The physiological effect of quercetin on phenoloxidase (PO) from Tenebrio molitor was determined in vitro and in vivo. The results showed that the inhibition concentration showing 50% of the maximum inhibition (IC₅₀) was 0.625 mmol/L. The PO activity of hemolymph in vivo was increased when the quercetin-DMSO solution or quercetin-water suspension (5 μL) with concentration of 0.2-1.0 mmol/L was injected into the larvae of T. molitor;but the compound would decrease the PO activity when the concentration of quercetin was above 2.0 mmol/L. In addition, the PO activity was also increased when DMSO (5 μL) was injected into the tested insect in vivo.During 2-4 hours after injection of quercetin into the body of the insect, the PO activity was decreased rapidly, then went slowly up and reached the highest level 8 h after injection of the compound, and then dropped again except the low concentration treatment. The results suggest that quercetin at low concentration can cause immune response to the tested insect. When 0.5% BSA was added to the assay system, it had no effect on the PO activity, but could prevent quercetin from sedimentating.

The gene sequence of Cecropin D mature peptide was obtained from the fat body of common cutworm, Spodoptera litura by RT-PCR. Amino acid sequence analysis showed that there was a two-amino-acid-residue difference between the mature peptides of Cecropin D and Cecropin B from S. litura. The target gene was cloned into a prokaryotic expression vector pGEX-4T-1, and a fusion protein was obtained from E. coli BL21 after IPTG induction; but no protein expression was detected without induction. The fusion protein could be detected 1 h after IPTG induction, and the amount of the fusion protein kept a relatively constant level from 1 h to 5 h. Growth curve showed that the growth of host bacteria with recombinant vector was restrained distinctly when IPTG was added into the culture medium. The results indicated that the purified fusion protein could restrain growth of bacteria.

The immunized hemolymph was produced from Musca domestica larvae by the induction of injury and bacteria infection. The antibacterial peptide was purified by means of boiled water bath, dialysis and concentration, Tricine-SDS-PAGE preparation, retrieval and renaturing of peptides. The result of amino acid analysis showed that the molecule weight of antibacterial peptide (MDL-2) was 11 kD. It contained abundant Pro, Gly and alkaline amino acids, which had activity against Gram-positive bacteria, S. aureus and Gram-negative bacteria, E. coli. Electrophrosis was proved an effective way to prepare antibacterial peptides. The circular dichroism spectra of antibacterial peptide MDL-2 in different solutions was analyzed. The antibacterial mechanism was primarily studied through observing permeability and morphological changes of bacterial cells. The results showed that MDL-2 caused a series of pathological changes to bacteria. Transmisson electron microscopy showed that MDL-2 was located in the plasma membrane. MDL-2 combined with bacterial cells by static electricity gravitation at the early stage, then resulted a flexible amphipathic spatial conformation, interacted with the plasma membrane, disturbed ordered arrangement of membrane lipid and changed permeability, thus irregular holes appeared on the plasma membrane and the cytoplasmic contents leaked out, so that metabolism system of bacteria was disturbed. Finally, bacteria were disintegrated into small fragments and died.

【Objective】 Obtaining the proteins related with silkworms resistance to Bombyx mori densonucleosis virus by comparing the 2-DE maps of proteins from midguts of the susceptible and resistant strains of silkworm. 【Methods】Two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) was used to study the protein changes of the midgut between the non-susceptible strain (Qiufeng) and the susceptible one (Huaba35) after they were inoculated for 48 hours. The changed proteins were identified by MALDI-TOF-TOF MS. The data were analyzed in NCBInr and MSDB. 【Results】 16 differential proteins were obtained, of which 5 proteins including glycosyltransferase, GlcAT-S, 21.5 kD small heat shock protein, vacuolar ATP synthase and arginine kinase were identified by mass spectrometry. The expression levels of the 5 proteins were higher in Qiufeng strain than in Huaba35. 【Conclusions】 Glycosyltransferase and GlcAT-S only appeared in the resistent strain, suggesting that they might be related to the resistance of silkworm to the virus. In addition, the increased stress reaction and energy metabolism may also contribute to the Qiufeng's resistance to BmDNV-3.

