Advances in Entomopathogen Isolation: A Case of Bacteria and Fungi

Abstract

Entomopathogenic bacteria and fungi are quite frequently found in soils and insect cadavers. The first step in utilizing these microbes as biopesticides is to isolate them, and several culture media and insect baiting procedures have been tested in this direction. In this work, the authors review the current techniques that have been developed so far, in the last five decades, and display brief protocols which can be adopted for the isolations of these entomopathogens. Among bacteria, this review focuses on Serratia spp. and bacteria from the class Bacilli. Among fungi, the review focuses those from the order Hypocreales, for example, genera Beauveria, Clonostachys, Lecanicillium, Metarhizium, and Purpureocillium. The authors chose these groups of entomopathogenic bacteria and fungi based on their importance in the microbial biopesticide market.

Staphylococcus aureus in Substrates for Black Soldier Fly Larvae (Hermetia illucens) and Its Dynamics during Rearing

“…Staphylococcal mastitis in ruminants, for example, is a real problem in the dairy industry and can even result in losses of up to €300 per cow per year ( 14 , 16 ). For insects, most of the entomopathogenic bacteria belong to a number of bacterial families, such as Bacillaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Micrococcaceae, Pseudomonadaceae, and Streptococcaceae, while S. aureus is currently not listed as an entomopathogen ( 18 ). However, insects can function as a carrier of pathogens and transmit the pathogen to other hosts by contact transfer (mostly for flying insects) or by ingestion (for edible insects) ( 10 , 19 , 20 ).…”

Soil Mycobiome Diversity under Different Tillage Practices in the South of West Siberia

“…rosea and Cl. phyllophila , were also increased in both cropped fields while being almost absent in the undisturbed one, was unexpected as the fungi are known for their strong control against numerous fungal plant pathogens, nematodes and insects [ 31 , 32 ], being globally widespread saprotrophs with the highest prevalence in soil. However, their increased abundance in the cropped fields might indirectly suggest the presence of wheat pathogens, which were absent under the natural steppe vegetation.…”

Current Methods, Common Practices, and Perspectives in Tracking and Monitoring Bioinoculants in Soil

“…Most of the fungi used as biopesticides, such as the entomopathogenic species, are easily cultivated and isolated, growing optimally on standard culture media. Laboratory techniques to isolate the commercially most exploited genera of entomopathogenic fungi and bacteria from soil relying on culture-based methodologies were recently reviewed ( Sharma et al, 2021 ) to isolate entomopathogenic fungi and bacteria from soil.…”