Effects of Five Host Plant Species on the Life History and Population Growth Parameters of Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae).

The green peach aphid, Myzus persicae Sulzer (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is an important agricultural pest with a wide range of host plants. To study effects of host species on the life history traits of M. persicae, aphids were individually reared on five host plants: Brassica campestris L. (Brassicales: Brassicaceae), Capsicum annuum L. (Tubiflorae: Solanaceae), Nicotiana tabacum L. (Tubiflorae: Solanaceae), Raphanus sativus L. (Brassicales: Brassicaceae), and Vicia faba L. (Rosales: Leguminosae). TWOSEX-MSchart software was used for the statistical analysis according to the age-stage, two-sex life table theory. The results showed that the shortest preadult stage and adult/total prereproductive period of M. persicae were 6.48, 0.19, and 6.67 d on V. faba, respectively. While the adult and total longevity of M. persicae on R. sativus (25.00 and 31.62 d) and N. tabacum (24.40 and 30.56 d) were significantly longer than that on the other three hosts, as was the reproductive period. The fecundity of M. persicae on R. sativus (80.83 nymphs per female), N. tabacum (71.72 nymphs per female), and V. faba (70.39 nymphs per female) was also greater than that on B. campestris and C. annuum. It was demonstrated that V. faba, R. sativus, and N. tabacum were more suitable plants for the growth of M. persicae exhibiting a shorter preadult stage, longer longevity, and greater fecundity than the remaining two species, as confirmed by the higher intrinsic rate of increase and net reproductive rate.

RNA interference of a trehalose-6-phosphate synthase gene reveals its roles during larval-pupal metamorphosis in Bactrocera minax (Diptera: Tephritidae).

Trehalose is the major blood sugar in insects, which plays a crucial role as an instant source of energy and the starting substrate for chitin biosynthesis. In insects, trehalose is synthesized by catalysis of an important enzyme, trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (TPS). In the present study, a trehalose-6-phosphate synthase gene from Bactrocera minax (BmTPS) was cloned and characterized. BmTPS contained an open reading frame of 2445 nucleotides encoding a protein of 814 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 92.05kDa. BmTPS was detectable in all developmental stages of Bactrocera minax and expressed higher in the final- (third-) instar larvae. Tissue-specific expression patterns of BmTPS showed that it was mainly expressed in the fat body. The 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) induced the expression of BmTPS and three genes in the chitin biosynthesis pathway. Moreover, injection of double-stranded RNA into third-instar larvae successfully silenced the transcription of BmTPS in B. minax, and thereby decreased the activity of TPS and trehalose content. Additionally, silencing of BmTPS inhibited the expression of three key genes in the chitin biosynthesis pathway and exhibited 52% death and abnormal phenotypes. The findings demonstrate that BmTPS is indispensable for larval-pupal metamorphosis. Besides, the establishment of RNAi experimental system in B. minax would lay a solid foundation for further investigation of molecular biology and physiology of this pest.