The optimum reaction condition of glutathion S-transferases (GSTs) in termites was studied using the biochemistry methods. Furthermore, the inhibition of GSTs from Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki) and Reticulitermes chinensis Snyder by seven inhibitors (quercetin, tannic acid, abamectin, fenpropathrin, acetamiprid, phoxim, beta-cypermethrin), were determined. The results indicated that the optimum pH value was 6.5, the optimum reaction time was 2 min, and the optimum temperature was 25℃ for GSTs in termites. The Michaelis constant (K_mCDNB and K_mGSH) of GSTs hydrolyzing CDNB and GSH were 0.11±0.02 mmol/L and 0.81±0.16 mmol/L in O. formosanus, respectively, not significantly different from that of GSTs in R. chinensis (0.12±0.03 mmol/L and 1.03±0.31 mmol/L). The maximum velocities (V_maxCDNB and V_maxGSH) hydrolyzing CDNB and GSH were 425.92±19.67 nmol/(min·mg) and 534.86±39.05 nmol/(min·mg) for O. formosanus， and 544.39±37.19 nmol/(min·mg) and 715.45±83.68 nmol/(min·mg) for R. chinensis, respectively. When the final concentration of plant allelochemicals and insecticides was 2×10^-5 mol/L, inhibition to GSTs from R. chinensis by quercetin and phoxim was stronger than to that from O. formosanus. The percentage of inhibition of GSTs activity from R. chinensis was 62.28% and 44.89％, and the percentage of inhibition of GSTs from O. formosanus was 54.96% and 28.36％ by the above plant allelochemicals and insecticides, respectively, when the concentration of inhibitors was 2×10^-5 mol/L. When the final concentration of plant allelochemicals and insecticides was 2×10^-5 mol/L, inhibition to GSTs from O. formosanus by beta-cypermethrin, fenpropathrin, acetamiprid and tannic acid was stronger than to that from R. chinensis. The percentage of inhibition of GSTs activity from O. formosanus was 39.43%, 72.07%, 52.24% and 82.19%, and the percentage of inhibition of GSTs from R. chinensis was 14.96%, 40.23%, 39.96% and 57.80％by the above plant allelochemicals and insecticides, respectively, when the concentration of inhibitors was 2×10^-5 mol/L. There was no difference in the percentage of inhibition of the activity of GSTs from O. formosanus and R. chinensis when the concentration of abamectin was 2×10^-5 mol/L. The results suggested that the difference in GST sensitivity to insecticides existed between the two termites. Furthermore, the inhibition of GST activity by plant allelochemicals and insecticide was increased with the increasing of insecticide concentration from 3.2×10^-8 to 2×10^-5 mol/L.

The survivals of Bemisia tabaci B-biotype and Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) were studied after exposure to high and low temperature to determine the effects of adverse temperature conditions on the population development of two whitefly species in China. The eggs, red-eyed nymphs and adults of two whitefly species were exposed to five temperatures, 37℃, 39℃, 41℃, 43℃ and 45℃, for 1-2 h in climatic incubators. The results indicated that the survivals of both whitefly species at the three tested developmental stages decreased with the increase of temperature, but the survials of T. vaporariorum decreased faster than that of B. tabaci B-biotype in the same condition. When the eggs, 2-3 instar nymphs and red-eyed nymphs of two whitefly species were exposed to 2℃ for 1-12 d, the survivals of four tested developmental stages of B. tabaci B-biotype were significantly affected by low temperature; the eggs, 2-3 instar nymphs and red-eyed nymphs all died after exposure to 2℃ for 12 d, and no adults could survive after exposure to 2℃ for 4 d. However, more than 45% eggs and red-eyed nymphs of T. vaporariorum could develop to the next stage after exposure to 2℃ for 12 d, and the survival rate reached 80.9% when the adults were exposed to 2℃ for 7 d. Thus, there were prominent differences between two tested whitefly species in their adaptation to adverse temperature. B. tabaci B-Biotype was more sensitive to low temperature and had higher tolerance to high temperature than T. vaporariorum. It is inferred that the difference of adaptability to adverse temperature may be one important mechanism that leads to interspecific differentiation in dynamics of the two whitefly species in China.

By applying a patented technique, the quantitative analysis of food intake using the fluorescence tracer as it is transferred in the food chain, we studied the food intake of Ummeliata insecticeps (Bosenberg et Strand) when exposed to pesticide buprofezin repeatedly. The results showed that food intakes of the surviving spiders in all treated groups were much less than that in the control group. Food intake of surviving U. insecticeps sprayed with buprofezin for the first time was less than that of the surviving spiders sprayed with the pesticide for the second or third time when buprofezin was diluted. It took a long time for the surviving spiders to recover when sprayed with the pesticide at high concentrations. Since the applying pesticides could bring high mortality to the spider, food intake of U. insecticeps population greatly decreased in 13 days after being sprayed with buprofezin. Though the surviving spiders in the treated groups ate even more than the control individuals on the 13th day, no pesticide was worth spraying because food intake of the population in the treated groups was less than that in the control group due to the high mortality of the population.

