Combating Aphid Populations Using Bacterial Symbionts

Scientists from the University of York in the United Kingdom have revealed a way of controlling plant pests using novel bacteria. The scientists monitored the relationship between the bacterial symbionts Regiella and Hamiltonella and the black bean aphid, their insect host. They discovered that plant nutrients, specifically the presence of amino acids in plant sap, influence the behavior of the bacterial symbionts. In most cases these bacteria are harmless to their insect host. But on certain plants especially those with low amino acid content in their sap, the relationship between the insect and the bacteria changes, with the microscopic organism exhibiting insect-disruptive characteristics. The findings promise a novel way of controlling aphid populations without using insecticides.

Read the press release at http://www.york.ac.uk/admin/presspr/pressreleases/jekyllhyde.htm The abstract of the paper published by the Proceedings of the Royal Society B is available at http://journals.royalsociety.org/content/n83201g1537n9121/