Energy Metabolism Pattern in Cotton Aphid,Aphis gossypii Glover （Hem.： Aphididae） Exposure to Neonicotinoids

This study was mainly made on the role of energy revisers in cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover （Hemiptera： Aphididae） countered with imidacloprid and thiametoxam. We measured used energy, available energy and the content of total energy in three strains of cotton aphid which were from very resistant to neonicotinoid, sup to semi-sensitive and sensitive speccies, respectively. It was observed changes in energy resources rate in all of the aphid strains at which each substrate was metabolized under stress. Our findings indicated among energy sources, total lipid in susceptible strain was increased in counter of spraying and it was decreased in resistance and semi sensitive strains. Whereas, total protein was decreased in all of the strains encountering with neonicotiniod stress. Total glycogen was increased significantly in different aphid strains and sugar was decreased in countered of spraying.     

Including predator presence in a refined model for assessing resistance of alfalfa cultivar to aphids

The aphid quantity ratio(AQR) is defined as the number of aphids on each cultivar divided by the number of aphids on all cultivars. AQR is based on the correlation between aphid populations and their host plants and is an important tool that has been utilized in evaluating Medicago sativa(alfalfa) cultivar resistance to aphids. However, assessment of alfalfa resistance to aphids can be confused by the presence of aphid predators, causing the assessment of plant resistance to aphids to be based on incorrect aphid population data. To refine the AQR and account for the effect of predators on aphid population assessments, we introduced a parameter ‘α', corresponding to the predator quantity ratio, and used αAQR as the ratio to quantify aphid populations. Populations of both aphids(4 species) and their predators(12 species) occurring in 28 M. sativa cultivars were sampled over two years at a research station near Cangzhou, Hebei Province, China. Results showed that the most suitable evaluation period was from May to June, as the aphid population was stable during this period. Compared with the AQR method, the predator population numbers based on the αAQR had a significant inverse relationship with aphid population numbers and the 28 cultivars were clustered into three classes: the resistant class, tolerant class, and susceptible class. In addition, 17 cultivars were reassigned when evaluated using αAQR. All numerical values calculated by αAQR were displayed as a Gaussian distribution, which showed that the 28 cultivars could be clustered into nine groups using a median value(±SE) of 1±0.1. Hence, ongoing alfalfa breeding trials will be assessed using the αAQR to establish a robust system that includes agronomic performance parameters in order to generalize the new method for further studies.     

Toxicity of selected insecticides against nymph of whitefly （Bemisia tabaci Gennadius）

Bemisia tabaci is one of serious insect pests attacking vegetables and has been difficult to control using conventional insecticides. In the past 10 years, new insecticides have been introduced that provide a diversity of novel modes of action and routes of activity to effectively control whitefly. Consequently, intensive used of insecticides in vegetable cultivation has resulted in reduced susceptibility and develops resistance in agriculture industry. In controlling B. tabaci population, insecticides are the common method used by farmers. This study aimed to determine the most effective insecticide against B tabaci by using LC5o value. This study was conducted at the Crop Protection Laboratory, Faculty of Applied Science, Universiti Teknologi MARA Malaysia with the controlled room temperature of 24.33 ± 0.14℃ with dark and light ratio of 1：1 （12 hours： 12 hours） is an ideal condition for rearing the insect. The hypothesis of the study is to test if insecticides can control the nymph of whitefly. A total of 50 two-day-old nymphs were treated with insecticides using leaf-dip bioassay procedure. This experiment was replicated three times. The survival rates of the nymphs were analyzed using analysis of variance （ANOVA）. Data on toxicity was analyzed by a special Probit Programme-Single Line Analysis based on Finney （1971）. There was a significant difference （df = 8, F = 85.84, P = 0.000） in survival rate of nymph ofB. tabaci to eight insecticides tested. Among the insecticides tested, dimethoate, chlorpyrifos ＋ cypermethrin and diafenthiuron showed significantly higher survival rate of nymph compared to other treatments. When LC50 values were compared for diafenthiuron which is less potent （LCs0 ---- 2.44）, abamectin was found to be 3.44 times more potent than diafenthiuron, followed by esfenvalerate,acetamiprid, profenofos, chlorpyrifos ＋ cypermethrin and dimethoate, and the least potent was deltamethrin. The toxicity of eight insecticides tested against nymphs was in the following     

