1. Microbial Toxins in Insect and Nematode Pest Biocontrol
- Author
-
Subbaiah Chalivendra
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Insecta ,pore-forming toxins ,Nematoda ,QH301-705.5 ,media_common.quotation_subject ,030106 microbiology ,Biological pest control ,Bacillus thuringiensis ,Insect ,Review ,Biology ,Catalysis ,Inorganic Chemistry ,Crop ,03 medical and health sciences ,Animals ,Humans ,Physical and Theoretical Chemistry ,Biology (General) ,Pest Control, Biological ,Molecular Biology ,QD1-999 ,Spectroscopy ,media_common ,Plant Diseases ,Toxins, Biological ,sterol homeostasis disruptors ,Food security ,business.industry ,cyclic lipopeptide surfactants ,Organic Chemistry ,fungi ,innate immunity busters ,Pest control ,food and beverages ,General Medicine ,Pesticide ,Computer Science Applications ,Biotechnology ,ribotoxins ,Chemistry ,030104 developmental biology ,Livestock ,PEST analysis ,insect ion channel modulators ,business ,uncouplers ,psychoactive compounds - Abstract
Invertebrate pests, such as insects and nematodes, not only cause or transmit human and livestock diseases but also impose serious crop losses by direct injury as well as vectoring pathogenic microbes. The damage is global but greater in developing countries, where human health and food security are more at risk. Although synthetic pesticides have been in use, biological control measures offer advantages via their biodegradability, environmental safety and precise targeting. This is amply demonstrated by the successful and widespread use of Bacillusthuringiensis to control mosquitos and many plant pests, the latter by the transgenic expression of insecticidal proteins from B. thuringiensis in crop plants. Here, I discuss the prospects of using bacterial and fungal toxins for pest control, including the molecular basis of their biocidal activity.
- Published
- 2021