Lecanicillium lecanii
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''Lecanicillium lecanii'' is now an approved name of an entomopathogenic fungus species, that was previously widely known as ''
Verticillium ''Verticillium'' is a genus of fungi in the division Ascomycota, and are an anamorphic form of the family Plectosphaerellaceae. The genus used to include diverse groups comprising saprobes and parasites of higher plants, insects, nematodes, moll ...
lecanii'' (Zimmerman) Viegas), but is now understood to be an
anamorph In mycology, the terms teleomorph, anamorph, and holomorph apply to portions of the life cycles of fungi in the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota: *Teleomorph: the sexual reproductive stage (morph), typically a fruiting body. *Anamorph: an a ...
ic form in the ''
Cordyceps ''Cordyceps'' is a genus of ascomycete fungi (sac fungi) that includes about 600 species. Most ''Cordyceps'' species are endoparasitoids, parasitic mainly on insects and other arthropods (they are thus entomopathogenic fungi); a few are para ...
'' group of genera in the Clavicipitaceae. Isolates formerly classified as ''V. lecanii'' could be ''L. attenuatum, L. lecanii, L. longisporum, L. muscarium'' or ''L. nodulosum''. For example, several recent papers, such as Kouvelis ''et al.'' who carried out
mitochondrial DNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial D ...
studies, refer to the name ''L. muscarium''. ''L. lecanii'' itself appears primarily to be a pathogen of soft scale insects (
Coccidae The Coccidae are a family of scale insects belonging to the superfamily Coccoidea. They are commonly known as soft scales, wax scales or tortoise scales. The females are flat with elongated oval bodies and a smooth integument which may be covere ...
).


Synonyms

The Index Fungorum, referring to ''L. lecanii'', lists the following
synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are ...
: * ''
Cephalosporium ''Acremonium'' is a genus of fungi in the family Hypocreaceae. It used to be known as ''Cephalosporium''. Description ''Acremonium'' species are usually slow-growing and are initially compact and moist. Their hyphae are fine and hyaline, and pro ...
coccorum'' Petch, Trans. Br. mycol. Soc. 10: 175 (1925)
924 __NOTOC__ Year 924 ( CMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Byzantine–Bulgarian War: Forces led by Simeon I, ruler (''knyaz'') ...
* ''Cephalosporium dipterigenum'' Petch, Naturalist (Hull), ser. 3: 102 (1931) * ''Cephalosporium lecanii'' Zimm., Teysmannia 9: 243 (1898) * ''Cephalosporium lecanii'' f. coccorum (Petch) Bałazy, Borbäsia 14: 132 (1973) * ''Cephalosporium subclavatum'' Petch, Trans. Br. mycol. Soc. 25: 262 (1942)
941 Year 941 ( CMXLI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * May – September – Rus'–Byzantine War: The Rus' and their allies, th ...
* ''
Cordyceps ''Cordyceps'' is a genus of ascomycete fungi (sac fungi) that includes about 600 species. Most ''Cordyceps'' species are endoparasitoids, parasitic mainly on insects and other arthropods (they are thus entomopathogenic fungi); a few are para ...
confragosa'' (Mains) G.H. Sung, J.M. Sung, Hywel-Jones & Spatafora, in Sung, Hywel-Jones, Sung, Luangsa-ard, Shrestha & Spatafora, Stud. Mycol. 57: 49 (2007) * ''Sporotrichum lichenicola'' Berk. & Broome, J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 14(2): 102 (1875) * '' Torrubiella confragosa'' Mains, Mycologia 41(3): 305 (1949) * ''
Verticillium ''Verticillium'' is a genus of fungi in the division Ascomycota, and are an anamorphic form of the family Plectosphaerellaceae. The genus used to include diverse groups comprising saprobes and parasites of higher plants, insects, nematodes, moll ...
coccorum'' (Petch) Westerd., CBS List of Cultures (Baarn): 103 (1935) * ''Verticillium lecanii'' (Zimm.) Viégas, Revista Inst. Café São Paulo 14: 754 (1939)


Role in Horticulture

This fungus was first described in 1861 and has a worldwide distribution. Insects are infected when they come into contact with the sticky fungal spores which then grow and invade the body, thus the internal organs are consumed, leading to their death. In
horticulture Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...
and
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
, "''V. lecanii''" isolates were developed for controlling insect pests such as whitefly,
thrips Thrips (order Thysanoptera) are minute (mostly long or less), slender insects with fringed wings and unique asymmetrical mouthparts. Different thrips species feed mostly on plants by puncturing and sucking up the contents, although a few are ...
and
aphid Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A t ...
s, by RA Hall and HD Burges (scientists at the Glasshouse Crops Research Institute, now Warwick HRI: formerly part of Horticulture Research International).
Biological pesticide A Biopesticide is a biological substance or organism that damages, kills, or repels organisms seens as pests. Biological pest management intervention involves predatory, parasitic, or chemical relationships. They are obtained from organisms inclu ...
s based on '' Lecanicillium'' spp. are now marketed as 'Mycotal' (now ''L. muscarium'') and 'Vertalec' (now ''L. longisporum'') by Koppert in the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
(who provide good illustrations of the fungus). Other products based on these fungi have been developed elsewhere for use in cash crops, oil seeds,
soybeans The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu ...
, ornamentals and vegetables.Copping L.G. (ed.) (2009). ''The Manual of Biocontrol Agents'' 4th Edition. British Crop Production Council (BCPC), Farnham, Surrey UK; 851 pp.


References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6511477 Biopesticides Cordycipitaceae Fungi described in 2001