Effect of heat shock on the susceptibility of Frankliniella occidentalis(Thysanoptera:Thripidae) to insecticides

Currently, insecticides are considered as the primary approach for controlling western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis(Pergande)(Thysanoptera: Thripidae). However, the heavy use of insecticides resulted in high insect resistance and serious environmental pollution. Given its characteristics of ease of operation and environmental friendliness, insect control using high temperature is receiving considerable renewed research interest. However, although the combination of insecticides and high temperature to control F. occidentalis has been studied before, few studies have focused on the short-term effect of such treatment. In a laboratory study, F. occidentalis adults and second-instar nymphs were exposed to 45°C for 2 h. Then, their susceptibility to acetamiprid, spinosad, methomyl, and beta-cypermethrin was tested after different periods of recovery time(2–36 h). Additionally, the specific activity of three detoxification enzymes(esterase, glutathione S-transferase, and cytochrome p450(CYP) monooxygenase) of the treated insects was determined. The results indicated that the fluctuation of susceptibility to insecticides and detoxification enzyme activity during F. occidentalis recovery from heat shock are related. Furthermore, several recovery time points(2, 30, and 36 h) of significant susceptibility to four tested insecticides compared with the control were found during the treatment of adults that were heat-shocked. Recovery time points of higher susceptibility compared with the control depended on different insecticides during the second-instar nymph recovery from heat shock. Interestingly, the fluctuation of CYP monooxygenase activity exhibited a trend that was similar to the fluctuation of susceptibility to insecticides(especially spinosad) during the recovery from heat shock of adults. In addition, the glutathione S-transferase and CYP monooxygenase activity trend was similar to the trend of susceptibility to spinosad during the recovery from heat shock of second-instar nymphs. Our results provide a new approach for controlling F. occidentalis using the combined heat shock and insecticide. This effectively enhances the control efficiency of heat shock and significantly reduces the application of insecticides.     

Comparison of Acetylcholinesterase Characteristics Between Resistant and Susceptible Strains of Helicoverpa armigera （Hubner）

The sensitivity of a susceptible and two resistant strains of cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera, to phoxim, malathion and methomyl was determined by a topical application of bioassay method. YG strain, collected from field of Yanggu, Shandong Province of China, possessed 7-, 13- and 20-fold of resistance to the above three antiacetylcholinesterases based on the comparison of LD50 values with a laboratory susceptible strain. There were not significant difference of the specific activity and the Vmax value among the three strains. But the affinity of AChE tO acetylthiocholine （ATCh）, in YG strain was the lowest among the three strains tested. A cDNA encoding partial AChE gene was cloned from the three strains by RT-PCR and there was one nucleotide acid difference between YG strain and other two strains which resulted in no amino acid mutation. This partial AChE gene was used as a probe to perform Southern blot. The results indicated that there was no gene amplification in resistant cotton bollworm. Altered AChE with a decreased sensitivity to inhibitors appeared to be one of important resistance mechanisms in cotton bollworm against OP and carbamate compounds.     

