{"title":"Gustatory habituation to essential oil induces reduced feeding deterrence and neuronal desensitization in Spodoptera litura","authors":"Hyoeun Jeon, Jun-Hyung Tak","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01794-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01794-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The tobacco cutworm, <i>Spodoptera litura</i>, is one of the most important agricultural insect pests. Plant essential oils can be considered potential candidates for eco-friendly control agents, as they exhibit insecticidal and feeding deterrent activity. The present study investigated the antifeedant and insecticidal activity of 29 essential oils. Their potential for habituation and association with the gustatory sensilla were also examined. In no-choice tests and contact-fumigation bioassays on third instar larvae, clove bud, fennel sweet, and lemongrass oils exhibited notable activities. Still, no direct correlation between insecticidal activity and feeding deterrence was observed. Second instar larvae were pre-exposed to those active oils to test the habituation effect. Larvae reared with lemongrass and clove bud oils showed gustatory habituation, whereas those with fennel sweet oil did not show any desensitization compared to the control. Comparable outcomes were observed in individuals exposed to the main constituents of the three oils. Additionally, the mixture of fennel sweet and clove bud oils showed a synergistic feeding deterrent effect. However, although statistically insignificant, potential habituation for the mixture was observed, and only robust inhibition of habituation was expected at physiologically high concentrations (FDI<sub>90</sub> + FDI<sub>90</sub>). Electrophysiological studies showed that the response of the maxillary palp to citral decreased in the experienced group, while to <i>trans</i>-anethole, it was maintained at levels similar to the naive group. The reduction in feeding deterrence corresponded to the repeated exposure and desensitization of the maxillary palp, varying with the types of essential oils.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"26 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141156700","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}
Patrice Jacob Savi, Anil Mantri, Haleh Khodaverdi, Yugeng Zou, Gilberto José de Moraes, Christian Nansen
{"title":"Indirect effects of plasma-activated water irrigation on Tetranychus urticae populations","authors":"Patrice Jacob Savi, Anil Mantri, Haleh Khodaverdi, Yugeng Zou, Gilberto José de Moraes, Christian Nansen","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01791-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01791-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Plasma-activated water (PAW) is receiving increased attention as a booster of seed germination and seedling vigor, and some studies have described use of PAW to manage crop pathogens. Here, we examined physicochemical properties of two PAWs (referred to as PAW 6.0 and 9.4 min with atmospheric plasma jet) and assessed “their indirect effects” (applied as supplementary irrigation) on host suitability of tomato plants (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) to two-spotted spider mites (<i>Tetranychus urticae</i> Koch). Exposure of water to cold plasma significantly lowered pH and increased concentrations of H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2,</sub> NO<sub>2</sub><sup>−</sup>, and NO<sub>3</sub><sup>−</sup>. Supplementary PAW irrigations elicited significant increases in leaf composition of several elements (N, P, K S, Ca, and Mg), leaf reflectance, plant size, and trichome densities (except non-glandular trichomes on the adaxial surface). Preference bioassays revealed significant avoidance of settling and reduced oviposition by two-spotted spider mites on leaf discs from PAW-irrigated plants compared to those from untreated control plants. Performance bioassays showed a significant decrease in two-spotted spider mite populations on PAW-irrigated plants. Results presented in this study provide comprehensive support to the hypothesis that indirect effects of supplementary PAW irrigation significantly reduce host plant suitability to two-spotted spider mites. PAW 6.0 may be slightly better than PAW 9.4, and this difference in performance is discussed in this study. Applications of PAW as supplementary irrigation are likely highly compatible with other IPM tactics and should be considered an innovative and sustainable component in twenty-first-century pest management.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"2014 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140910615","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":"Effects of imidacloprid on Orius similis: assessing growth, development, and reproduction through age-stage two-sex life table analysis under contact and stomach toxicity treatments","authors":"Bo Zhang, Yi-Ru Li, Jin-Long Zhang, Guo-Hua Chen, Nian Yang, Ji-Huan Liu, Guo-Ting Yuan, Xiao-Ming Zhang","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01790-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01790-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Although the use of chemical insecticides to control <i>Frankliniella occidentalis</i> is widespread, it may also affect its dominant predators such as <i>Orius similis</i>. To understand the consequences of imidacloprid on the growth, development, and reproduction of <i>O. similis</i>, we investigated its toxicity and selected the concentrations of LC<sub>10</sub> and LC<sub>20</sub> for both contact and stomach toxicity tests. Using the age-stage two-sex life table theory, we evaluated the impact of imidacloprid on the life table of the <i>O. similis</i> population. The results showed that the LC<sub>10</sub> and LC<sub>20</sub> values for each