• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.19-28
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• 2017

Polydnaviruses (PDVs) are a group of double-stranded DNA viruses symbiotic to some endoparasitoid wasps. Cotesia plutellae bracovirus (CpBV) is a PDV symbiotic to an endoparasitoid wasp, C. plutellae, parasitizing young larvae of Plutella xylostella. An early expressed gene, CpBV-ELP1, plays an important role in the parasitism by suppressing host cellular immunity by its cytotoxic activity against hemocytes. This study aimed to test its oral toxicity against insect pest by expressing it in a recombinant tobacco plant. A recombinant CpBV-ELP1 protein was produced using a baculovirus expression system and secreted to cell culture medium. The cell cultured media were used to purify CpBV-ELP1 by a sequential array of purification steps: ammonium sulfate fractionation, size exclusion chromatography, and ion exchange chromatography. Purified rCpBV-ELP1 exhibited a significant cytotoxicity against Spodoptera exigua hemocytes. CpBV-ELP1 was highly toxic to the fifth instar larvae of S. exigua by injection to hemocoel. It also showed a significant oral toxicity to fifth instar larvae of S. exigua by a leaf-dipping assay. CpBV-ELP1 was cloned into pBI121 vector under CaMV 35S promoter with opaline synthase terminator. Resulting recombinant vector (pBI121-ELP1) was used to transform Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA4404. The recombinant bacteria were then used to induce callus of a tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum Xanthi) leaves and subsequent generation (T1) plants were selected. T1 generation tobacco plants expressing CpBV-ELP1 gave significant insecticidal activities against S. exigua larvae. These results suggest that CpBV-ELP1 gene can be used to control insect pests by constructing transgenic crops.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.58 no.4
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• pp.355-362
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• 2019

Cotesia glomerata L., an internal parasitoid wasp, attacks the larvae of both the cabbage white butterfly (Artogeia rapae L.) and the diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella L.). It can be utilized as a natural biological enemy to control these two insect pests in the summer cabbage fields of the Korean highland areas. The developmental response and sex ratio of C. glomerata to various temperatures and its longevity were examined in the laboratory. The egg-to-larva and pupa stages of C. glomerata were 12.1 ± 2.1 and 6.4 ± 1.8 days, respectively, at 20℃, The developmental threshold for egg-to-larva and pupa stages were 7.7 and 8.5℃, respectively. The sex ratios of C. glomerata when reared under various temperatures were 61.0 ± 4.5% at 15℃, 44.2 ± 1.0% at 20℃, and 39.0 ± 2.3% at 25℃, and the incidence of females increased as the temperature decreased. The longevity of C. glomerata when fed a 10% sugar solution was 20.4 ± 0.2 days, while in adults without any feed, the longevity was 3.6 ± 0.1 days. Indoor reared C. glomerata adults were released into cabbage fields from 2007 to 2018, in early August of each year, and the outdoor parasitism rates were surveyed. The parasitism rates were found to increase gradually as the year passed (Y = 0.2696X + 2.8633, R² = 0.3994). The highest parasitism rate was observed in 2013 at 7.6%, and the lowest was in 2018 at 6.5 %. These results could be used as basic information for biological control of kimchi cabbage pests at highland fields.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.77 no.4
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• pp.382-388
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• 1988

Improvement of productivity by forest tree breeding work in Korea was estimated for a few important tree species. Progenies of 17 plus trees of red pine (Pines densiflora) outgrew by 57 percentage compared with progenies of unselected trees at age 15. If best three families are selected among the 17, more than double in volume grow-th is expected. The hybrid Pinus rigida ${\times}$ P. taeda showed more than double volume growth compare to P. rigida at a southern plantation at age 15. However, the superiority of the hybrid decreased at northern plantations, mainly because of low coldhardiness of the hybrid. At a northern plantation, the hybrid grew less than the P. rigida on upper hill, while the hybrid grew much better than the P. rigida on flat area. Another hybrid Populus alba ${\times}$ P. glandulosa grew faster than both parents by two to two and half times according to planting sites at age 10. Introduction of Pinus rigida also showed increased volume growth. Volume increase by selection of best five provenances among 45 at age 12 was estimated as 53 percent compare to progenies of plus trees in Korea, Additional 19 percent of volume increase was expected by selection of the best families within the best provenances. Annual production of chestnuts reached about 70,000 M/T by planting resistant clones to chestnut gall wasp (Dryocosmus kuriphilus), which killed almost all susceptible trees. Although polyploid trees and mutants have been produced by colchicine treatments in over 10 tree species, none of them is economically important Remarkable improvement of productivity is expected by biotechnology in future through selection, hybridization, introduction of foreign genes at cell, cell organelle and gene level, and gene transformation. At present, mass propagation of superior planting materials by tissue culture will increase the productivity.