Genetic and Association Mapping Study of English Grain Aphid Resistance and Tolerance in Bread Wheat Germplasm

English grain aphid （EGA） is a destructive insect pest of wheat. To identify the loci associated with EGA resistance and tolerance, 70 bread wheat accessions mainly from central Asia were evaluated for EGA resistance and tolerance traits at two locations, and genotyped with 51 SSR markers. Totally, three accessions showed high or moderate levels resistance and 17 genotypes displayed highly or moderately tolerate to EGA. Genetic diversity of these lines was investigated also. After 97 SSR loci which evenly covered all wheat chromosomes were scanned for association, four SSR loci were significantly associated with EGA resistance and four with EGA tolerance. After association analysis was conducted with dynamic aphid densities, we found four loci Xgwm192b, Xgwm391, Xbarc98, and Xgwm613b were detected continuously at different growing stages of wheat. In addition, the loci of EGA resistance/tolerance and Russian wheat aphid resistance were compared. The results generated in this study would be helpful for utilization of the EGA resistance/tolerance germplasm, and for development of mapping populations in EGA resistance breeding programs.     

Studies on the Host Biotypes and Its Cause of Cotton Aphid in Nanjing, China

The fitness of cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, on different host plants was studied. The results showed that the cotton aphid population in Nanjing formed host preference bio-types on cucumber and cotton. The aphids from cotton and cucumber could not inter-transplant successfully between the two host plants. The apterous and alate offspring of stem mother from hibiscus could not survive, reproduce and form population normally when they were transplanted to cucumber and water melon, but they could form normally when transplanted to cotton and muskmelon. There was no significant difference between the stylet length of cotton aphids from cucumber and cotton, so the stylet length was not the cause of the host preference. When the aphids originated on hibiscus were transplanted to cotton, water melon and muskmelon, the stylet could reach host phloem to absorb host plant‘s nutrients, but it couldn‘t when transplanted to cucumber. Cotton aphid can feed on muskmelon without secretion of water-soluble saliva. It could be concluded that the two host biotypes of cotton aphid came from different winter host plants.     

Physiology and defense responses of wheat to the infestation of different cereal aphids

Cereal aphids are major insect pests of wheat, which cause significant damages to wheat production. Previous studies mainly focused on the resistance of different wheat varieties to one specific aphid species. However, reports on the physiology and defense responses of wheat to different cereal aphids are basically lacking. In this work, we studied the feeding behavior of three cereal aphids: the grain aphid, Sitobion avenae(Fabricius), the greenbugs, Schizaphis graminum(Rondani), and the bird cherry-oat aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi(Linnaeus) on winter wheat, and the physiology and defense responses of wheat to the infestation of these cereal aphids with focus on how these cereal aphids utilize divergent strategies to optimize their nutrition requirement from wheat leaves. Our results indicated that S. graminum and R. padi were better adapted to penetrating phloem tissue and to collect more nutrition than S. avenae. The harm on wheat physiology committed by S. graminum and R. padi was severer than that by S. avenae, through reducing chlorophyll concentration and interfering metabolism genes. Furthermore, cereal aphids manipulated the plant nutrition metabolism by increasing the relative concentration of major amino acids and percentage of essential amino acids. In addition, different cereal aphids triggered specific defense response in wheat. All of these results suggested that different cereal aphids utilize divergent strategies to change the physiological and defense responses of their host plants in order to optimize their nutrition absorption and requirement. These findings not only extend our current knowledge on the insect–plant interactions but also provide useful clues to develop novel biotechnological strategies for enhancing the resistance and tolerance of crop plants against phloem-feeding insects.     

Insecticide resistance of the field populations of oriental armyworm,Mythimna separata (Walker) in Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces of China

Resistance of five field populations of Mythimna separata(Walker) collected from Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces of China to six different insecticides was evaluated by leaf dip method in the laboratory. The results showed that all populations were relatively sensitive to emamectin benzoate with a resistance ratio(RR) of 0.583–1.583 folds. All populations showed susceptible or low level resistance to chlorantraniliprole and beta-cypermethrin. Compared with a relatively susceptible strain of M. separata, the resistance level of the whole populations ranged from susceptible to moderate to chlorpyrifos and lambda-cyhalothrin, moderate to high to phoxim(RR=19.367–70.100) except for population from Sanyuan County(RR=2.567). Pair-wise correlation analysis among different insecticides indicated that chlorpyrifos has a significantly positive and significant correlation with emamectin benzoate. Chlorantraniliprole didn't have significant correlation with emamectin benzoate, chlorpyrifos and phoxim. Therefore, emamectin benzoate, chlorantraniliprole and beta-cypermethrin are recommended to control oriental armyworm. Meanwhile, to postpone the occurrence and development of insecticide resistance in Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces, alternative and rotational application of insecticides between chlorantraniliprole and emamectin benzoate or chlorpyrifos is necessary.     