developmental stage of <i>O. similis</i> were lower under contact treatment than those under stomach toxicity treatment. After treatment with imidacloprid, the average oviposition by <i>O. similis</i> decreased compared to the control, and the net reproductive rate, gross reproduction rate, intrinsic rate of increase, and finite rate of increase were also lower than the control. The results also indicated that the peak value of age-stage-specific fecundity of <i>O. similis</i> was delayed by 1–2 days after imidacloprid treatment. Predictions for population growth of <i>O. similis</i> under unrestricted conditions showed that at 60 days, the population size of the control treatment was 2.06 times and 3.20 times that of LC<sub>10</sub> contact and stomach toxicity treatment, respectively. For LC<sub>20</sub> concentration, the control treatment's population size was 2.75 times and 3.87 times, respectively. Exposure to imidacloprid at different concentrations and treatment with contact and stomach toxicity had adverse effects on the growth and population growth of <i>O. similis</i>. Under imidacloprid stomach toxicity treatment, <i>O. similis</i> showed longer growth time and a slower population growth rate, indicating strong adaptability to the contact environment.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"33 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140907417","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":"Plant-level establishment can result from a single female Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae propagule","authors":"Erika R. Wright, Kevin D. Chase, Samuel F. Ward","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01792-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01792-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Crapemyrtle bark scale (CMBS), <i>Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae</i> (Kuwana) (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae), is a non-native scale insect that has spread throughout many urban areas of the Southeast and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States following its initial detection near Dallas, Texas in 2004, severely reducing the aesthetic value and health of the popular ornamental crapemyrtle tree (<i>Lagerstroemia</i> spp.). We infested crapemyrtles with known numbers of CMBS to determine the minimum number of individuals required for establishment after initial arrival on plants. We also investigated how netting—implemented to understand differences in establishment when scale dispersal and predation are inhibited—influenced population growth. We determined that one female CMBS egg sac can successfully establish a new population ~ 92% of the time and that netting had negligible effects on establishment. Our results underscore the importance of surveying and managing CMBS and scale insects with similar biology when attempting to prevent infestation of nursery stock, which is widely implicated as a vector for long-distance dispersal of scale insects.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"153 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140907408","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}
Allisandra G. Kummer, André B. B. Wilke, Paulo C. Ventura, Chalmers Vasquez, Johana Medina, Isik Unlu, Yaziri Gonzalez, Adquate Mhlanga, Giovanni Benelli, Keisuke Ejima, John-Paul Mutebi, Marco Ajelli
{"title":"Comparing the effectiveness of adulticide application interventions on mitigating local transmission of dengue virus","authors":"Allisandra G. Kummer, André B. B. Wilke, Paulo C. Ventura, Chalmers Vasquez, Johana Medina, Isik Unlu, Yaziri Gonzalez, Adquate Mhlanga, Giovanni Benelli, Keisuke Ejima, John-Paul Mutebi, Marco Ajelli","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01787-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01787-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The southern US has a large presence of mosquito vector species for dengue virus (DENV) and experiences thousands of DENV importations every year, which have led to several local outbreaks. Adulticide spraying targeting active mosquitoes is one of the most common insecticide strategies used as a response to an outbreak. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of adulticide spraying conducted at different times of the day to curb DENV transmission. Based on unique dataset of <i>Aedes aegypti</i> diel activity patterns in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and Brownsville, Texas, we developed a mechanistic model of DENV transmission, which simulates adulticide spraying interventions. We estimated that spraying adulticide for 14 consecutive days at 7am or 8 pm was highly effective in reducing DENV outbreak probability from 10% in the absence of interventions to 0.1% for Miami-Dade County, and from 7.8 to 0.1% for Brownsville. Moreover, in case of a local outbreak in Miami-Dade County, we estimated the median number of symptomatic infections after the identification of a local outbreak to be reduced from 67.0 (IQR: 25.5–103.0) in the absence of interventions to 1.0 (IQR: 0.0–2.0) when spraying adulticide for 14 consecutive days at 8 pm. In Brownsville, the same intervention is estimated to lead to a decrease from 15.0 (IQR: 7.0–33.0) cases to 1.0 (IQR: 0.0–2.0). Our study highlights the importance of considering diel activity patterns of vector mosquito species in arbovirus preparedness and response planning and provide quantitative evidence to guide the decision-making of mosquito control authorities.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"18 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140902945","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}
Margarita C. G. Correa, Juan Pablo Gutiérrez-Jara, Katia Vogt-Geisse, Hugo Benitez, Laura M. Pérez, Alexandre Fleisch, Thibaut Malausa, Loïc Queguiner, Sharon Rodríguez, Nicolas Ris, Philippe Kreiter
