Biotechnology And Insect Pest Management

Biotechnology has contribute much to the field of insect pest management so far, from side to side development of transgenic plants and other novel ecofriendly products to manage insects. Recognition of the importance and relevance of biotechnological applications in insect control is gaining momentum. There is also improved interest among scientists in developing novel strategies for insect pest management. Realizing the possible benefits and constraints in the use of biotechnology in insect pest management, a national symposium on 'Biotechnology and Insect Pest Management' was organized freshly. Deliberations during the symposium covered various aspects such as insect resistant transgenic crops, microbial pesticides - process and development, botanical pesticides - process and development, hybridization techniques in the production of potential natural enemies, insect and animal vectors of diseases and biosafety concerns, etc. Genetic engineering has been used to enhance the insecticidal efficacy of various strains of Bt by increasing virulence, extending host range, and increasing field stability, and by introducing alternative toxins to facilitate resistance management. Techniques have been developed for production by genetic means of new strains of Bt with new combinations of toxin genes. Crop varieties resistant to insects are far less common than disease-resistant varieties, because plant breeders have traditionally focused more on disease resistance. However, if they are available, resistant varieties can be an effective defense against insect pests. But even when insect-resistant cultivars are not available, some varieties may be less attractive to pest species or may tolerate more damage than others. Plant size, shape, coloration, leaf hair, cuticle thickness, and natural chemicals (attractants and repellents) can all affect pest susceptibility. Farmers can do their own breeding by collecting non-hybrid seed from healthy plants in the field. Plants well adapted to local conditions will be more likely to resist pests. This book throws new light on alternative technologies to control insect pests. Scientists from different institutions from all over world have provided various biotechnology based techniques and other means to manage insect pests.

Pest and disease management continues to challenge the agricultural community. The rise in new pest and crop problems juxtaposed with public concern over pesticide use and more stringent environmental regulations creates the need for today's agricultural producers to stay current with new technologies for producing quality crops profitably. Biological and Biotechnological Control of Insect Pests presents an overview of alternative measures to traditional pest management practices, utilizing biological control and biotechnology. The removal of some highly effective broad-spectrum chemicals, caused by concerns over environmental health and public safety, has resulted in the development of alternative, reduced risk crop protection products. These products, less toxic to the environment and easily integrated into biological control systems, target specific life stages or pest species. Predation - recognized as a suitable, long term strategy - effectively suppresses pests in biotechnological control systems. Biological and Biotechnological Control of Insect Pests covers these topics and more. It explores the current approaches in alternative solutions such as: biological control agents, parasites and predators, pathogenic microorganisms, pheromones, botanical insecticides, genetic control, genetic engineering of plants and biocontrol agents, and government regulations for biocontrol agents and recombinant DNA technology. This book will be a useful resource to entomologists, agronomists, horticulturists, and environmental scientists.

Due to increasing problems occurring from massive applications of pesticides, such as insect resistance to pesticides, the use of biotechnological tools to minimize losses from insect pests has become inevitable. Presenting alternative strategies for alleviating biotic stresses, Biotechnological Approaches for Pest Management and Ecological Sustain

This book offers a range of environmentally benign molecular mechanisms which are safer alternative strategies for effective insect pest management. In modern era of biotechnology, there has been much advancement in the field of molecular biology, where many more techniques have evolved which can be helpful in the field of pest management too. Plant resistance, development of transgenic plants, and many more techniques are being considered the panacea to pest problems. On the other hand, there are wide spread concerns of the safety of biotechnological interventions with nontarget organisms including humans. While the world stands divided on the ethical issues of these approaches and the many safety concerns, scientists believe that well thought of biotechnological interventions are probably the only safest ways possible for reducing pest attacks on crops. It explores various techniques and aspects related to molecular pathways for crop pest control. This book is a useful resource for postgraduate students and researchers of agriculture sciences, plant pathology and plant physiology. It is also useful for policy planners in agriculture.

This text presents a spectrum of views on the benefits and risks in the use of biotechnology in integrated pest management. It assesses the likelihood of new technologies being usefully incorporated into IPM programmes, and discusses types of new biotechnologies.

This textbook introduces to the fundamentals and applications of insect biotechnology in a concise manner. Global economically important insects such as silkworm, lac or honey bee are in the focus of this text. The book attempts to address all of the latest developments in this growing field such as application of metagenomics and proteomics in mining for genes and enzymes that could be beneficial in diverse industrial and biomedical applications. Further, insects have been established as suitable tool for the production of transgenic products which is discussed in one dedicated chapter. The book targets students and researchers in molecular biology, biotechnology or entomology who want to get familiar with the emerging field of insect biotechnology.

Pest and disease management continues to challenge the agricultural community. The rise in new pest and crop problems juxtaposed with public concern over pesticide use and more stringent environmental regulations creates the need for today's agricultural producers to stay current with new technologies for producing quality crops profitably. Biological and Biotechnological Control of Insect Pests presents an overview of alternative measures to traditional pest management practices, utilizing biological control and biotechnology.The removal of some highly effective broad-spectrum chemicals, caused by concerns over environmental health and public safety, has resulted in the development of alternative, reduced risk crop protection products. These products, less toxic to the environment and easily integrated into biological control systems, target specific life stages or pest species. Predation - recognized as a suitable, long term strategy - effectively suppresses pests in biotechnological control systems.Biological and Biotechnological Control of Insect Pests covers these topics and more. It explores the current approaches in alternative solutions such as: biological control agents, parasites and predators, pathogenic microorganisms, pheromones, botanical insecticides, genetic control, genetic engineering of plants and biocontrol agents, and government regulations for biocontrol agents and recombinant DNA technology. This book will be a useful resource to entomologists, agronomists, horticulturists, and environmental scientists.