It is significant to know the nesting and foraging behavior of wild bee-pollinator, Megachile maritima, which is one of the important pollinators in Mu Us sandland, for protecting its habitat. 【Methods】The whole nesting process of M. maritime was observed by visual observation and photographing; visiting frequency and duration of each visit on nectar plants were counted using stopwatch in 2 m × 2 m plots, and daily activities of M. maritime were observed in 2 m× 2 m plots incessantly from 7: 30 to 18: 30 for 7 days. 【Results】 M. maritime excavated nest in sand, with one cell per nest. At first, female of the bee searched for the nesting site, excavated nest burrow, and then constructed and provisioned cell, and finally oviposited and closed the cell. About 9 hours were needed for nesting one cell; 26-29 pieces of leaves were needed for constructing one cell. The bee executed 11-12 pollen and nectar trips for each cell. A single egg was laid on the surface of the provision. The frequencies on Hedysarum laeve and Leonurus sibiricus were 13.23±6.49 flowers per minute and 16.72±4.84 flowers per minute, respectively; and the duration of each visit on the two plants were (3.08±2.48)s and (2.49±1.31)s, respectively. M. maritima bees were more active during 12:00-14:00 on sunny days. 【Conclusions】 Nesting behavior of different individuals of M. maritima was very similar. There was a significant difference in visiting process, visiting frequency and duration of each visit on the two nectar plants.

The genetic diversity of 11 Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) populations consisting of 224 individuals collected from 9 provinces of South China, Vietnam and Thailand was investigated using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers to study the genetic differentiation among populations. Total 48 alleles at nine loci were amplified, with average of 5.33 alleles each locus. A relatively high level of genetic diversity was revealed: P=94.45%, Nei's=0.4371, I=0.7870. A higher level of genetic differentiation was detected among populations with Nei's F-statistics, F_st=0.2370. The differentiation in certain degree may result from geographical isolation and barriers to gene flow. UPGMA cluster analysis indicated that the 9 populations from China clustered in two clades, the Southern China clade and the South-western China clade. Populations from Fujian, Taiwan, Guangdong and Hainan gathered into the Southern China clade, while populations from Sichuan, Yunnan, Gaungxi, Guizhou and Hunan formed the South-western China clade. It was so inferred that the evolutionary processes of the populations of the Oriental fruit fly in China are influenced by two factors, i.e, geographical divergence and gene flow by trade communication.

In order to clarify the unresolved phylogentic relationships of some lineages of the family Satyridae, the fragments of the mitochondrial COⅠ and Cytb genes of 21 Chinese species of the subfamily Elymninae and Satyrinae (Satyridae) were newly amplified and sequenced; meanwhile, the homologous sequences of two foreign species were obtained from the GenBank. Based on these data, the sequence variation and the phylogenetic relationship of these groups were analyzed. The results of the sequence analysis showed that the two combined genes is 1 056 bp in length by alignment, including 648 conserved, 408 variable and 316 parsimonious-informative sites; the average percentage of A+T is 70.8%, which is much higher than that of C+G (29.2%). Using two nymphalid species as the outgroups, their phylogenetic trees were reconstructed with neighbor-joining (NJ), maximum-parsimony (MP) and bayesian inference (BI) methods. The results indicated that the subfamilies Satyrinae, Elymninae and the tribe Lethini all are not monophyletic; the tribes Mycalesini and Lethini should be moved from the subfamily Elymninae to the subfamily Satyrinae; the tribes Satyrini, Melanargiini and Maniolini might have a closest common ancestor; and additionally, the tribes Palaeonymphini, Mycalesini and Ypthimini are also closely related to one another.

The present study lime light the identification of 28 tetrigid species from Malaysia. Six species viz. Phaesticus azemii sp. nov., Discotettix adenanii sp. nov, Discotettix selangori sp. nov., Scelimena hafizaii sp. nov, Scelimena razalii sp. nov., and Gavialidium phangensum sp. nov. are new to science which are described in detail. Eleven species are new records for Malaysia. In addition, key to the local genera and species has also been constructed.