{"title":"Better alone than in bad company? Modeling the intra-guild predation and release timing in the biological control of Pseudococcus viburni","authors":"Margarita C. G. Correa, Juan Pablo Gutiérrez-Jara, Katia Vogt-Geisse, Hugo Benitez, Laura M. Pérez, Alexandre Fleisch, Thibaut Malausa, Loïc Queguiner, Sharon Rodríguez, Nicolas Ris, Philippe Kreiter","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01745-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01745-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The obscure mealybug, <i>Pseudococcus viburni</i>, is a serious agricultural pest worldwide. The biological control in commercial fields of <i>P. viburni</i> relies on predators and parasitoids, in particular the generalist coccidophagous ladybird <i>Cryptolaemus montrouzieri</i> and the specific parasitoid <i>Acerophagus flavidulus</i>. However, these two natural enemies can establish an intraguild predation interaction, reducing the efficiency of biological control. <i>Cryptolaemus montrouzieri</i> may negatively impact the population dynamics of <i>A. flavidulus</i> if it feeds indifferently on healthy and parasitized mealybugs. With the aim of improving the biological control of <i>P. viburni</i>, in this work, we studied the feeding behavior of <i>C. montrouzieri</i> in the absence or presence of <i>A. flavidulus</i> larvae of different age within mealybugs, in laboratory conditions. Subsequently, with the data obtained, we mathematically modeled the dynamics of <i>P. viburni</i> to study the impact on <i>P. viburni</i> control of different field implementation schedules for the release of ladybird and parasitoid populations. The ladybird fed on parasitized <i>P. viburni</i> but reduced its consumption when they were infested by parasitoids aged of 4 days or more. Modeling results suggest that these feeding preferences of predators may have a positive impact on pest control, that releasing predators and parasitoids together is in general more effective than releasing them independently, and that releasing highly effective predators alone could be the best choice. Modeling results also provide information on different release schedules.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"153 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140902949","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}
Jonathan R. Mosedale, Dominic Eyre, Anastasia Korycinska, Matthew Everatt, Sam Grant, Brittany Trew, Neil Kaye, Deborah Hemming, Ilya M. D. Maclean
{"title":"Mechanistic microclimate models and plant pest risk modelling","authors":"Jonathan R. Mosedale, Dominic Eyre, Anastasia Korycinska, Matthew Everatt, Sam Grant, Brittany Trew, Neil Kaye, Deborah Hemming, Ilya M. D. Maclean","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01777-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01777-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Climatic conditions are key determining factors of whether plant pests flourish. Models of pest response to temperature are integral to pest risk assessment and management, helping to inform surveillance and control measures. The widespread use of meteorological data as predictors in these models compromises their reliability as these measurements are not thermally coupled to the conditions experienced by pest organisms or their body temperatures. Here, we present how mechanistic microclimate models can be used to estimate the conditions experienced by pest organisms to provide significant benefits to pest risk modelling. These well-established physical models capture how landscape, vegetation and climate interact to determine the conditions to which pests are exposed. Assessments of pest risk derived from microclimate conditions are likely to significantly diverge from those derived from weather station measurements. The magnitude of this divergence will vary across a landscape, over time and according to pest habitats and behaviour due to the complex mechanisms that determine microclimate conditions and their effect on pest biology. Whereas the application of microclimate models was once restricted to relatively homogeneous habitats, these models can now be applied readily to generate hourly time series across extensive and varied landscapes. We outline the benefits and challenges of more routine application of microclimate models to pest risk modelling. Mechanistic microclimate models provide a heuristic tool that helps discriminate between physical, mathematical and biological causes of model failure. Their use can also help understand how pest ecology, behaviour and physiology mediate the relationship between climate and pest response.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140903015","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":"Evaluation of methyl eugenol-supplemented diet as pre-release treatment for simultaneous application of male annihilation and sterile insect techniques against Bactrocera dorsalis","authors":"Suk-Ling Wee, Nurul Qurratu Aini Rosli","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01789-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01789-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><i>Bactrocera dorsalis</i> is a highly invasive fruit pest of economic and quarantine significance. The males are strongly attracted to methyl eugenol (ME). After consumption, ME is converted to metabolites that act as sex pheromones, which increase mating success. ME lure is instrumental in male annihilation technique (MAT) and sterile insect technique (SIT) applications to suppress or eradicate fruit fly populations. A simultaneous MAT-SIT concept is proposed to reduce operational costs and time-to-eradication. However, sterile males released to the field may respond to MAT’s ME-baited traps, reducing the efficacy of SIT. Here, we