Different Host Plants Distinctly Influence the Adaptability of Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

Abstract

Piercing–sucking insects are prominent phloem-feeding insect pests and understanding their feeding behavior and life characteristics plays a crucial role in studying insect host adaptability. The green peach aphid, Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is one of the most prominent pests in tobacco-growing areas around the world. This study evaluated the adaptability of M. persicae to five host plants: tobacco, radish, Chinese cabbage, Brassica oleracea, and rape using the electropenetrography, age-stage, two-sex life table and population dynamics. The results demonstrated that the feeding behavior of M. persicae differed significantly according to the target hosts. M. persicae exhibited reduced pathway activities and increased phloem sap ingestion on radish, whereas the opposite was observed on Chinese cabbage. Additionally, the mechanical difficulties of M. persicae mouthparts in the probe pathway phase were significantly lower on tobacco and radish than on other host plants. Life table parameters indicated that for M. persicae reared on radish, preadult duration, longevity, and total preoviposition increased significantly and the fecundity was the highest. Furthermore, the net reproductive rate (R0) increased significantly. The population number of M. persicae on radish after 15 days was significantly higher than that on other hosts, except for tobacco. Although M. persicae can successfully survive on the five plants, our results demonstrated that radish is the optimal host. These results provide significant information for understanding the population dynamics of M. persicae and on different host crops integrated management strategy.

Aphids on Aphid-Susceptible Cultivars Have Easy Access to Turnip Mosaic Virus, and Effective Inoculation on Aphid-Resistant Cultivars of Oilseed Rape (Brassica napus)

“…These include epicuticular waxes, trichome exudates, texture, topology, odor, and color on the plant surface [ 31 ], which are used by plants to resist aphid infestation, and also by aphids to recognize their host plant before making test punctures to find a feeding site [ 2 ]. The structural traits of the leaf epidermis may affect the time required for the first probe [ 32 ]. Trichomes are the unique structure of epidermal tissue in most plants [ 33 ].…”

“…The E1 (representing salivation) and E2 (indicating ingestion) indices for plant resistance or susceptibility are commonly supplied [ 36 ]. Aphids puncture several sieve tube molecules before determining the feeding site, which is often accompanied by prolonged periods of saliva secretion, ranging from 5 s to 30 min, to balance the plant wound response and avoid phloem proteins blocking sieve tube molecules and chemical defense mechanisms [ 32 , 37 , 38 ]. On ‘Zhongshuang11’, cabbage aphids took significantly longer to salivate than on ‘Deleyou6’.…”

Different Tea Germplasms Distinctly Influence the Adaptability of Toxoptera aurantii (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

“…Owing to their efficiency and accuracy, the electrical penetration graph (EPG) technique and life tables are useful tools for screening insect-resistant germplasm resources to comprehensively analyze the adaptation of piercing–sucking insects to plants [ 12 ]. EPG signals can reflect the location of the stylet in the plant tissue alongside special feeding activities [ 15 , 16 , 17 ] and has been widely used as an advanced technology to examine the feeding behavior of piercing–sucking insects [ 18 ] such as Rhopalosiphum padi (Linnaeus) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) [ 19 ], Toxoptera citricida (Kirkaldy) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) [ 13 ], Myzus persicae (Sulzer) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) [ 20 ], and Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) [ 21 ]. Life table analysis is widely accepted as a powerful tool for researching the dynamics of insect populations.…”

“…Life table analysis is widely accepted as a powerful tool for researching the dynamics of insect populations. The intrinsic rate of increase ( r ), net reproductive rate ( R 0 ), and finite rate of increase ( λ ) obtained from the age-stage, two-sex life table analysis can accurately reveal the dynamics of insect populations and provide accurate findings for evaluating host adaptability [ 20 ].…”

Population Growth of Fall Armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda Fed on Cereal and Pulse Host Plants Cultivated in Yunnan Province, China

“…Additionally, because of the subtropical climate of Yunnan Province, these crops are typically planted year-round, which could be sufficient to support the survival and spread of S. frugiperda . Differences in host plants significantly impact the population growth, development, and survival rates of phytophagous insect pests [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ]. The population growth of any insect pest can be affected by the nutrition and characteristics of its host plant [ 21 , 23 , 24 ].…”