Molecular Identification of Fungal Endophytes of Medicinal Plant Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad as a Medicinal Plant: Role of Tissue Type and Sampling Location on the Diversity.

Endophytic fungi are an important group of organisms in association with plants which are able to colonize all plant internal tissues and improve their fitness. The present research aims to isolate and identify endophytic fungi of Citrullus colocynthis plant and then investigate the effects of sampling location and tissue type on the fungal endophyte diversity of this plant. To do so, a sampling program was done in 11 geographically isolated C.

Monitoring of Mutual Interference Behavior of Trichogramma brassicae (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) over 45 Generations of Rearing on Angoumois Grain Moth.

Trichogramma brassicae (Bezdenko) is one of the most common species of natural enemies used in augmentative biological control programs in many countries. Understanding of the foraging behavior of a parasitoid can help us to improve its performance under field conditions. This study is the first assessment of trends in mutual interference behavior of T.

Generation-Dependent Functional and Numerical Responses of a Naturally Fungus-Infected Colony of Habrobracon hebetor (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) Reared on Ephestia kuehniella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in Iran.

The functional and numerical responses of Habrobracon hebetor (Say) were assessed over 30 sequential generations (G) on different densities (2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, and 128 fifth-instar larvae) of the Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella (Zeller). Seven tested generations (G2inf, G4inf, G6inf, G8inf, G10inf, G15inf, and G30inf) had already been naturally infected by a fungus species, whereas only the second generation (G2) had the colonies of both infected (G2inf) and uninfected (G2uninf) individuals. All infected generations, as well as the uninfected generation, showed a Type III functional response.

Quality control of the parasitoid wasp Trichogramma brassicae (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) over 45 generations of rearing on Sitotroga cerealella.

Trichogramma brassicae (Bezdenko) is an important biological control agent that has been used widely against many lepidopteran pests. Commonly, colonies of Trichogramma are mass reared on factitious hosts such as Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier) over many generations. In this study, we evaluated the quality and performance of a colony of T.

Age stage, two-sex life table of (Braconidae) on (Noctuidae) reared on different sugar beet genotypes.

The present study was carried out to unveil interactive relevance among consecutive and alternate members of a tritrophic system comprised of sugar beet genotypes, beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner), and its parasitoid, Habrobracon hebetor (Say) using demographic parameters. To do so, H. hebetor was reared on S.

Adult size and timing of reproduction in five species of Asobara parasitoid wasps.

The majority of adult parasitoid wasps are unable to synthesize lipids and therefore face a trade-off between the investment of lipids in eggs or in the maintenance of soma. It has been shown that resource allocation should depend on body size in parasitoids. Given that smaller females have shorter expected life times, they should concentrate their reproductive effort into early life.

Effect of Arsenophonus Endosymbiont Elimination on Fitness of the Date Palm Hopper, Ommatissus lybicus (Hemiptera: Tropiduchidae).

The date palm hopper, Ommatissus lybicus de Bergevin, is one of the most important pests of the date palm in the Middle East and North Africa. This insect uses its needle-like sucking mouthparts to feed on phloem, which is devoid of most essential amino acids and many vitamins. The absence of essential nutrient in its diet is suggested to be ameliorated by endosymbionts in O.

Diversity and Spatiotemporal Distribution of Fungal Endophytes Associated with Citrus reticulata cv. Siyahoo.

Endophytic fungi are characterized as microorganisms found within internal tissues of living plants without any immediate, overtly negative effects. The present study was carried out to isolate, taxonomically characterize and determine the spatiotemporal distribution of endophytic fungi associated with leaf, stem, trunk, and root of mandarin (Citrus reticulata cv. Siyahoo).

Distribution and Variation of Bacterial Endosymbiont and "Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus" Titer in the Huanglongbing Insect Vector, Diaphorina citri Kuwayama.

The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, is an economic insect pest in most citrus-growing regions and the vector of 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' (CLas), one of at least three known bacteria associated with Huanglongbing (HLB or citrus greening disease). D. citri harbors bacterial endosymbionts, including Wolbachia pipientis (strain Wolbachia wDi), 'Candidatus Carsonella ruddii,' and 'Candidatus Profftella armatura.

Mating and Carbohydrate Feeding Impacts on Life-History Traits of Habrobracon hebetor (Hymenoptera: Braconidae).

Rapid population growth and wide host range make Habrobracon hebetor Say (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) highly suitable for biological control programs. To improve performance of the reared wasps in biological control programs we conducted a series of experiments on the effect of mating and carbohydrate feeding on life-history traits of this parasitoid. Mating caused a significant cost to fecundity, host paralysis and parasitism ability of H.

Temperature and Exposure Time in Cold Storage Reshape Parasitic Performance of Habrobracon hebetor (Hymenoptera: Braconidae).

Cold storage can extend shelf life of parasitoids for use in biocontrol. However, cold storage may have negative impacts on life history traits of the parasitoids and, therefore, on their performance as biocontrol agents. Here, we examine the effect of cold storage on life history traits of Habrobracon hebetor (Say) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a parasitoid of several economic lepidopteran pests.