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Molecular characterization of lepidopteran-specific toxin genes in Bacillus thuringiensis strains from Thailand

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Abstract

A total of 511 local isolates of Bacillus thuringiensis from different geographical regions of Thailand were analyzed for the presence of the cry1A, cry1B, cry2A, cry9, and vip3A genes encoding for lepidopteran-specific toxins. PCR results revealed that 94.32% (482/511) of B. thuringiensis isolates harbored at least one of the detected genes, of which the cry1A, cry1B, cry2A, cry9, and vip3A genes were detected at frequencies of 90.61%, 89.63%, 76.32%, 40.70%, and 48.18%, respectively. Nineteen gene-combination profiles were discovered among 482 B. thuringiensis isolates, of which the most frequently detected profile contained the cry1A, cry1B, cry2A, and vip3A genes. Sixty-one isolates (12.66%), which harbored all of the detected insecticidal toxin genes, were further detected for the exochitinase (chi36) gene and chitinase activity. The results revealed that all 61 isolates contained the chi36 gene and exhibited chitinase activity. Insect bioassays showed that five isolates were highly toxic (more than 80% mortality) against second instar larvae of Spodoptera litura, of which the highest insect mortality (93%) was obtained from the B. thuringiensis isolates 225-15 and 417-1. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the crystal morphologies of the five effective isolates were bipyramidal and cuboidal shapes. SDS-PAGE analysis of the spore–crystal mixture showed major bands of approximately 65 and 130 kDa. These five effective strains are alternative candidates for use as a microbial insecticide for the control of the S. litura pest.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the Kasetsart University Research and Development Institute (KURDI) and partially supported by the Research Promotion and Technology Transfer Center (RPTTC), and the Department of Microbiology (Grant year 2018) Faculty of Liberal Arts and Science, Kasetsart University, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand.

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Correspondence to Anon Thammasittirong.

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Fig. S1. Chitinase activity assay on colloidal chitin agar a): S. marcescens, b): B. thuringiensis serovar kurstaki, c): B. thuringiensis 314-2, d): B. thuringiensis 225-15, e): B. thuringiensis 349-4, f): B. thuringiensis 417-1, g): B. thuringiensis 831-2, h): B. thuringiensis 834-1. Table S1. Chitinase activity assay of B. thuringiensis isolates (DOCX 1977 KB)

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Boonmee, K., Thammasittirong, S.NR. & Thammasittirong, A. Molecular characterization of lepidopteran-specific toxin genes in Bacillus thuringiensis strains from Thailand. 3 Biotech 9, 117 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13205-019-1646-3

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