Cadherin-based resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis cotton in hybrid strains of pink bollworm: fitness costs and incomplete resistance

Recessive resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., in laboratory-selected strains of pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), is associated with three resistance alleles (r1, r2, and r3) of a cadherin gene. Previous experiments based on measurement of fitness components in Bt-resistant and Bt-susceptible strains revealed that fitness costs and incomplete resistance are associated with resistance. Here, we used two hybrid strains of pink bollworm, each containing a mixture of susceptible and resistant individuals, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplifications to test the association between cadherin genotype and fitness components for individuals sharing a common genetic background. All survivors on Bt cotton had two r alleles, confirming that recessive cadherin alleles are tightly linked with resistance to Bt cotton. On non-Bt cotton, significantly greater developmental time for rr than ss larvae indicated a recessive fitness cost, but costs did not affect survival or pupal weight. Incomplete resistance was manifested as longer developmental time, lower survival, and smaller pupal weight in rr individuals developing on Bt cotton compared with non-Bt cotton. As in previous experiments, no significant variation in performance on Bt cotton was detected among rr genotypes. However, a meta-analysis of data from seven experiments revealed that survival on Bt cotton relative to non-Bt cotton was lower in r2r3 and higher in r1r2 compared with the other rr genotypes. Assessment of fitness components associated with cadherin genotypes in hybrid strains of pink bollworm confirms that recessive resistance to Bt cotton is associated with recessive fitness costs and incomplete resistance.

Cadherin-based resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis cotton in hybrid strains of pink bollworm: fitness costs and incomplete resistance

Recessive resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., in laboratory-selected strains of pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), is associated with three resistance alleles (r1, r2, and r3) of a cadherin gene. Previous experiments based on measurement of fitness components in Bt-resistant and Bt-susceptible strains revealed that fitness costs and incomplete resistance are associated with resistance. Here, we used two hybrid strains of pink bollworm, each containing a mixture of susceptible and resistant individuals, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplifications to test the association between cadherin genotype and fitness components for individuals sharing a common genetic background. All survivors on Bt cotton had two r alleles, confirming that recessive cadherin alleles are tightly linked with resistance to Bt cotton. On non-Bt cotton, significantly greater developmental time for rr than ss larvae indicated a recessive fitness cost, but costs did not affect survival or pupal weight. Incomplete resistance was manifested as longer developmental time, lower survival, and smaller pupal weight in rr individuals developing on Bt cotton compared with non-Bt cotton. As in previous experiments, no significant variation in performance on Bt cotton was detected among rr genotypes. However, a meta-analysis of data from seven experiments revealed that survival on Bt cotton relative to non-Bt cotton was lower in r2r3 and higher in r1r2 compared with the other rr genotypes. Assessment of fitness components associated with cadherin genotypes in hybrid strains of pink bollworm confirms that recessive resistance to Bt cotton is associated with recessive fitness costs and incomplete resistance.

DNA screening reveals pink bollworm resistance to Bt cotton remains rare after a decade of exposure

Transgenic crops producing toxins from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) kill insect pests and can reduce reliance on insecticide sprays. Although Bt cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and Bt corn (Zea mays L.) covered 26 million ha worldwide in 2005, their success could be cut short by evolution of pest resistance. Monitoring the early phases of pest resistance to Bt crops is crucial, but it has been extremely difficult because bioassays usually cannot detect heterozygotes harboring one allele for resistance. We report here monitoring of resistance to Bt cotton with DNA-based screening, which detects single resistance alleles in heterozygotes. We used polymerase chain reaction primers that specifically amplify three mutant alleles of a cadherin gene linked with resistance to Bt cotton in pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), a major pest. We screened DNA of 5,571 insects derived from 59 cotton fields in Arizona, California, and Texas during 2001-2005. No resistance alleles were detected despite a decade of exposure to Bt cotton. In conjunction with data from bioassays and field efficacy tests, the results reported here contradict predictions of rapid pest resistance to Bt crops.

DNA screening reveals pink bollworm resistance to Bt cotton remains rare after a decade of exposure

Transgenic crops producing toxins from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) kill insect pests and can reduce reliance on insecticide sprays. Although Bt cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and Bt corn (Zea mays L.) covered 26 million ha worldwide in 2005, their success could be cut short by evolution of pest resistance. Monitoring the early phases of pest resistance to Bt crops is crucial, but it has been extremely difficult because bioassays usually cannot detect heterozygotes harboring one allele for resistance. We report here monitoring of resistance to Bt cotton with DNA-based screening, which detects single resistance alleles in heterozygotes. We used polymerase chain reaction primers that specifically amplify three mutant alleles of a cadherin gene linked with resistance to Bt cotton in pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), a major pest. We screened DNA of 5,571 insects derived from 59 cotton fields in Arizona, California, and Texas during 2001-2005. No resistance alleles were detected despite a decade of exposure to Bt cotton. In conjunction with data from bioassays and field efficacy tests, the results reported here contradict predictions of rapid pest resistance to Bt crops.

Effect of resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis cotton on pink bollworm (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) response to sex pheromone

Fitness costs associated with resistance to transgenic crops producing toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) could reduce male response to pheromone traps. Such costs would cause underestimation of resistance frequency if monitoring was based on analysis of males caught in pheromone traps. To develop a DNA-based resistance monitoring program for pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), we compared the response to pheromone traps of males with and without cadherin alleles associated with resistance to Bt cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). When irradiated males from two hybrid laboratory strains with an intermediate frequency of resistance alleles were released in large field cages, the probability of capture in pheromone traps was not lower for males with resistance alleles than for males without resistance alleles. These results suggest that analysis of trapped males would not underestimate the frequency of resistance. As the time males spent in traps in the field increased from 3 to 15 d, the success of DNA amplification declined from 100 to 30%. Thus, the efficiency of a DNA-based resistance monitoring program would be improved by analyzing males remaining in traps for 3 d or less.

Evolutionary trade-offs of insect resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis crops: fitness cost affecting paternity

Evolution of resistance to insecticides provides a useful model for examining fitness trade-offs associated with adaptation to stress. Here, we examined male reproductive costs in pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella) resistant to an insecticidal protein of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) produced by transgenic cotton, using contrasts between two pairs of related susceptible and resistant strains. Without competition for access to females, no costs affecting reproductive success of resistant males were observed. Resistant and susceptible males had similar mating frequency and fertility. Additionally, fecundity of females mated to resistant and susceptible males was comparable. In competition for matings with virgin females, resistant and susceptible males had comparable success in one strain, whereas susceptible males tended to mate more often than resistant males in the other. However, irrespective of strain origin, resistant males that mated first sired significantly less offspring than susceptible males that mated first. The reduced first-male paternity in resistant males may involve reduced sperm precedence caused by mutations in a cadherin gene linked with resistance to Bt cotton.