A Method for Mass-rearing Aphidius gifuensis(Hymenoptera: Aphidiidae)

[Objective] This study presents a method for mass rearing of Aphidius gifuensis, a dominant endoparasitoid of Myzus persicae on tobacco in Southwest China. [Method] The tobacco cultivar Honghuadajinyuan(Nicotiana tabacum) was used as the host plant and M. persicae was the host insect. In a greenhouse, tobacco seedlings were reared in plastic trays. The seedlings at three-true-leaf stage were inoculated with two to three aphids per plant using aphid source with a parasitism rate of 47% ±3.9%. [Result] By this inoculation method, the aphids and parasites were simultaneously inoculated on host plants. After approximately 25 d of rearing, we were able to produce 82.5±5.17 aphid mummies per tobacco seedling. A total of 445 500 aphid mummies were produced in one greenhouse(36 rearing trays per greenhouse) during an approximately 50-day rearing period. The emergence rate was 93.4% ±2.76%, and 54% of the mummies were females. [Conclusion] The demonstrated technological feasibility of using tobacco seedlings for the mass rearing of A. gifuensis increases the potential for the biological control of M. persicae.     

Inheritance of Powdery Mildew Resistance in Cucumber （Cucumis sativus L.） and Development of an AFLP Marker for Resistance Detection

Cucumber powdery mildew is one of the most destructive diseases of cucumber throughout the world. In the present study, inheritance of powdery mildew resistance in three crosses, and linkage of resistance with amplified fragment length polymorphism （AFLP） markers are studied to formulate efficient strategies for breeding cultivars resistant to powdery mildew. The joint analysis of multiple generations and AFLP technique has been applied in this study. The best model is the one with two major genes, additive, dominant, and epistatic effects, plus polygenes with additive, dominant, and epistatic effects （E-l-0 model）. The heritabilities of the major genes varied from 64.26% to 97.82%, and susceptibility was incompletely dominant for the two major genes in the three crosses studied. The additive effects of the two major genes and the dominant effect of the second major gene were high, and the epistatic effect of the additive-dominant between the two major genes was the highest in cross I . In cross II, the absolute value of the additive effect, dominant effect, and potential ratio of the first major gene were far higher than those of the second major gene, and the epistatic effect of the additive-additive was the highest. The genetic parameters of the two major genes in cross III were similar to those in cross II. Correlation and regression analyses showed that marker E25/M63-103 was linked to a susceptible gene controlling powdery mildew resistance. The marker could account for 19.98% of the phenotypic variation. When the marker was tested on a diverse set of 29 cucumber lines, the correlation between phenotype and genotype was not significant, which suggested cultivar specialty of gene expression or different methods of resistance to powdery mildew. The target DNA fragment was 103 bp in length, and only a small part was found to be homologous to DNA in the other species evaluated, which indicated that it was unique to the cucumber genome.     

