Akanthomyces species have only been reported from Guizhou and Qinghai Province, with few reports from other regions in China. In this research, the species diversity of Akanthomyces in the Jinyun Mountains, Chongqing was investigated. Fourteen infected spider specimens were collected and two new species (A.bashanensis and A.beibeiensis) and a known species (A.tiankengensis) were established and described according to a multi-locus phylogenetic analysis and the morphological characteristics. Our results reveal abundant Akanthomyces specimens and three species were found at Jinyun Mountain. Due to its being an important kind of entomopathogenic fungi, further attention needs to be paid to the diversity of other entomopathogenic fungi in Chongqing, China.

In Brazil, the production of beneficial microorganisms by growers exclusively for their own use is a practice known as \"on-farm production\". Regarding on-farm bioinsecticides, they were initially deployed for pests of perennial and semi-perennial crops in the 1970s but, since 2013, their use has extended to pests of annual crops such as maize, cotton, and soybean. Millions of hectares are currently being treated with these on-farm preparations. Local production reduces costs, meets local needs, and reduces inputs of environmentally damaging chemical pesticides, facilitating establishment of more sustainable agroecosystems. Critics argue that without implementation of stringent quality control measures there is the risk that the on-farm preparations: (1) are contaminated with microbes which may include human pathogens or (2) contain very little active ingredient, impacting on field efficacy. The on-farm fermentation of bacterial insecticides predominates, especially that of Bacillus thuringiensis targeting lepidopteran pests. However, there has been a rapid growth in the past 5 years in the production of entomopathogenic fungi, mostly for the control of sap-sucking insects such as whitefly (Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius)) and the corn leafhopper (Dalbulus maidis (DeLong and Wolcott)). In contrast, on-farm production of insect viruses has seen limited growth. Most of the ca. 5 million rural producers in Brazil own small or medium size properties and, although the vast majority still do not practice on-farm production of biopesticides, the topic has aroused interest among them. Many growers who adopt this practice usually use non-sterile containers as fermenters, resulting in poor-quality preparations, and cases of failure have been reported. On the other hand, some informal reports suggest on-farm preparations may be efficacious even when contaminated, what could be explained, at least partially, by the insecticidal secondary metabolites secreted by the pool of microorganisms in the liquid culture media. Indeed, there is insufficient information on efficacy and mode of action of these microbial biopesticides. It is usually the large farms, some with > 20,000 ha of continuous cultivated lands, that produce biopesticides with low levels of contamination, as many of them possess advanced production facilities and have access to specialized knowledge and trained staff. Uptake of on-farm biopesticides is expected to continue but the rate of adoption will depend on factors such as the selection of safe, virulent microbial strains and implementation of sound quality control measures (compliance with emerging Brazilian regulations and international standards). The challenges and opportunities of on-farm bioinsecticides are presented and discussed.

Cordyceps farinosa is often utilized as a biocontrol agent because of its wide host range, strong lethality, and safety for mammals. Artificial rearing of Thitarodes armoricanus larvae is a prerequisite for the artificial cultivation of Chinese cordyceps, and C. farinosa is the most lethal pathogenic fungus during the rearing process. However, the infection process of C. farinosa is still unclear. In this study, we cloned the promoter of the C. farinosa glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene, constructed the EGFP expression cassette, and integrated it into the C. farinosa genome via Agrobacterium transformation. We obtained a fluorescent strain for better observation of the infection process. Using two different inoculation methods of the fluorescent strain, we observed the traditional infection process through the body surface as well as through the digestive tract via feeding. Both infection modes can lead to larval death and mummification. Our findings demonstrated that during the artificial rearing of T. armoricanus, preventing C. farinosa pollution should be an important part of the disinfection of the rearing environment.

Herein, we report the synthesis of spinel cobalt oxide nanorods (Co3O4 NRs) by a modified co-precipitation approach and examine their larvicidal activity against Culex pipiens. The structure and morphology of the as-prepared Co3O4 NRs were emphasized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). It was found that Co3O4 nanostructures have a face-centered spinel cubic crystal structure with a mean crystallite size of 38 nm. These nanostructures have a rod like shape with a mean diameter of 30 nm and an average length of 60 nm. The TGA measurements revealed the high stability of the formed spinel cubic structure at 400 °C. The optical behavior indicates the direct transition of electrons through an optical band gap in the range of 2.92-3.08 eV. These unique chemical and physical properties of Co3O4 NRs enabled them to be employed as a strong agent for killing the C. pipiens. A comparison study was employed between the as-prepared Co3O4 and the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium brunneum as a control agent of C. pipiens larvae. The results revealed that the as-prepared nanorods have higher mortality against C. pipiens larvae compared with the well-known M. brunneum.

