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Chemical Aspects of Chilo partellus Feeding on Certain Sorghum Cultivars

  • Host Plant Resistance
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Abstract

The feeding behaviour of third-instar larvae of Chilo partellus appear to be mediated by a complex profile of chemicals present in the whorls of sorghum. These chemicals were extracted sequentially into hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol. Methanolic extracts showed greater feeding stimulation than ethyl acetate extracts and these in turn showed greater feeding stimulation than hexane extracts. Extracts derived from a more susceptible cultivar IS 18363 showed greater feeding stimulation than extracts from a less susceptible cultivar IS 2205.

Phagostimulatory compounds present in ethyl acetate and methanolic extracts include phenolics and sugars, respectively. Combinations of these sets of phagostimulants synergize to give enhanced feeding activity of third-instar larvae. Chromatographic examination of extracts of IS 18363 and IS 2205 showed quantitative rather than qualitative differences: the more susceptible cultivar IS 18363 had higher phenolic and sugar contents than the less susceptible cultivar IS 2205. These results suggest that Chromatographic quantification of the different sets of phagostimulants might constitute a basis for resistance screening of different cultivars of sorghum.

Résumé

Le comportement alimentaire de la troisième instar de larvae de Chilo partellus parait etre medier par un complexe profil de produits chimiques presents dans les verticilles de sorgho. Ces produits etaients extraits d’abord en hexane, puis en acetate ethylique et finalement en methanol.

Les larves ont prefere les extraits methanolique a ceux des acetate ethylique et les derniers étaient preferes a ceux d’hexane. Les extraits derives d’un cultivar plus susceptible IS 18363 etaient preferes au cultivar IS 2205. Les composes phagostimulants presents en acetate ethylique contiennent des phenoliques et des sucres. Les deux combines sont les plus preferes par les larves. Une examination chromatographique des extraits IS 18363 et IS 2205 ont montre une difference quantitative plus que qualitative: le cultivar IS 18363 qui etait le plus susceptible contenait une plus grande quantite de la phenolique et du sucre que le moins susceptible cultivar IS 2205. Ces resultats montrent que la quantification chromatographique des differents groupes de phagostimulants peuvent constituer une base pour l’examen de la resistance des different cultivar de sorgho.

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Torto, B., Hassanali, A. & Saxena, K.N. Chemical Aspects of Chilo partellus Feeding on Certain Sorghum Cultivars. Int J Trop Insect Sci 11, 649–655 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400021214

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400021214

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