Morphological and molecular identification of four Purpureocillium isolates and evaluating their efficacy against the sweet potato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Genn.) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae)

Abstract

Background Entomopathogenic fungi are widely distributed and well described within the fungal kingdom. This study reports the isolation, characterization, and virulence of 4 Purpureocillium lilacinum isolates against the sweet potato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). Results Four strains of Purpureocillium lilacinum (XI-1, XI-4, XI-5, and J27) were isolated from soil samples from different localities of China. The morphological studies observed that four strains showed essentially the same morphological characteristics. After 7 days of cultivation, the colonies were purple, round, and bulged. Conidia were single-celled, oval to spindle-shaped, chain-like, and the spore size was about 2.0–2.3 × 3.1–4.0 μm. The genome-based identification results showed that ITS sequences of XI-1 (GenBank accession # MW386433), XI-4 (GenBank accession # MW386434), XI-5 (GenBank accession # MW386435), and J27 (GenBank accession # MW386436) were similar to another P. lilacinum. The newly identified strains of P. lilacinum proved pathogenicity to B. tabaci under laboratory conditions. In addition, the P. lilacinum isolate XI-5 was the most virulent one against different nymphal instars of whitefly having median lethal concentration (LC50) values of 4.99 × 106, 4.82 × 105, and 2.85 × 106 conidia/ml, respectively, 7 days post application. Conclusion The newly isolated strains of P. lilacinum can be developed as a potential biopesticide against the whitefly although extensive field bioassays as well as development of proper formulation are still required.

Production of Purpureocillium lilacinum and Pochonia chlamydosporia by Submerged Liquid Fermentation and Bioactivity against Tetranychus urticae and Heterodera glycines through Seed Inoculation

“…The potential of these fungi to control plant–parasitic nematodes is well known, but here we revealed their potential to also manage spider mites. Despite their phylogenetic distance and multiple ecological roles, both fungi are widely recognized as plant-growing promoting fungi (PGPF), in which they can directly act against plant pathogens or increase plant fitness by colonizing the root system [ 47 , 48 , 49 ]. Often, this colonization by endophytic fungi results in growth promotion, nutrient uptake, and induced resistance against biotic and abiotic stresses [ 50 , 51 ].…”

Evaluation of the Potential Entomopathogenic Fungi Purpureocillium lilacinum and Fusarium verticillioides for Biological Control of Forcipomyia taiwana (Shiraki)

“…Purpureocillium lilacinum has been found to infect some species of insects, including Mediterranean fruit fly ( Ceratitis capitata ), nettle caterpillar ( Setora nitens ), cotton aphid ( A. gossypii ), winchuka ( Triatoma infestans ), whitefly ( Bemisia tabaci ), etc. [ 10 , 21 ]. The genus Fusarium comprises a large group of species, which are usually found in association with plants and are determined as common plant pathogenic fungi [ 20 ].…”

Diversity of entomopathogenic fungi from soils of eucalyptus and soybean crops and natural forest areas

“…The Beauveria, Cordyceps, and Metarhizium genera, with registered commercial products (Brasil, 2022), are the most suitable to formulate and produce mycoinsecticides, due to their greater safety for human health and entomopathogenic potential (Zimmermann, 2007a, b;Chen et al, 2020). The use of these entomopathogenic agents should be evaluated because the genera Aspergillus, Fusarium, Penicillium, and Purpureocillium include entomopathogenic species (Kataria et al, 2018;Ahmad et al, 2019;Sun et al, 2021), but also some with mycotoxins that can be pathogenic to humans (Antas et al, 2012;Mendonça et al, 2009;Li et al, 2020).…”