Advances in control technologies for wood-boring invasive insects

钻木虫已经成为对加拿大森林健康最具威胁的生物制剂。以翡翠白蜡虫(EAB)、亚洲长角甲虫(ALB)、褐云杉长角甲虫(BSLB)和山松甲虫(MPB)等物种为例，这些昆虫对害虫管理行业构成了巨大的挑战。未成熟阶段隐秘的生活方式，在树皮下度过，使表面施药无效。成虫阶段也同样不适合控制，因为它们有散布能力或缺乏摄食。在实践中，只有在高价值树上通过树干注射输送杀虫剂配方，才有可能控制其中一些物种(例如EAB)。然后，这种杀虫剂系统地分布在树内，杀死摄取它们的昆虫幼虫。目前的项目旨在评估一种名为双链RNA(DsRNA)的新型活性成分对钻木害虫的商业潜力。DsRNA分子通过以序列特异性的方式减少基因表达来发挥作用。用模型昆虫(果蝇)或攻击农作物的昆虫进行的实验室测试表明，dsRNA具有高度的物种特异性活性。换言之，在环境安全至上的林业中使用杀虫剂，这将使dsRNA分子相对于其他不太特异的化合物具有优势。我们将与BioForest Technologies Inc.合作测试几个参数，以评估dsRNA分子对木材钻孔虫的效果，包括dsRNA序列、剂量、配方、树木易位以及与现有递送系统的兼容性。这项研究将为BioForest Technologies Inc.提供对dsRNAs作为新一代环境安全、特定物种杀虫剂的潜力的评估，这种杀虫剂可能有助于保护加拿大的森林和公园树木免受一些最具破坏性的害虫的伤害。

Wood-boring insects have gained pre-eminence as the most threatening biotic agents to the health of Canadian forests. Exemplified by species such as the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), the Asian long horned beetle (ALB), the Brown Spruce long horned beetle (BSLB) and the Mountain Pine Beetle (MPB), these insects pose a formidable challenge for the pest management industry. The cryptic lifestyle of immature stages, spent under the bark, makes surface application of pesticides ineffective. Adult stages are likewise unsuitable for control due to their dispersal ability or lack of feeding. In practice, the control of some of these species (e.g. EAB) is possible only in high value trees by the delivery of insecticide formulations via trunk injection. Such insecticides then systemically distribute within the tree and kill insect larvae that ingest them. The current project seeks to evaluate the commercial potential of a novel class of active ingredient, known as double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) against wood-boring insects. DsRNA molecules act by reducing gene expression in a sequence-specific manner. Lab tests using model insects (Drosophila) or insects attacking crops have demonstrated the highly species-specific activity of dsRNA. Translated to the context of insecticide use in forestry, where environmental safety is paramount, this would place dsRNA molecules at an advantage versus other compounds that are less specific. In partnership with BioForest Technologies Inc. we will test several parameters to evaluate the efficacy of dsRNA molecules against wood borers, including dsRNA sequence, dose, formulation, tree translocation and compatibility with existing delivery systems. This research will provide BioForest Technologies Inc. with an assessment of the potential of dsRNAs to serve as a new generation of environmentally-safe, species-specific insecticides, which could help protect Canadian forest and parkland trees from some of our most damaging pest insects.