developed a ME-supplemented diet that reduces males’ response to ME without compromising mating efficiency and survivorship. We offered sugar-yeast diet supplemented with ME (0–5%) to 5-day-old males for 48 h and evaluated their response to ME, mating performance and pheromone production at 3-, 7-, 11- and 15-days post-treatment (DPT), while observing mortality for 60-DPT. Our results indicate that consuming a ME-supplemented diet reduces response to ME lures and enhances mating success, with the 5% ME diet showing the most promising results. The trend of pheromone production at different DPT after consuming various ME-supplemented diets corroborated with those of reduced lure response and mating enhancement. Although diet containing 3 and 5% ME affected males’ survival probability over 60-DPT, the treatment does not impact the survival of all treated males for at least 25-DPT. This finding suggests that pre-release feeding on a 5% ME-supplemented diet by 5-day-old <i>B. dorsalis</i> males is a feasible solution for implementing simultaneous MAT-SIT.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140890404","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}
M. W. F. Howse, A. Reason, J. Haywood, P. J. Lester
{"title":"Improving wasp control by identifying likely causes of eradication failure","authors":"M. W. F. Howse, A. Reason, J. Haywood, P. J. Lester","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01788-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01788-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Studying the efficacy of control methods is paramount to successful management of invasive pests and understanding why some colonies survive is important to improve management practices. Here, the bait Vespex® was used to control invasive wasps across 64 ha of forest in an invaded range near Hanmer Springs, New Zealand. Bait was applied across a standard 50 m by 300 m arrangement and made available for 3 days. Nest mortality rates after 19 days were 29.8%, although nearly all nests were affected with a median overall reduction in nest traffic of 96.5%. The results from logistic regression showed that, all else remaining equal, larger wasp nests, nests further from bait stations, and more isolated nests exhibited lower rates of mortality after baiting. Investigating the change in activity at surviving nests, the results from beta regression suggest that declines in nest traffic were less severe with increasing distance to the nearest bait, but more severe with increasing nest size. These results indicate that while smaller nests are at a higher risk of being killed by the bait, they may not encounter bait as regularly as larger nests. Bait uptake varied considerably across bait stations. Wasp nests were not randomly or uniformly distributed in space, and instead were aggregated across our treatment area, likely due to some aspects of environmental conditions. We suggest further research to be focused on developing an understanding of the drivers of wasp nest development and foraging behaviour, to produce a more flexible baiting procedure that will increase both baiting efficiency and efficacy.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"63 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140895390","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":"Evaluation of non-invasive dsRNA delivery methods for the development of RNA interference in the Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus","authors":"Maxime Girard, Vincent Berthaud, Edwige Martin, Laurent Vallon, Rita Rebollo, Agnès Vallier, Aurélien Vigneron, Anne-Emmanuelle Hay, Claire Valiente Moro, Guillaume Minard","doi":"10.1007/s10340-024-01779-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-024-01779-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The Asian tiger mosquito <i>Aedes albopictus</i> is one of the most invasive species and an efficient vector of several pathogens. RNA interference (RNAi) has been proposed as an alternative method to control mosquito populations by silencing the expression of genes that are essential for their survival. However, the optimal delivery method for dsRNAs to enhance an optimal RNAi remains elusive and comparative studies are lacking. We have, therefore, compared the efficiency of three non-invasive delivery methods to mosquito larvae: soaking, rehydration and nanoparticle ingestion. Each method was tested separately on four genes predicted to code non-essential proteins (<i>i.e., collagenase</i>-like, <i>kynurenine 3-monooxygenase</i>-like, <i>yellow</i>-like and <i>venom serine protease</i>-like) in order to be able to compare the importance of gene knock-down. All tested methods successfully downregulated mosquito gene expression. However, silencing efficiency strongly varies among methods and genes<b>.</b> Silencing (95.1%) was higher for <i>Kynurenine 3-monooxygenase</i>-like with rehydration and nanoparticle ingestion (61.1%). For the <i>Venom serine protease</i>-like, the most efficient silencing was observed with soaking (74.5%) and rehydration (34%). In contrast, the selected methods are inefficient to silence the other genes. Our findings also indicate that gene copy numbers, transcript sizes and GC content correlate with the silencing efficiency. From our results, rehydration was the most specific and efficient methods to specifically knock-down gene expression in <i>Ae. albopictus</i> larvae. Nevertheless, considering the observed variability of efficiency is gene-dependent, our results also point at the necessity to test and optimize diverse dsRNA delivery approaches to achieve a maximal RNAi efficiency.</p>","PeriodicalId":16736,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pest Science","volume":"45 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140845979","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}