Exploration of entomopathogenic fungi as potential biocontrol of corn earworm (Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner)

Abstract

In Indonesia, H. armigera caused loss in corn production until 40% and almost attack all region. Therefore, this pest is a concern especially in corn plantations in Indonesia. In the development of H. armigera pest control, the use of entomopathogenic fungi increases after the potential risks of using chemical pesticides in various aspects. Biological control using entomopathogen agents is an alternative control method that has been studied widely and considerably more effective and environmentally friendly. This study aims explore entomopathogen that attack H. armigera which will later be formulated and projected as candidates for biopesticides controlling H. armigera. This research sited in East Java, South Sulawesi, and North Sulawesi in 2011. This research was divided into several stages within a year which were carried out including surveys and samples collection, isolation, characterization, morphological identification and molecular identification (genotyping phylogenetic tree). The research found several pathogens from several location such as Rhizopus sp., Beauveria bassiana, Fusarium sp., Aspergilus flavus, and Gliocladium sp. The character of each Entomopathogenic fungus showed that every isolate has different color and shapes. Based on the results of DNA amplification from eleven fungal isolates using BOX primers, various fragments were produced with sizes ranging from 225 to 1250 bp. The results also showed that all the isolates tested had polymorphic bands with a polymorphic information Content (PIC) value of 0.84. This indicates that these isolates have a low level of polymorphism.