LETTER TO THE EDITOR

 

Compatibility between Heterorhabditis bacteriophora Poinar strain HC1 and Lecanicillium lecanii Zare & Gams strain VERTICEN-01 under laboratory conditions¹

 

Compatibilidad entre Heterorhabditis bacteriophora Poinar cepa HC1 y Lecanicillium lecanii Zare & Gams cepa VERTICEN-01 en condiciones de laboratorio

 

Dear Sir,

Compatibility between Heterorhabditis bacteriophora Poinar strain HC1 and Lecanicillium lecanii (Zare and Gams) strain VERTICEN 01 was evaluated in Galleria mellonera Fabricius as key insect under laboratory conditions using a random design with four treatments. The treatments were the application of nematodes alone, nematodes + fungi, fungi alone, and G. mellonella last instar larvae without treatment as the: control. The evaluations were made each 24 hours during four days. A mortality of 100% was observed in G. mellonella when nematodes alone or nematodes + fungi were applied; whereas in the treatment control (without bio-regulators) and the treatment with L. lecanii, mortality reached only 3%. The effect of H. bacteriophora in G. mellonella showed the existence of compatibility between this entomopathogenic nematode and L. lecanii. The treated G. mellonella larvae exhibited the typical symptoms of HC1 strain effect.

Sincerely yours,

 

 

Esteban González^I, R. Enrique^I, Mayra G. Rodríguez^I

^ICentro Nacional de Sanidad Agropecuaria (CENSA), Dirección de Protección de Plantas, Apartado 10, San José de las Lajas, Mayabeque. Cuba. Correo electrónico: [e-mail].

 

 

¹ Researc conducted under Project: Producción de Nematodos Entomopatógenos para el manejo de plagas agrícolas. (Integral Agreement between Cuba and Venezuela).