Cuba

Developing native viral biopesticides for management of lepidopteran insect pests in Cuba; optimization of production technology and molecular characterization

Le sommaire ci-dessous est présenté dans la langue de la demande soumis par les demandeurs du concours SCR-CALA.

This project will launch a long term research collaboration between Sanidad Vegetal and the Institute for Sustainable Horticulture towards the development of viral biopesticide products in both Cuba and Canada. Three specific Cuban pests will be the target of this first study; Spodoptera exigua and S. frugiperda which attack a wide range of crops, and E rinnyis ello, the cassava hornworm. At the same time, similar Canadian pests will be studied, a common looper species affecting field and greenhouse vegetables and a cluster of cutworms that attack raspberries. Collections of target pests before the project begins will determine exact pests and viruses available to study but Spodoptera NPV (a baculovirus) will be collected in Cuba, and similar viruses from loopers and cutworm will be collected in Canada.

The first phase of the project will begin with trials in Canada involving the use of natural and alternate hosts, host diet and production conditions to optimize viral polyhedrons, methods to quantify polyhedrons (image analysis) and initiation of molecular characterization of the Cuban insect virus isolates (PCR, sequencing) to be able to compare them with Canadian isolates and as a database for future viral product development for use in Cuba. The second phase will involve field efficacy trials in Cuba with at least one Cuban isolate.

The goal is to gather significant knowledge about production, characterization and field efficacy which will contribute to the registration of at least one product in Cuba and valuable information about the similarities and differences between insect viruses in subtropical and temperate climates which will form the basis for an international publication.