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Scientists Evaluate Insect Resistant Plants Expressing Spider Venom Toxin (Hvt)
Results showed that larval mortality was 100% on Hvt-transgenic tobacco plants but not on Hvt-transgenic cotton which can be due to significantly lower Hvt expression level in the transgenic cotton. Studies on non-target organisms were conducted with larvae of the predators common green lacewing (Chrysoperla carnea) and seven-spot ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata), adults of the aphid parasitoid (Aphidius colemani), and adult workers of the honey bee (Apis mellifera). Even at greater concentrations (40 μg/ml) Hvt did not adversely affect the four non-target species. Purified Cry2Ab2 from Bollgard II plants at 10 μg/ml also did not adversely affect any of the non-target species. Based on the results, Hvt might be useful for developing insecticidal plant varieties to control lepidopteran pests. Read the abstract at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jen.12156/abstract;jsessionid=79FBBA74EE54EF4B91645971516962CE.f02t01
This article is part of the Crop Biotech Update, a weekly summary of world developments in agri-biotech for developing countries, produced by the Global Knowledge Center on Crop Biotechnology, International Service for the Aquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications SEAsiaCenter (ISAAA) Subscribe to Crop Biotech Update Newsletter |