%0 Journal Article
%T Mode of Action and Specificity of Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins in the Control of Caterpillars and Stink Bugs in Soybean Culture
%A Rog¨¦rio Sch¨¹nemann
%A Neiva Knaak
%A Lidia Mariana Fiuza
%J ISRN Microbiology
%D 2014
%R 10.1155/2014/135675
%X The bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) produces delta-endotoxins that possess toxic properties and can be used as biopesticides, as well as a source of genes for the construction of transgenic plants resistant to insects. In Brazil, the introduction of Bt soybean with insecticidal properties to the velvetbean caterpillar, the main insect pest of soybean, has been seen a promising tool in the management of these agroecosystems. However, the increase in stink bug populations in this culture, in various regions of the country, which are not susceptible to the existing genetically modified plants, requires application of chemicals that damage the environment. Little is known about the actual toxicity of Bt to Hemiptera, since these insects present sucking mouthparts, which hamper toxicity assays with artificial diets containing toxins of this bacterium. In recent studies of cytotoxicity with the gut of different hemipterans, susceptibility in the mechanism of action of delta-endotoxins has been demonstrated, which can generate promising subsidies for the control of these insect pests in soybean. This paper aims to review the studies related to the selection, application and mode of action of Bt in the biological control of the major pest of soybean, Anticarsia gemmatalis, and an analysis of advances in research on the use of Bt for control hemipterans. 1. Introduction Soybean, Glycine max (L.), is the largest agricultural commodity of economic importance in Brazil, occupying large areas of planting, targeting both domestic consumption and the export market. Given its economic importance, the problems caused by the attack of insect pests reduce production and decrease the quality of the grains or seeds [1]. Among the insect groups stands out the velvetbean caterpillar: Anticarsia gemmatalis (H¨¹bner 1818), Lepidoptera: Noctuidae; the brown stink bug: Euschistus heros (Fabricius 1798), Hemiptera: Pentatomidae; the small green stink bug: Piezodorus guildinii (Westwood 1837), Hemiptera: Pentatomidae; and the green stink bug: Nezara viridula (Linneus 1758), Hemiptera: Pentatomidae. The use of microorganisms has assumed a prominent position among the options that seek to control insect pests without the use of chemicals and with high specific toxicity applied in agroecosystems. The Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Berliner 1909), Bt, stands out representing approximately 95% of microorganisms used in biological control of agricultural pests in different cultures [2]. Besides the economic aspect and the safety to human health [3], this bacterium
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn.microbiology/2014/135675/