Juvenile hormones (JHs) are a group of sesquterpenoids synthesized via the mevalonic acid pathway. This review summarized all enzymes involved in the JH synthesis pathway at the molecular level with the ubiquitous JH Ⅲ in insects as example. Furthermore, it introduced two key enzymes: 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase and juvenile hormone acid methyltransferase in detail. In addition, from the silkworm database (http://silkworm.genomics.org.cn), most genes encoding enzymes in the JH synthesis pathway were predicted. Finally, the regulatory mechanism of JH synthesis was discussed and its research direction predicted.

Hypopi are specialized forms of non-Psoroptidia astigmatid mites that may occur between protonymphal and tritonymphal stages. They are produced to resist the worsening habitat or adverse environmental conditions and to disperse by means of other animals. Their formation and molting are determined by genetic factors and influenced by one or more environmental factors such as temperature, relative humidity, nutrition and density, whose effects differ from species to species. The interaction of genetic and environmental factors plays a key role in the process. Many of these mites are closely related to our lives and have brought difficulties to manage and quarantine due to their highly scleritized cuticle and small size. In view of the importance of the special stage, herein we comprehensively review the research progress in the occurrence, dispersal, formation, molting and control of the hypopi.

Aggregation is an ecological strategy for some animals adapting various adversities. Pyrrhocoris apterus will aggregate significantly during overwintering by adult diapause. In order to make out whether the aggregation affects rates of energy metabolism, we have directly measured the respiration of P. apterus with five different aggregation degrees using the LI-COR LI-6400, and calculated the rates of respiration (Rr) and the rates of energy metabolism (Rm). The five different aggregation degrees were shown by five different group sizes of the firebugs (1, 5, 10, 20 and 50 individuals). The results indicated that there were significant differences in the values of Rm among the five different aggregation levels. The values of Rm and the aggregation degrees had a negative correlation relationship. The values of Rm were 0.052, 0.044, 0.041, 0.037 and 0.033 W/g, respectively. The results suggested that aggregation of the firebugs can lower the metabolic rates, which may be advantageous for their overwintering successfully.

The direct contact activities of the curcumin (CCM), demethoxycurcumin (DMC) and bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDMC), isolated from the rhizomes of Curcuma longa, against the adults, nymphs and eggs of Tetranychus cinnabarinus Boisduval and oviposition inhibition against female adult mites were examined under the laboratory condition by slide-dip and leaf-dip method, respectively. The results showed that evaluated with the medium lethal concentration (LC₅₀) values, the biological activities of both contact action and oviposition inhibition of three monomers against T. cinnabarinus were in the tendency of BDMC>DMC>CCM. BDMC showed the highest contact toxicity against adult T. cinnabarinus among the three components, whose LC₅₀ values at 24 h and 48 h were 1.18 mg/mL and 0.51 mg/mL, respectively. The general tendency of contact action against T. cinnabarinus nymph was same as against the adult, and the most toxic component to the nymph was BDMC, whose LC₅₀ at 48 h was 2.48 mg/mL. The contact toxicity of curcuminoids against T. cinnabarinus egg also exhibited the tendency of BDMC>DMC>CCM. All the three components showed certain oviposition inhibition activity against T. cinnabarinus female adults. Through the primary structure-activity relationship analysis of curcuminoids, the attribution of methyloxy to acaricidal activities was determined, which could provide valuable information for developing potential new phytophagous acaricide or lead compound.

The selectivity of Tetranychus urticae Koch and Tetranychus viennensis Zacher to the Buck's horn (Rhus typhina L.) and effects of R. typhina on the survival and fecundity of spider mites confined in the Buck's horn leaves were bioassayed in the laboratory. The results indicated that the selecting rates of T. urticae and T. viennensis for Rhus typhina L. were 9.5%, 6.5%, 5%, 5% and 2%, 5%, 1%, 0 at 2 h, 6 h, 10 h, 12 h, respectively. The survival of T. uiennensis confined on R. typhina leaves was fully inhibited after 144 h, and the fecundity was going down with increase of the survival time, and terminated at 96 h. The survival rate of T. urticae confined on R. typhina leaves was 0 after 240 h, and no oviposition was observed during the whole observation period from 24 h to 216 h. It was so concluded that R. typhina has the high antifeedant activity against spider mites and may distinctly inhibit the survival and fecundity of spider mites, but the inhibition is inter-specifically different for spider mites.