Rural Industries
Research & Development Corporation


Research Compendium 1995

Research Project

  1. APPLICATION OF SPIDER VENOM TOXINS AND THEIR ANALOGUES AS NEW SPECIFIC INSECTICIDES

Objective

Background

Conventional chemical insecticides may have a number of environmental and biological attributes which are undesirable. One of these is loss of effectiveness due to the development of resistance by the target insect, a problem widely recognised, for example, in maintaining effective control of the cotton pest Helicoverpa armigera.

One way of overcoming the problem is to use a biocontrol agent such as an entomopathogenic virus. However, they are slow acting and further damage occurs to the crop after they have been applied but before the insect is eventually killed. This can be overcome by engineering into the virus a gene expressing a toxin. This approach has been taken by a number of research groups using particular combinations of virus and gene inserts.

Research

In this project, a baculovirus was engineered to include a gene expressing a spider toxin (obtained from the Funnelweb spider). The spider gene expressing the toxin was characterised, synthesised and engineered into a Helicoverpa specific form of baculovirus. The engineered virus was synthesised, and the gene encoding for toxin production was confirmed.

Difficulties beyond the control of the researchers concerned have prevented them from carrying out the last phase of this project - confirmation of the engineered virus' effectiveness in field tests.

Outcomes

An engineered baculovirus expressing the gene for spider venom toxin has been produced. However, final confirmation of its efficacy against Helicoverpa armigera has not been established in the field (caused in part by the refusal of GMAC - Genetic Manipulation Advisory Committee - to authorise field tests).

Implications

Before this engineered virus can be commercialised as a new insecticide, further research is required. A commercial partner has been found (Zeneca - formerly ICI Agrochemicals) which is willing to licence the technology available, but it is unlikely to be developed because superior technologies are already available elsewhere.

RIRDC Project No: UD-1A

RESEARCHERS: Prof M. Howden Dr D.E. Tribe

ORGANISATION: Deakin University Department of Microbiology

Geelong VIC 3217 University of Melbourne

PHONE: 052 27 1111

FAX: 052 27 2156


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Last updated: 22 November 1996
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