Chemotactic Responses of <i>Oscheius myriophilus</i> to Mollusk Mucus
Terrestrial slugs and snails can significantly harm agriculture. Due to environmental concerns associated with chemical molluscicides, biological control methods are increasingly being explored. <i>Oscheius myriophilus</i> (Poinar, 1986), a nematode species recently discovered in associa...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/12/3049 |
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| Summary: | Terrestrial slugs and snails can significantly harm agriculture. Due to environmental concerns associated with chemical molluscicides, biological control methods are increasingly being explored. <i>Oscheius myriophilus</i> (Poinar, 1986), a nematode species recently discovered in association with <i>Arion vulgaris</i> Moquin-Tandon, 1855, holds promise as a biocontrol agent for gastropod pests. In this study, we investigated the chemotactic response and motility of <i>O. myriophilus</i> when exposed to the mucus of five mollusk species: <i>Helix pomatia</i> Linnaeus, 1758, <i>Cernuella virgata</i> (Da Costa, 1778), <i>Deroceras reticulatum</i> Müller, 1774, <i>A. vulgaris</i>, and <i>Tandonia budapestensis</i> Hazay, 1880. Our experiments were conducted at two temperatures (20 °C and 25 °C) to assess how environmental conditions influence nematode behavior. The results demonstrated that the chemoattractiveness of mollusk mucus to <i>O. myriophilus</i> was significantly influenced by both the species of mollusk and the temperature. Overall, nematode motility was higher at 20 °C than at 25 °C, indicating that lower temperatures may enhance the activity of <i>O. myriophilus</i>. Among the tested mollusk species, <i>C. virgata</i> mucus consistently attracted the highest number of nematodes, especially at the lower temperature. Our findings indicate that the chemotactic response of <i>O. myriophilus</i> to mollusk mucus may have potential for the targeted biocontrol of pest mollusks. While <i>C. virgata</i> demonstrated strong attractant potential at the tested temperatures, particularly under cooler conditions (20 °C), further research is needed to confirm whether this represents a consistent temperature-related effect. Future studies should aim to identify the specific chemical cues in mollusk mucus that trigger nematode attraction and examine how these signals interact with a broader range of environmental variables, including temperature, to influence nematode behavior. |
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| ISSN: | 2073-4395 |