| Abstract
| - A calcium-alginate gel diet was developed for Spodoptera litura larvae, and its reliability as a carrierfor incorporating antifeedants as well as insecticides was investigated. The alginate gel diet wasprepared with a simple protocol, which does not involve any heating process. When tested using thisdiet, acephate, a Bacillus thuringiensis endotoxin formulation and rotenone reproducibly showedinsecticidal activity against the larvae, while neem oil and scabequinone deterred the larval feedingeffectively. However, not only the insecticidal activity of acephate but also the antifeedant activity ofneem oil was reduced by replacing the alginate component by agar in the diet, suggesting theusefulness of the alginate gel diet as an assay tool for testing a broad range of samples against thelarvae. Keywords: Bioassay method; calcium-alginate gel; artificial diet; insecticidal compounds; antifeedants;lepidopteran larvae
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