Feasibility Of A Novel Feeding Disruption Test (FDT) Bioassay Kit For Rapid Resistance Detection Of Sucking Pests Of Cotton

Resistance bioassays currently used for plant bugs (Miridae) include direct topical application (Cleveland and Furr, 1979) and vial tests (Snodgrass, 1996).  Resistance bioassays currently used for stink bugs (Pentatomidae) include topical tests (Greene et al., 2001) and vial tests (e.g. Snodgrass et al., 2005) as well.  The topical test is used to measure the activity of insecticide solutions applied to the insect cuticle.  The vial test as adapted from the lepidopteran adult vial test of Plapp et al. (1987) likewise is used to measure the contact activity of insecticides coating the inside of a glass vial.  These assays are limited to insecticides that are active only by contact and yield a mortality end point alone.  For plant bugs, the assays require the addition of sectioned green beans to the vials.  A nectar feeding assay was recently developed for plant bugs where the insecticide was delivered by ingestion (Snodgrass, 2007).  In the current study, we have modified our feeding disruption assay technology for lepidopteran pests using hydrateable artificial-diet meal pads (Roe et al., 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005) to resistance monitoring for plant and sink bugs.  Proof of concept will be presented.