Euscepes postfasciatus is one of the most important sweetpotato pests in the South Pacific, Caribbean basin, and some countries of Central and South America. Development of host resistance will greatly improve the effects of integrated pest management (IPM) for this pest. Ten transgenic clones of `Jewel' sweetpotato with cowpea trypsin inhibitors and snowdrop lectin, developed by Axis Agri. Genetics, Ltd., were assayed for weevil resistance using a no-choice bioassay. A replicated experiment was conducted in the screenhouse. Five storage roots from each clone were infested with five pairs of adults. Non-transformed `Jewel' was used as a check. Resistance was assessed 60 days after infestation by estimating the percentage of internal damage and the weevil population in the storage roots. A five-grade damage index was recorded. The experiment was repeated twice. Significant enhancement of resistance was found in the transgenic clones. Clone CTI-13 with cowpea trypsin inhibitor and clone PCG-7 with both cowpea trypsin inhibitor and snowdrop lectin demonstrated moderate resistance to E. postfasciatus, whereas the non-transformed `Jewel' was susceptible. This result shows that resistance to Euscepes postfasciatus can be achieved through genetic transformation.
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