Planned intervention: On Thursday March 28th 07:00 UTC Zenodo will be unavailable for up to 5 minutes to perform a database upgrade.
Published December 12, 2016 | Version v1
Journal article Open

Baseline susceptibility of different European lepidopteran and coleopteran pests to Bt proteins expressed in Bt maize: a systematic review

  • 1. Department Genetic Engineering, Unit Coexistence and GMO-Monitoring, Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL), Mauerstr. 39-42, 10117, Berlin, Germany

Description

Background: Lepidopteran and coleopteran species are the most important pests in maize. They can be controlled using genetically modified (GM) crops expressing insecticidal Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) proteins. The long-term success of this technology demands a pest resistance management. Important information for the successful management of resistance is the baseline susceptibility of the different target pests to the different Bt proteins. The data on baseline susceptibility should enable risk assessors and managers to assess whether a GM maize produces a Bt protein in a high-dose to specific target organisms and resistance has evolved during the commercial cultivation of this GM maize events.

Methods: Our systematic search followed an a priori protocol including the database platforms Web of Science, Scopus, CAB abstracts, Science Direct and JSTOR. We additionally conducted a Google scholar search. We collated all search results and screened all retrieved articles using predetermined inclusion criteria. We identified 30 studies, which fulfilled the criteria of including a relevant Bt protein, a relevant species, an appropriate endpoint, and field-derived pest generations reared in the laboratory no longer than three generations. We then made a quality assessment to discover if the studies considered the dose response curves with confidence intervals, described the protein source, tested the protein concentration and the protein activity via positive controls, use more than ten larvae per concentration, more than two replications, and more than five protein concentrations. Since no quantitative synthesis was possible the synthesis of the results was done in a narrative form.

Results: Seventy percent of the studies fulfilled five or more criteria and 17% fulfilled four of the seven criteria. Six Bt proteins were tested on one or more of the four species Ostrinia nubilalis, Helicoverpa armigera, Sesamia nonagrioides, and Diabrotica virgifera virgifera. We extracted the baseline susceptibility for the given protein-species-combinations and the test method with the Bt protein applied either on the surface of the diet or incorporated. Although, the data displays a high heterogeneity and are thus hard to compare, they give an overview of the baseline susceptibility of lepidopteran/coleopteran pests to Bt proteins.

Conclusion: Our systematic review illustrates the heterogeneity of the data and indicates the necessity of standard protocols for testing susceptibility of insect pests, which provide comparable data. The cultivation of Bt crops, as with any other plant protection measure, is likely to result in resistance evolution in the target pests. Industry, policy makers, and research should combine knowledge to protect the benefits of this technology.

Files

13750_2016_Article_77.pdf

Files (18.4 MB)

Name Size Download all
md5:28783c656062c2dfeeb7c09b7b73bc22
12.2 kB Download
md5:6659fcae0ace16f55c3f1fa5e50cfbc1
7.7 MB Download
md5:ccb6ba671d4f708e8c987e760ec695ef
6.8 MB Download
md5:bcf6a5b369b30397a4ab544aff2362ce
1.3 MB Download
md5:ad3cbdbb1c9f9683364c3b001ff72b17
183.0 kB Download
md5:3e9188d5491793cf869ec1eb98802e77
36.1 kB Download
md5:e8e5365e9e83c4df83b87dee7f6fd567
270.0 kB Download
md5:44bf067c27689e477f8c29bafaff0354
2.1 MB Preview Download
md5:a970e8470f6e829c2eab39d18872229d
16.6 kB Download

Additional details

Funding

GRACE – GMO Risk Assessment and Communication of Evidence 311957
European Commission