Amplification and restriction endonuclease digestion of the Pr1 gene for the detection and characterization of Metarhizium strains

Habitat Association in Two Genetic Groups of the Insect-Pathogenic FungusMetarhizium anisopliae: Uncovering Cryptic Species?

“…We assessed three measures of genetic variability: allozymes, random amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), and restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP) of a subtilisin-like protease-encoding gene, pr1 (19) in 83 isolates of M. anisopliae.…”

“…Worldwide, M. anisopliae may be an assembly of cryptic species, each adapted to certain environmental conditions. The association of fungal genotypes with habitat but not with host insects has implications on the criteria for utility of this, and perhaps other, fungal biocontrol agents.Insect-pathogenic fungi have genetic features related to insect infection (17), and the population genetics of these fungi are also assumed to be influenced primarily by host insect taxa (5,6,14,19,20,24,28,33,35). Metarhizium anisopliae is an insect-pathogenic, haploid, deuteromycetous fungus that is assumed to reproduce clonally, and it is also assumed that certain genotypes are related to an insect host (5,6,14,19,20,24,28,33,35).…”

“…Metarhizium anisopliae is an insect-pathogenic, haploid, deuteromycetous fungus that is assumed to reproduce clonally, and it is also assumed that certain genotypes are related to an insect host (5,6,14,19,20,24,28,33,35). It also has the potential for parasexual reproduction (36), although an analysis of clonality versus recombination has not been undertaken.…”

“…anisopliae is a recognized pathogen of more than 200 insect species, including several major pests (29). It is a recurrent paradigm in the literature that the insect host drives the population structure, i.e., that there are fungal isolates or genotypes adapted for pathogenesis toward certain species or taxa of insects (5,6,14,19,20,24,28,32,35). Because this fungus offers an environmentally safe alternative to chemical pesticides, it is of growing interest in the control of agriculturally important pests (29) and more virulent strains are being sought for commercial biological-control applications.…”

Entomopathogenic Fungi as an Important Natural Regulator of Insect Outbreaks in Forests (Review)

“…A lot of studies indicate the crucial importance of the geographical origin of isolates (St. Leger et al, 1992;Cobb & Clarkson, 1993;Leal et al, 1994;Leal et al, 1997) and habitat type (Bidochka et al, 2001). Studies of Leal et al (1994;1997) showed that among 40 isolates of M. anisopliae, strains from the same country were more similar in the genetic structure than those from different countries despite the same host.…”