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Title: Culturing Medium Affects Volatiles Produced by Bacteria and Subsequent Attractiveness of Cultures to the Mexican Fruit Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Author
item Robacker, David
item LAUZON, CAROL - CALIFORNIA STATE UNIV.
item Patt, Joseph - Joe
item MARGARA, FRANCESCO - UNIV. FLORENCE, ITALY
item SACCHETTI, PATRIZIA - UNIV. FLORENCE, ITALY

Submitted to: Journal of Applied Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/6/2008
Publication Date: 12/30/2008
Citation: Robacker, D.C., Lauzon, C.R., Patt, J.M., Margara, F., Sacchetti, P. 2008. Culturing Medium Affects Volatiles Produced by Bacteria and Subsequent Attractiveness of Cultures to the Mexican Fruit Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae). Journal of Applied Entomology. 133:155-163. 2009.

Interpretive Summary: The Mexican fruit fly is an important pest affecting citrus production in the United States and various countries around the world where agricultural agencies expend substantial resources detecting possible outbreaks of this insect before its populations expand into multimillion dollar eradication problems. Traps baited with lures to attract the flies are the principal tools used to monitor for this fly. In recent times, synthetic lures have been developed from chemicals identified from bacteria associated with fruit flies, but these lures need improvement by addition of novel attractive chemicals. Therefore, considerable effort has been made to learn how to maximize production of attractive chemicals by the bacteria. The purpose of our research was to determine the effects of the nutrient mixture used for bacterial culturing on production of chemicals by the bacteria. We learned that the biochemical makeup of the culturing medium influences not only quantity of chemicals produced, but also which chemicals are produced. This information can be used to induce bacteria to emit more attractive chemicals that can be incorporated into new or existing lures. Improvement of lures will lead to earlier detection of fruit flies and to quicker and less expensive actions to control fruit fly infestations.

Technical Abstract: Effects of culturing medium on production and emission of volatiles by Pantoea agglomerans (Beijerinck 1888) Gavini et al. 1989 preparations and on attractiveness of the preparations to the Mexican fruit fly, Anastrepha ludens Loew, were investigated. Bacterial cultures in each of four biochemically different types of liquid media emitted different volatiles. Cultures in a medium containing uric acid as its primary nitrogen source emitted more ammonia and 2-nonanone than the other media. We postulate that the high production of ammonia was due to uricase activity by this uricase (+) strain. Regardless of media type, supernatants emitted more volatiles than preparations containing cells that had been removed from whole cultures and put into distilled water. Attractiveness varied little with biochemical makeup of the culturing medium, although the uric acid and carbohydrate preparations were as a group, more attractive than preparations made from the other two media. Supernatants and whole cultures generally were more attractive than cell preparations and uninoculated media. Bacteria grown in aqueous uric acid-based media emitted volatiles similar, but not identical, to those emitted by bacteria grown on gel uric acid-based media in petri plates.