Genetically Engineered Bacteria as Biopesticide, Endotoxins, Fungal Diseases, Chitinases, Madurai Kamaraj University

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Home >> Industrial and Microbial Biotechnology >> Biopesticides and Integrated Pest Management-IPM >> Genetically Engineered Bacteria as Biopesticide

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Genetically Engineered Bacteria as Biopesticide
As discussed in the last a variety of micro-organisms, particularly bacteria have been modified through the techniques of genetic engineering to protect crops. Application of this technology will ultimately release benefical agents in the environment. It is hoped that if safely deployed, genetically modified bacteria should be able to provide significant benefits in the management of insect pests.

Several bacterial strains have been modified by introduction of foreign genes to control insects (by production of endotoxins) and also to control bacterial or fungal diseases (by production chitinases, which suppress fungal flora in the soil). Following approaches have been used for this purpose : (i) production of avirulent mutant of the pathogen and releasing it to compete with the virulent strains; (ii) production of antibiotic producing strains of plant associated bacteria to control pathogen through antibiotic production.

Some examples of these genetically engineered bacteria for the possible crop protection are listed on.

Scientists at Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) found a way to protect cotton plants from attack by insects, through altering the genetic constitution of a species of bacteria that Live on cotton plants. They inserted a set of insect resistance genes from bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) into another bacteria. Bacillus megaterranean, which colonises cotton plants. The genetic transformation of B. megaterranean, seems to protect cotton plants from being attacked by pests. Interesting feature of this work is that the cotton plants are not genetically engineered.

Some genetically engineered bacteria for crop protection

Bacterium	Altered trait	Possible use
1. Clavibacter xyli	Transfer of B. thuringiensis	Control of corn ear worm
2. Pseudomonas flurorescens	Transfer of Serratia narcescens Chitinase gene	Control of fungal disease
3. P. fluorescens	Addition of lac ZY	Assessment of movement of bacteria for biological control (‘take all disease’ of wheat)
4. A. radiobacter	Deletion of ‘tra’ gene of Agrocin 84 plasmid	Biological control of crown gall

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In preliminary laboratory based trials, the scientists at the MKU Centre for plant Molecular Biology (CPMB) studied the effect of this genetically engineered bacterium (other than B.t.) on a set of laboratory grown cotton plants and observed encouraging results. The precise mechanism by which this happens is not known. Researchers at MKU have also identified and cloned a full-length gene from Bt which is highly toxic to Heliothis armigera, a pest of cotton and groundnut.

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