Influence of Garlic Intercropping or Active Emitted Volatiles in Releasers on Aphid and Related Beneficial in Wheat Fields in China

In order to develop biological control of aphids by a "push-pull"approach, intercropping using repellent emitting plants was developed in different crop and associated plant models. Garlic is one of the potential plant that could be inserted in crops to decrease the pest occurrence in neighboring crop plots. In this study, field works were conducted in wheat fields in Langfang Experimental Station, Hebei Province in China from October 2009 to July 2010 during wheat developmental season. The effect of wheat intercropping with garlic but also the volatiles emission on the incidence of the English grain aphid, Sitobion avenae Fabricius (Homoptera: Aphididae) was assessed. Natural beneficial occurrence and global yields in two winter wheat varieties that were susceptible or resistant to cereal aphid were also determined comparing to control plots without the use of garlic plant intercrop nor semiochemical releaser in the fields. S. avenae was found to be lower in garlic oil blend treatment (GOB), diallyl disulfide treatment (DD) and wheat-garlic intercropping treatment (WGI) when compared to the control plots for both two varieties (P<0.01). Both intercropping and application of volatile chemicals emitted by garlic could improve the population densities of natural enemies of cereal aphid, including ladybeetles and mummified aphids. Ladybeetle population density in WGI, GOB and mummified aphids densities in WGI, DD were significantly higher than those in control fields for both two varieties (P<0.05). There were significant interactions between cultivars and treatments to the population densities of S. avenae. The 1 000-grain weight and yield of wheat were also increased compared to the control. Due to their potential alternatives as a biological control agent against cereal aphid, garlic intercropping and related emitted volatiles are expected to contribute to the further improvement of integrated pest management systems and to potentially reduce the amount of traditional synthetic pesticides applied in wheat fields.     

Identification of Soybean Resources of Resistance to Aphids

Four soybean [Glycine max （L.） Merr.] cultivars with soybean aphid resistance （Aphis glycines Matsmura）, p189, P203, P574, and P746, were identified in field test, choice test, and non-choice test, The grade of resistance to aphids and the damage index of P189, P203, and P746 were significantly different from the susceptible cultivars （P=0.05）. P574 and P746 showed antibiosis resistance, preventing aphids from reproducing on the plants. P203 showed antixenosis resistance, preventing aphids from reproducing in field test and choice test, but susceptible in non-choice test. Population development on plants was significantly different in field test, choice test, and non-choice test, which was caused by different selective pressures.     

Quantitative Trait Loci for Resistance Against Fusarium Wilt Based on Three Cotton F2 Populations

Fusarium wilt （FW） is one of the most common cotton diseases in the world. Identification of QTLs conferring resistance to FW is key for the incorporation of resistance genes into elite cultivars. Two intraspecific （cross between Gossypium hirsuturn L.） and one interspecific （cross between Gossypium hirsutum L. and Gossypium bardence L.） F2 populations were constructed by using a highly resistant cultivar and crossing it to a susceptible cultivar with 154, 79, and 148 offsprings, respectively. Simple sequence repeats （SSR） were used to screen genomic regions closely linked to FW resistance. The results showed that five QTLs associated with FW resistance were detected in two intraspecific populations using a composite interval mapping method under four different conditions. Four of these loci located on Chr. 2/Chr. 17 neighboring markers JESPR304 or CIR305 which explained 13.1 to 45.9% of the phenotypic effect. Furthermore, JESPR304 and CIR305 were previously testified and found to be tightly linked. It is possible that these four QTLs detected under different conditions were the same resistance QTL/gene. We consider that there is the possibility of a major FW resistant gene in intraspecific populations. In the interspecific mapping populations two QTLs were detected on Chr. 9 and Chr. 12/26 which explained great phenotypic variance of 49.4 and 45.7%. As the location of QTLs for FW resistance among the intraspecific and the interspecfic populations were totally different, it is suggested that there may be different resistance mechanisms between G. bardence L. and G. hursutum L. Thus, the present research provides an opportunity to understand the genetic control of resistance to FW in Gossypium hirsutum and Gossypium bardence and to conduct MAS in breeding programs to develop FW resistant cultivars.     

