title: Transgenic Bt Cotton Does Not Disrupt the Top-Down Forces Regulating the Cotton Aphid in Central China.
abstract: Top-down force is referred to arthropod pest management delivered by the organisms from higher trophic levels. In the context of prevalent adoption of transgenic Bt crops that produce insecticidal Cry proteins derived from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), it still remains elusive whether the top-down forces are affected by the insect-resistant traits that introduced into the Bt crops. We explored how Bt cotton affect the strength of top-down forces via arthropod natural enemies in regulating a non-target pest species, the cotton aphid Aphis gossypii Glover, using a comparative approach (i.e. Bt cotton vs. conventional cotton) under field conditions. To determine top-down forces, we manipulated predation/parasitism exposure of the aphid to their natural enemies using exclusion cages. We found that the aphid population growth was strongly suppressed by the dominant natural enemies including Coccinellids, spiders and Aphidiines parasitoids. Coccinellids, spiders and the assemblage of other arthropod natural enemies (mainly lacewings and Hemipteran bugs) are similarly abundant in both plots, but with the parasitoid mummies less abundant in Bt cotton plots compared to the conventional cotton plots. However, the lower abundance of parasitoids in Bt cotton plots alone did not translate into differential top-down control on A. gossypii populations compared to conventional ones. Overall, the top-down forces were equally strong in both plots. We conclude that transgenic Bt cotton does not disrupt the top-down forces regulating the cotton aphid in central China.
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.|College of Plant Science, Tarim University, Alar, China.
authors.forename: Yong-Sheng
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.|INRA (French National Institute for Agricultural Research), Université Nice Sophia Antipolis, CNRS, UMR 1355-7254 Institut Sophia Agrobiotech, Sophia Antipolis, France.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Chang-Ying
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Niu
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Yong-Cheng
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xi-Wu
authors.initials: XW
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, Institute of Cotton Research CAAS, Anyang, China.
authors.forename: Jin-Jie
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: INRA (French National Institute for Agricultural Research), Université Nice Sophia Antipolis, CNRS, UMR 1355-7254 Institut Sophia Agrobiotech, Sophia Antipolis, France.
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Desneux
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001042:Aphids / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D001413:Bacillus thuringiensis / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003368:Gossypium / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000469:parasitology; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007300:Insect Control; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000469:parasitology; D011157:Population Dynamics; D011158:Population Growth; D011235:Predatory Behavior
chemical_list: D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004731:Endotoxins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; C030956:insecticidal crystal protein, Bacillus Thuringiensis