Fruit flies including Bactrocera zonata and B. dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae) are considered major pests of orchard systems in Pakistan. This study evaluated the laboratory virulence, sub-lethal effects, horizontal transmission, greenhouse, and field-cage efficacy of locally isolated entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) against B. zonata and B. dorsalis. In virulence assays against third instars and adults, all 21 EPF isolates (Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae) tested were pathogenic and caused varying levels of mortality to the fruit flies. Based on the initial screening, four isolates (B. bassiana WG-21 and WG-18 and M. anisopliae WG-07 and WG-02) were selected for further study. The isolate WG-18 was the most virulent against larvae and adults of B. zonata and B. dorsalis followed by WG-21, WG-02, and WG-07. In both species, adults were more susceptible than larvae to all isolates, and pupae were the least susceptible. Isolates WG-18 and WG-21 strongly decreased female fecundity and fertility, the highest adult and larval mortality, and longest developmental time of larvae and pupae. Fungal conidia were disseminated passively from infected to healthy adults and induced significant mortality, particularly from infected males to non-infected females. In greenhouse and field-cage experiments, WG-18 and WG-21 were the most effective isolates in reducing adult emergence when applied to larvae and pupae of both fruit fly species. Our results indicate that B. bassiana isolates WG-18 and WG-21 were the most virulent against multiple life stages of B. zonata and B. dorsalis, and also exerted the strongest sub-lethal effects.

In the present investigation, hyperparasitic interaction between B. bassiana, TM (MH590235) and P. xylostella was studied through scanning electron microscopy and chromatographic techniques. Dose-mortality responses showed an increase in mortality of larva with an increase in spore concentration. The LC50 value for B. bassiana isolate TM (MH590235) was 2.4 × 107 spores mL-1. The ditrophic interaction between B. bassiana and P. xylostella after 24 h revealed the adherence of conidia on stemmata, sensory setae, maxillary palpi and legs. After 48 h post-infection (hpi), germination of the conidia and appressorium formation was observed. Formation of hyphae and initiation of fungal networking was observed at 72 hpi. Complete ramification by mycelia and conidiogenesis of B. bassiana was observed over the mycosed cadaver after 168 hpi. Subsequently, typical sympodial conidiophores of B. bassiana bearing secondary spores were also observed. The metabolome profile of healthy larvae of P. xylostella revealed the presence of non-volatile organic compounds (NVOCs) like docosene, nonadecene, palmitic acid and heneicosane. However, the NVOC profile was different in the P. xylostella larvae hyperparasitized by B. bassiana. The metabolites present in the infected cadaver were phthalate esters, hydroxyquebrachamine and lactones.

Entomopathogenic fungi of the genus Beauveria and Metarhizium play an important role in controlling the population of arthropods. However, the data on their effectiveness against ticks focus mainly on species that do not occur in Europe. The aim of the study was to assess the effectiveness of entomopathogenic fungi against two of the most important tick species in Europe: Ixodes ricinus and Dermacentor reticulatus. In our study, the majority of tested entomopathogenic fungi strains showed potential efficacy against both tick species; however, D. reticulatus was less susceptible in comparison to I. ricinus. The observed mortality of ticks was up to 100% by using all commercial strains as well as three out of nine of the environmental strains. Among all tested fungi, the most effective against both tick species was environmental strain Metarhizium anisopliae LO4(1) with LC50 values: 2.6 × 103 cfu/ml-5.7 × 105 cfu/ml. Botanigard proved to be more effective than MET52 with LC50 values: 6.8 × 103 cfu/ml-3.3 × 106 cfu/ml. The conducted bioassays indicate the potential possibility of using the environmental isolates of entomopathogenic fungi, as well as commercial strains in control of local populations of I. ricinus and D. reticulatus; however, the possibility of using them in vivo requires more research.

Fusarium oxysporum exhibits insect pathogenicity-however, generalized concerns of releasing phytopathogens within agroecosystems marred its entomopathogenicity-related investigations. In a previous study, soils were sampled from Douro vineyards and adjacent hedgerows. In this study, 80 of those soils were analyzed for their chemical properties and were subsequently co-related with the abundance of entomopathogenic F. oxysporum, after insect baiting of soils with Galleria mellonella and Tenebrio molitor larvae. The soil chemical properties studied were organic matter content; total organic carbon; total nitrogen; available potassium; available phosphorus; exchangeable cations, such as K⁺, Na⁺, Ca2+, and Mg2+; pH; total acidity; degree of base saturation; and effective cation exchange capacity. Entomopathogenic F. oxysporum was found in 48 soils, i.e., 60% ± 5.47%, of the total soil samples. Out of the 1280 insect larvae used, 93, i.e., 7.26% ± 0.72%, were found dead by entomopathogenic F. oxysporum. Stepwise deletion of non-significant variables using a generalized linear model was followed by a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM). A higher C:N (logarithmized) (p < 0.001) and lower exchangeable K⁺ (logarithmized) (p = 0.008) were found significant for higher fungal abundance. Overall, this study suggests that entomopathogenic F. oxysporum is robust with regard to agricultural changes, and GLMM is a useful statistical tool for count data in ecology.