Though farmers have immensely benefited from using pesticides, insects with resistance to chemicals have remained a major bottleneck. In such a scenario, using genes with potential for pest control is an ideal option, said Dr. Subba Reddy Palli, Professor of Entomology at the University of Kentucky.

Interacting with scientists from Regional Agricultural Research Station (RARS), Tirupati, here recently, Dr. Reddy maintained that Ribonucleic Acid Interference-based pest management technology, wherein the double-stranded RNA is coupled with nano-scale material, had proved effective in the delivery of gene-silencing method to control pests. This pest management technology can also tackle pesticide resistance in beetles and bed bugs, and it will be made available to farmers in developed countries in the next three years, he added.

RARS Associate Director of Research T. Giridhara Krishna termed the development as the need of the hour, as majority of farmers in developing countries used huge quantity of pesticides. Indiscriminate use of pesticides has laced the produce with traces of chemicals. Apart from integrated pest management (IPM) technologies, adapting such practices will improve the quality of crops and provide chemical-free products to people, he said.

RARS Associate Dean N.P. Eswar Reddy, scientists T. Muralikrishna, P.K.N.V. Prasad, A Ramakrishna Rao, P. Ramana and Vasanthi were present.

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RNAi-based pest management on anvil

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October 20, 2014 at 12:08 am by Mr HomeBuilder
Category: Pest Control