Can insecticide applications used to kill vector insects prevent pine wilt disease?

Background: The aerial application of insecticides is a primary method used to prevent the spread of pine wilt disease by reducing the population density of Monochamus beetles, the vector insects of pine wood nematodes (PWNs). This study investigated the mortality of vector insects and the ratio of PWN-infected trees according to systemically remaining thiacloprid residues in Pinus densiflora. To do this, thiacloprid was sprayed on a nursery of 5-year-old P.

Agroinfiltration-based expression of hairpin RNA in soybean plants for RNA interference against Tetranychus urticae.

The coatomer subunit alpha (COPA) and aquaporin 9 (AQ9) genes from the two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae, were previously determined to exhibit RNA interference (RNAi)-based lethality when their double-stranded RNAs were systemically delivered via multi-unit chambers (Kwon et al., 2016 [8]). In current study, the hairpin RNAs of the COPA and AQ9 were transiently expressed in soybean plants by agroinfiltration.