Abstract
Diaphorina citri Kuwayama is the vector of the pathogenic bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter spp., the causative agent of Huanglongbing (HLB), the most serious disease of citrus worldwide. Because predatory insects have been historically neglected in biological control programs for D. citri, the impact of generalist predators on D. citri population densities is little understood. A useful tool to evaluate the dynamics of predator-prey interactions is molecular analysis of predators’ gut content. We constructed a specific molecular marker to detect D. citri DNA in the gut content of predator insects, for use in estimating the predation rate of field-collected predators in citrus orchards on D. citri. Bioassays of the DNA half-life detection time were carried out with two predatory species, the ladybird beetle Hippodamia convergens Guérin-Méneville and the lacewing Chrysoperla externa (Hagen). The D. citri DNA half-life detection time (DT50) was 6.11 h for H. convergens and 5.46 h for C. externa. One hundred and seven field-collected predators were used for gut-content analysis (52 larvae/adults of ladybirds and 55 larvae of lacewings). The assays showed that 17.3% of ladybirds but no lacewings tested positive for D. citri DNA. These results show that generalist predators can contribute to biological control of D. citri and should be considered for use in pest management programs in citrus orchards.
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Acknowledgments
We thank Geraldo Carvalho who provided lacewing eggs, and the Andrade Sun Farms Agrocomercial for providing the area in Mogi Mirim for this study.
Funding
This study was supported by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo FAPESP (grant #2018/02317-5 to ASC and PY), the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior – Brasil (CAPES) – Finance Code 001 (fellowship to FN and PF), and the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico – CNPq (fellowships #311465/2018-8 to ASC and #141076/2018-6 to DHM).
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FN, PF, and ASC conceived and designed the study; FN, DHM, GR, and PF collected the data; ASC and PY provided reagents and analytical apparatus; FN and ASC conducted data analyses; and FN, DHM, and ASC wrote the manuscript. All authors read, corrected, and approved the manuscript.
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Nanini, F., Maggio, D.H., Ferronato, P. et al. Molecular Marker to Identify Diaphorina citri (Hemiptera: Liviidae) DNA in Gut Content of Predators. Neotrop Entomol 48, 927–933 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-019-00721-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-019-00721-5