Biotechnology Of Bacillus Thuringiensis

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) has been used as a biopesticide in agriculture, forestry and mosquito control because of its advantages of specific toxicity against target insects, lack of polluting residues and safety to non-target organisms. The insecticidal properties of this bacterium are due to insecticidal proteins produced during sporulation. Despite these ecological benefits, the use of Bt biopesticides has lagged behind the synthetic chemicals. Genetic improvement of Bt natural strains, in particular Bt recombination, offers a promising means of improving efficacy and cost-effectiveness of Bt-based bioinsecticide products to develop new biotechnological applications. On the other hand, the different Bacillus species have important biotechnological applications; one of them is carried out by producing secondary metabolites, which are the study object of natural product chemistry. The amazing structural variability of these compounds has attracted the curiosity of chemists and the biological activities possessed by natural products have inspired the pharmaceutical industry to search for lead structures in microbial extracts. Screening of microbial extracts reveals the large structural diversity of natural compounds with broad biological activities, such as antimicrobial, antiviral, immunosuppressive, and antitumor activities that enable the bacterium to survive in its natural environment. These findings widen the target range of Bacillus spp., in special B. thuringiensis, besides insecticidal activity and help people to better understand its role in soil ecosystem.

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) has been used as a biopesticide in agriculture, forestry and mosquito control because of its advantages of specific toxicity against target insects, lack of polluting residues and safety to non-target organisms. The insecticidal properties of this bacterium are due to insecticidal proteins produced during sporulation. Despite these ecological benefits, the use of Bt biopesticides has lagged behind the synthetic chemicals. Genetic improvement of Bt natural strains, in particular Bt recombination, offers a promising means of improving efficacy and cost-effectiveness of Bt-based bioinsecticide products to develop new biotechnological applications. On the other hand, the different Bacillus species have important biotechnological applications; one of them is carried out by producing secondary metabolites, which are the study object of natural product chemistry. The amazing structural variability of these compounds has attracted the curiosity of chemists and the biological activities possessed by natural products have inspired the pharmaceutical industry to search for lead structures in microbial extracts. Screening of microbial extracts reveals the large structural diversity of natural compounds with broad biological activities, such as antimicrobial, antiviral, immunosuppressive, and antitumor activities that enable the bacterium to survive in its natural environment. These findings widen the target range of Bacillus spp., in special B. thuringiensis, besides insecticidal activity and help people to better understand its role in soil ecosystem.

This volume presents a comprehensive perspective of the biopesticides Bacillus thuringiensis and Lysinibacillus sphaericus, from their basic biology to agriculture, forestry and public-health applications. It covers their ecology, virulence factors, and genetic characterization. The topics related to agriculture and forestry include mode of action, receptors of insect pests, and heterologous expression of toxins in insect cells and plants. Public-health researchers will find information on vector control programs with an emphasis on the Neotropical region. The book also discusses new products and the global market.

This book describes new strategies being used to combat disease agents and invertebrate pests. Outstanding experts from the United States, Belgium, China, Guatemala, Japan, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand have contributed chapters that cover the latest achievements in genetic engineering, emphasizing the microbial and viral biological control agents that can provide environmentally safe, economical control systems. Topics discussed include genetic engineering of Bacillus thuringiensis and B. sphaericus, the development of insect resistance to microbial biocontrol agents, engineering of baculoviruses and nematodes, bioengineering of plants, plant transformation by particle bombardment, fusion of cultured insect cells, new immunodiagnostic assays and control measures against parasitic human diseases, and genetically engineered microbial agents for malaria control. The book also presents improved mass production procedures of microbial and viral biocontrol agents, as well as regulatory and environmental aspects of genetically engineered biocontrol agents. Biotechnology for Biological Control of Pests and Vectors will provide a valuable reference for researchers and students of biological control, microbiology, virology, and molecular biology.

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.

Provides a definitive source of information on the environmental, non-target and human safety aspects of using the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.) as a biological control agent. B.t. is used worldwide as an effective agent for controlling many species of insect pest, either by crop spraying or genetic engineering of crop plants. Recently questions have been raised due to health concerns over inhalation of the bacterial spores, and fears of gene-swapping. This reference provides a well-balanced comprehensive discussion on the subject.