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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Invasive Insect Biocontrol & Behavior Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #356410
Research Project: Urban Small Farms and Gardens Pest Management

Location: Invasive Insect Biocontrol & Behavior Laboratory

Title: The complete genome sequence of an alphabaculovirus from the southern armyworm, Spodoptera eridania

Author
item Harrison, Robert - Bob
item Rowley, Daniel

Submitted to: Microbiology Resource Announcements
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/14/2018
Publication Date: 1/17/2019
Citation: Harrison, R.L., Rowley, D.L. 2019. The complete genome sequence of an alphabaculovirus from the southern armyworm, Spodoptera eridania. Microbiology Resource Announcements. 8:e01277-18.

Interpretive Summary: The southern armyworm is a pest of important vegetable, fruit, field and ornamental crops in the southeastern USA. Chemical insecticides used to kill this pest come with negative consequences, and are not an option for organic agriculture. Naturally occurring insect viruses have been used in the past to kill insect pests like the southern armyworm without the problems of chemical insecticides. In this study, the molecular sequence of a previously undescribed virus from the southern armyworm was determined. The features of the sequence were characterized and described. This information will be of interest to those in academia, government, and industry who are trying to develop environmentally-friendly forms of insect control.

Technical Abstract: We report the complete genome sequence of a baculovirus from the moth Spodoptera eridania, the southern armyworm. The genome sequence is 149,090 bp, and exhibits the greatest degree of sequence similarity with genomes from alphabaculoviruses isolated from other moths of the genus Spodoptera.