathogenic fungus, <italic>Beauveria bassiana</italic>, for <italic>B. dorsalis</italic> management. First, we optimized a solid-state fermentation medium for mass production, identifying a peptone-free formulation that achieved significantly higher biomass (29.65 g), conidial yield (2.44 × 10⁸ conidia/mL), and germination rate (84.51%) compared with the complete medium. Subsequently, compatibility screening revealed that 50% (v/v) fresh orange juice and 10% (v/v) β-caryophyllene exhibited minimal inhibition of fungal growth while maintaining attractant activity. Laboratory bioassays (26 ± 1 °C, 75 ± 5% RH) demonstrated that the lure-and-infect combination with 50% (v/v) orange juice enabled flies to acquire significantly more conidia per fly, resulting in substantial mortality within 15 days and horizontal transmission of infection to non-exposed individuals. Field trials in a rambutan orchard showed that the <italic>B. bassiana</italic> + 50% (v/v) orange juice treatment reduced mean adult capture to 21.6 flies/trap (control: 48.3), achieved a 38.3% infection rate, and decreased fruit damage by 40.2 percentage points after 75 days. These findings demonstrate that integrating compatible attractants with entomopathogenic fungi can enhance contact between pathogens and highly mobile pests. Future studies should focus on multi-season field evaluations and formulation standardization for biosafety compliance, to further advance this promising IPM approach.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"31 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148290309","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sequence-dependent effects of heat and pesticide exposure determine synergistic toxicity and transgenerational fitness costs in a major crop pest (Sitobion avenae)","authors":"Jun-Yu Cao, Kun Xing, Fei Zhao","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02056-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02056-8","url":null,"abstract":"The interaction between heat events and pesticides is critical in shaping pest population dynamics under climate change, yet the role of stressor sequence remains poorly understood. Here, this study investigated how the sequence of exposure to a short-term heat shock (34 °C for 3 h) and a low lethal dose of imidacloprid (LC₃₀) influences life-history traits and transgenerational fitness in the wheat aphid, <italic>Sitobion avenae</italic>. Six treatments were established: control (CK), heat alone (H), pesticide alone (P), heat followed by pesticide (HP), pesticide followed by heat (PH), and simultaneous heat and pesticide exposure (H + P). Results revealed that heat-pesticide interactive treatment induced synergistic toxicity, with HP causing the higher maternal mortality (reduction of 22.35% in survival rate) and the strongest suppression of intrinsic rate of increase (rₘ: 52.71% reduction) . Transgenerational effects were also sequence-specific: maternal HP exposure significantly prolonged offspring development time (9.30 ± 0.15 days vs. control 8.40 ± 0.13 days) and reduced offspring rₘ by 14.28%, demonstrating a persistent fitness cost across generations. Our study demonstrates that the interaction between heat and imidacloprid is synergistic and sequence-dependent, with the HP sequence generating the most severe toxicity and transgenerational fitness costs. These findings highlight the critical importance of exposure sequence in ecological risk assessment and integrated pest management under climate warming scenarios, as it strongly shapes pest vulnerability and population dynamics.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"47 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148291443","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prohydrojasmon treatment enhances aphid (Brevicoryne brassicae) biological control by improving the performance of key natural enemies in Brassica juncea","authors":"Jamin Ali, Adil Tonğa, Sohail Abbas, Khalid Ali Khan, Hamed A. Ghramh, Mohammad Mahamood, Vol Oberemok, Rizhao Chen","doi":"10.1007/s10340-026-02047-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-026-02047-9","url":null,"abstract":"Biological control, which relies on natural enemies to suppress insect pest populations, is a cornerstone of sustainable agriculture. However, its efficacy depends on plant-mediated interactions that influence predator and parasitoid behaviour. Prohydrojasmon (PDJ), a jasmonate analogue, primes plant defences against herbivores, but its effects on tritrophic interactions remain understudied. Here, we investigated how PDJ treatment of <italic>Brassica juncea</italic> L. (Brassicaceae) alters the behaviour and efficacy of three aphid parasitoids (<italic>Diaeretiella rapae</italic>, <italic>Aphidius gifuensis</italic>, <italic>Aphidius colemani</italic>) and two predators (<italic>Coccinella septempunctata</italic>, <italic>Harmonia axyridis</italic>) at 24 h (PDJ₂₄) and 48 h (PDJ₄₈) post-treatment. Using parasitoid landing assays, foraging trials, parasitism rate evaluations, olfactometer bioassays, predator preference tests, and volatile profiling, we assessed PDJ’s temporal impact on tritrophic dynamics. Results showed that PDJ₄₈ increased foraging duration and parasitism rates in <italic>D. rapae</italic> (at 24 h and 48 h) and <italic>A. gifuensis</italic> (48 h only), while <italic>A. colemani</italic> remained unaffected. PDJ₄₈ also enhanced <italic>H. axyridis</italic> settlement and aphid consumption, with predators showing no preference for PDJ₂₄-treated plants. Olfactometer assays revealed stronger attraction of <italic>D. rapae</italic> and <italic>A. gifuensis</italic> to PDJ₄₈-induced volatiles, aligning with delayed landing responses (24 h for <italic>D. rapae</italic>; 48 h for <italic>A. colemani</italic>) and prolonged foraging. PDJ₄₈ increased parasitoid retention on treated plants, suggesting improved host-location cues, whereas <italic>C. septempunctata</italic> exhibited no preference. These findings demonstrate that PDJ application at 48 h post-treatment enhances tritrophic interactions by synchronising plant defence induction with natural enemy recruitment, while PDJ₂₄ effects were transient or absent. Our study underscores PDJ’s potential as a sustainable tool to synergise plant resistance and biological control, offering a timed application strategy for integrated pest management in <italic>Brassica</italic> crops.","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"19 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148290310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}