title: Transformation of Enterobacter gergoviae isolated from pink bollworm (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) gut with Bacillus thuringiensis toxin.
abstract: Production of molecules with toxic activity by genetically transformed symbiotic bacteria of pest insects may serve as a powerful approach to biological control. The symbiont, Enterobacter gergoviae, isolated from the gut of the pink bollworm (PBW), has been transformed to express Cyt1A, a cytolytic protein toxin lethal to mosquito and black fly larvae, as a model system. These transgenic bacteria might be used to spread genes encoding insecticidal proteins to populations of agricultural insects or as replacement for chemical insecticides such as malathion used in bait formulation to control specific insect pests, because of extreme public pressure against organophosphate pesticide spraying.
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA. ludmila@mail.ucr.edu
authors.forename: Lyudmila V
authors.initials: LV
authors.lastname: Kuzina
authors.forename: Ernie D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Baoxue
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001413:Bacillus thuringiensis / Q000235:genetics*; D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000235:genetics; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000235:genetics*; D004754:Enterobacter / Q000187:drug effects*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; D007915:Lepidoptera / Q000382:microbiology*; D010572:Pest Control, Biological; D014169:Transformation, Bacterial
chemical_list: D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D004731:Endotoxins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; C030956:insecticidal crystal protein, Bacillus Thuringiensis