High-Throughput Feeding Bioassay for Lepidoptera Larvae.

ABSTRACT: Finding plant cultivars that are resistant or tolerant against lepidopteran pests, takes time, effort and is costly. We present here a high throughput leaf-disk consumption assay system, to screen plants for resistance or chemicals for their deterrence. A webcam capturing images at regular intervals can follow the feeding activities of 150 larvae placed into individual cages. We developed a computer program running under an open source image analysis program to analyze and measure the surface of each leaf disk over time. We further developed new statistical procedures to analyze the time course of the feeding activities of the larvae and to compare them between treatments. As a test case, we compared how European corn borer larvae respond to a commercial antifeedant containing azadirachtin

SUBMITTER: Sanane I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8346434 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature