AsianScientist (Jan. 17, 2013) – An international research team, including scientists from China and Australia, has sequenced the genome of the diamondback moth, a pest that ravages important crops such as cabbage. The study provides insights into why the moth is resistant to insecticides and may lead to new strategies for sustainable pest management.
The diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) preferentially feeds on Brassica crops such as cabbage, cauliflower, and rapeseed. Because these crops are economically important, the total cost associated with crop damage and pest management is estimated to be up to US$5 billion per year worldwide.
However, efforts to control this pest using chemical insecticides have been futile as the diamondback moth is resistant to all classes of insecticides.
In their study, published online in Nature Genetics, the scientists uncovered genetic clues as to why the diamondback moth is able to tolerate such a wide range of insecticides.
By comparing the diamondback moth genome to that of the silkworm (B. mori), the researchers found that the moth genome had a larger number of genes related to insecticide resistance.
In particular, the researchers observed duplication of genes within four gene families that were responsible for xenobiotic detoxification.
According to the researchers, having a larger number of genes in these gene families is a clever evolutionary trick that contributes to the moth’s ability to detoxify a wide range of chemicals and is responsible for it becoming such a destructive pest.
“Remarkably, it appears that the very genetic adaptations that allow the diamondback moth to detoxify the chemicals in its food also allow it to develop immunity to the insecticides used against it,” said Geoff Gurr, one of the authors of the study.
The article can be found at: You et al.(2013) A Heterozygous Moth Genome Provides Insights Into Herbivory And Detoxification.
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Source: BGI; Photo: sankax/Flickr/CC.
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