Evaluación de la eficacia reproductiva y patogénica de dos medios artificiales para el cultivo de nematodos entomopatógenos del género heterorhabditis spp

Abstract

The present study is in regards of the evaluation of two different culture mediums and its production and yield of entomopathogenic nematodes, with the aim for its utilization as biological control, meaning the substitution of chemical pesticides which suppose a dangerous environmental and human health impact. This study was performed with a culture of nematodes from the Heterorhabditis gender, specially taking into account the efficiency of the reproduction and recovery of nematodes in its juvenile phase. Two artificial culture mediums, solid and liquid, were assessed creating a monoxenic culture (the nematodes are just related with its symbiont bacteria), in order to compare the amount of EPNs produced by volume unit and it pathogenicity, which means the velocity the EPNs perform its metabolic process with the support from the symbiont bacteria inside the host’s body, therefore, the speed of the invasion of the host organisms that may affect crops is determined.

The assessed solid culture medium generated reproduction of EPNs according to previous studies, however, it was not possible to make the comparison between the efficiency and yields of both culture mediums, due to the fact that the liquid culture did not register an offspring and a raise in the number of individuals. As a matter of fact, an analysis of the factors that affected the successful yield and recovery of nematodes was performed in order to future to generate the maximum yield and offspring of the nematodes in different liquid culture medium in future studies, such parameters were the oxygen production and demand, temperature, contamination by external agents and the mobility of the nematodes inside the culture media.