Plant protease inhibitors (PIs) are natural plant defense proteins that inhibit proteases of
invading insect herbivores. However, their anti-insect efficacy is determined not only by their …

The continual need to increase food production necessitates the development and
application of novel biotechnologies to enable the provision of improved crop varieties in a …

Publisher Summary The aim of this chapter is to review the recent and spectacular progress
in the study of insect digestive biochemistry. It tries to establish uniform parameters for …

Elevated levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2), a consequence of anthropogenic
global change, can profoundly affect the interactions between crop plants and insect pests …

Two cysteine proteinase inhibitors (cystatins) from Arabidopsis thaliana, designated AtCYSa
and AtCYSb, were characterized. Recombinant GST-AtCYSa and GST-AtCYSb were …

Insects are constantly adapting to human-driven landscape changes; however, the roles of
their gut microbiota in these processes remain largely unknown. The western corn rootworm …

The soybean cysteine protease inhibitor, soyacystatin N (scN), negatively impacts growth
and development of the cowpea bruchid, Callosobruchus maculatus [Koiwa et al.(1998) …

RNA interference (RNAi) is a mechanism of homology dependent gene silencing present in
plants and animals. It operates through 21–24 nucleotides small RNAs which are processed …

Compartmentalization of proteinases, amylases, and pH in the midgut of Nauphoeta cinerea
Oliv.(Blattoptera: Blaberidae) was studied in order to understand the organization of protein …

Root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne incognita) cause substantial yield losses in vegetables
worldwide, and are difficult to manage. Continuous withdrawal of environmentally-harmful …