Pymetrozine is a compound that interferes with insect feeding and interrupts transmission of plant pathogens. The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca coagulata Say (Hemiptera, Cicadellidae), is a vector of Xylella fastidiosa, the foregut-borne, propagative bacterium that causes Pierce's disease of grapevine. In this study, we recorded the behavioral response of H. coagulata to plants treated by soil drench with pymetrozine using time-lapse photography, quantified the reduction in liquid excreta produced by H. coagulata fed on pymetrozine-treated plants, and evaluated pymetrozine effectiveness in reducing transmission rate in grapevines. H. coagulata feeding on plants treated with 0.015 mg of pymetrozine was disrupted by decreasing the number of contacts made with the grapevine by more than 50% and by increasing movements away from the stem by more than 5-fold. Excreta production by H. coagulata was significantly reduced on plants treated with 0.015 or 0.0075 mg of pymetrozine. Contrary to the expected outcome, the mean number of X. fastidiosa-infected plants actually increased in the pymetrozine treatments relative to the controls.
Pymetrozine is a compound that interferes with insect feeding and interrupts transmission of plant pathogens. The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca coagulata Say (Hemiptera, Cicadellidae), is a vector of Xylella fastidiosa, the foregut-borne, propagative bacterium that causes Pierce's disease of grapevine. In this study, we recorded the behavioral response of H. coagulata to plants treated by soil drench with pymetrozine using time-lapse photography, quantified the reduction in liquid excreta produced by H. coagulata fed on pymetrozine-treated plants, and evaluated pymetrozine effectiveness in reducing transmission rate in grapevines. H. coagulata feeding on plants treated with 0.015 mg of pymetrozine was disrupted by decreasing the number of contacts made with the grapevine by more than 50% and by increasing movements away from the stem by more than 5-fold. Excreta production by H. coagulata was significantly reduced on plants treated with 0.015 or 0.0075 mg of pymetrozine. Contrary to the expected outcome, the mean number of X. fastidiosainfected plants actually increased in the pymetrozine treatments relative to the controls.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.