Protein and Aminoacid Profile in Diapausing Larvae of Pink Bollworm Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders)

Abstract

The pink boll worm Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) is a threat to cotton cultivation. A study conducted in the NFSM laboratory of University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur focused on the protein and amino acid profile of the diapausing larvae. Amino acid composition of diapause and non-diapause larvae revealed that out of 17 amino acids, 14 showed a significant difference. In diapausing ones total amino acid content was found to be 603.23 ± 5.10 μg/g which was significantly higher compared to non-diapausing ones at 534.91 ± 3.19 μg/g. Likewise, protein content was more in diapausing larva destined to become female (27.15 ± 2.27 mg/100 g) as compared to non-diapausing ones (20.29 ± 2.61 mg/100 g). Thus, when larvae undergo diapause, the protein and amino acid content in larval body increases, implying that the larvae store dietary food for its survival during resting phase.