An Integrated QTL Map of Fungal Disease Resistance in Soybean （G/ycine max L. Merr）： A Method of Meta-Analysis for Mining R Genes

Diseases caused by fungal pathogens account for approximately 50% of all soybean disease losses around the world. Conflicting results of fungal disease resistance QTLs from different populations often occurred. The objectives of this study were to： （i） evaluate evidence for reported fungal disease resistance QTLs associations in soybean and （ii） extract relatively reliable and useful information from the ＂real＂ QTLs and mine putative genes in soybean. An integrated map of fungal disease resistance QTLs in soybean was established with soymap 2 published in 2004 as a reference map. QTLs of fungal disease resistance developed from each of separate populations in recent 10 years were integrated into a combinative map for gene cloning and marker assisted selection in soybean. 107 QTLs from different maps were integrated and projected to the reference map with the software BioMercator 2.1. A method of meta-analysis was used to narrow down the confidence interval, and 23 ＂real＂ QTLs and their corresponding markers were obtained from 12 linkage groups （LG）, respectively. Two published R genes were found in these ＂real＂ QTLs intervals. Sequences in the ＂real＂ QTLs intervals were predicted by GENSCAN, and these predicted genes were annotated in Goblet. 228 resistance gene analogs （RGAs） in 12 different terms were mined. The results will lay the foundation for a bioinformatics platform combining abundant QTLs, and offer the basis for marker assisted selection and gene cloning in soybean.     

Study on Biological Activity of New Compound SYP-260

SYP-260 is one of the novel pyrimidine structure chemicals. The biological activity of new compound SYP-260 was tested in this paper using different bioassay methods in the laboratory. Experimental results indicated that the values of median lethal concentration(LC₅₀, 72 h) of new compound SYP-260 against broad bean aphid, green peach aphid and cotton aphid were 0.1708, 0.2455 and 0.2632 mg · L^-1, respectively. The LC₅₀ of new compound SYP-260 was 0.8892 mg · L     

Cloning and Expressing of a Gene Encoding Cytosolic Copper/Zinc Superoxide Dismutase in the Upland Cotton

In this study, a gene encoding a superoxide dismutase （SOD） was cloned from senescent leaves of cotton （Gossypium hirsutum）, and its expressing profile was analyzed. The gene was cloned by rapid amplification of cDNA ends （RACE） method. Northern blotting was used to show the profile of the gene expression, and the enzyme activity was mensurated by NBT deoxidization method in different growth periods. The full length of a gene of cytosolic copper/zinc superoxide dismutase （Cu/Zn-SOD） was isolated from cotton （GenBank Accession Number： DQ445093）. The sequence of cDNA contained 682 bp, the opening reading frame 456 bp, and encoded polypeptide 152 amino acids with the predicted molecular mass of 15.03 kD and theoretical pI of 6.09. The amino acid sequence was similar with the other plants from 82 to 87%. Southern blotting showed that the gene had different number of copies in different cotton species. Northern blotting suggested that the gene had different expression in different tissues and development stages. The enzyme activity was the highest in peak flowering stage. The cotton cytosolic （Cu/Zn-SOD） had lower copies in the upland cotton. The copper/zinc superoxide dismutase mRNA expressing level showed regular changing in the whole development stages; it was lower in the former stages, higher in latter stages and the highest at the peak flowering stage. The curve of the copper/zinc superoxide dismutase mRNA expressing level was consistent with that of the Cu/Zn-SOD enzyme activity. The copper/zinc superoxide dismutase mRNA expressing levels of different organs showed that the gene was higher in the root, leaf, and lower in the flower.     

Induction and Characterization of Laboratory Mutants of Phytophthora capsici Resistant to Dimethomorph and Flumorph

Laboratory studies were conducted to evaluate the risk of Phytophthora capsici developing resistance to two morphlines, dimethomorph and flumorph. Metalaxyl, the well-known high risk of resistance fungicides, was used as reference fungicide. Resistant mutants for the three fungicides were isolated by treating mycelium with ultraviolet radiation. Metalaxyl-resistant mutants were obtained with high frequency and exhibited high level of resistance with factors more than 100 folds, while mutation frequency for dimethomorph-resistance was relatively low and the resistance factors ranged from 3.0 to 13.9 folds. Most dimethomorph-resistant mutants decreased in hyphal growth rate and the spoulation ability, which have a large impact upon the epidemic development of dimethomorph-resistant populations. These results suggested that the risk of resistant pathogen population was much lower for dimethomorph than for metalaxyl. Both the frequency of developing resistance and level of resistance （resistance factors = 1.8-14.6） to dimethomorph were similar to those of its structure analogue flumorh. Moreover, the cross-resistance were found between them, which suggested the risks of developing resistance to dimethomorph and flumorph in the pathogen were very closely related. As P. capsici can potentially develop resistance to dimethomorph and flumorph, and oomycetes usually have the high risk to develop resistance to fungicides, appropriate management against resistance development should be taken.     

The Susceptibilities of Oxya chinensis （Orthoptera： Acridoidea） to Malathion and Comparison of the Esterase Properties from Three Collected Populations in Tianjin Area,China

The susceptibilities of Oxya chinensis to malathion were studied in three populations collected from outskirt of Tianjin, China, using bioassays and biochemical analysis. Populations were chosen to represent different exposure to insecticides： BDG （Beidagang; low exposure）, BD （Baodi; high exposure previously but low exposure now）, and JN （Jinnan; high exposure）. The results showed that the LD50 values of BD and JN populations were 3.95- and 12.02-fold and 3.64- and 10.07- fold higher than that of BDG population in females and males, respectively. The LD50 values in females were higher than those in males. The results of biochemical analysis indicated that the esterase （EST） activities in JN population were higher than those in BD and BDG populations. They showed that when α-NA, α-NB, and α-NA were used as substrates, females＇ EST activities of JN population were 1.11-, 1.30-, and 1.14-fold and 1.39-, 1.59-, and 1.54-fold higher than those of BD and BDG populations, respectively. When α-NA, α-NB, and β-NA were used as substrates, males＇ EST activities of JN population were 1.13-, 1.12-, and 1,00-fold and 1.20-, 1.14-, and 1.07-fold higher than those of BD and BDG populations, respectively. The results also showed that the specific activities of the females were higher than those of the males in the BD and JN populations, whereas the specific activities of the males were higher than those of the females in the BDG population. The results of bioassay were consistent with those of biochemical analysis. Thus, it was inferred that the elevated ESTs activities might play an important role in conferring the differences of susceptibility of O. chinensis to malathion in the three collected populations. Enzyme kinetic studies indicated that the Km and Vmax values were different among the three collected populations and between the females and the males. The observed changes in the kinetic parameters might be explained by differential expression patterns of isozymes so that the insect esterases have different affinities and maximum velocities toward the same substrate.     

Genetic Dissection of Net Effects Between Yield and Its Components in Sea Island Cotton （Gossypium barbadense L.）

The number of bolls, individual boll weight, and lint percentage are three important yield components of lint yield of cotton. In the present study, nine parents, twenty F1, and twenty F2 crosses of intraspecific hybrids of sea island cotton （Gossypium barbadense L.） were grown at Tarim University, Alar, Xinjiang, China, in 2000 and 2001. Lint yield and its three component traits were measured and analyzed by an extended conditional mixed linear model approach. Lint percentage made the largest contribution to additive, additive x environment, and dominance x environment variations for lint yield. The contribution ratios of number of bolls, individual boll weight, and combined contribution of these two traits to additive x environment and dominance x environment variations for lint yield were not statistically significant. Lint yield of different parents could be affected differently by lint percentage. Lint yield of some parents was closely correlated with lint percentage, whereas for other parents, the behavior of individual boll weight and number of bolls played much more important roles on lint yield than that of lint percentage. It was shown by the conditional and conventional predicted additive x environment interaction effects of parents that the environment condition could influence different parents with varied effects.