Galleria mellonella larvae have been widely used as alternative non-mammalian models for the study of fungal virulence and pathogenesis. The larvae can be acquired in small volumes from worm farms, pet stores, or other independent suppliers commonly found in the United States and parts of Europe. However, in countries with no or limited commercial availability, the process of shipping these larvae can cause them stress, resulting in decreased or altered immunity. Furthermore, the conditions used to rear these larvae including diet, humidity, temperature, and maintenance procedures vary among the suppliers. Variation in these factors can affect the response of G. mellonella larvae to infection, thereby decreasing the reproducibility of fungal virulence experiments. There is a critical need for standardized procedures and incubation conditions for rearing G. mellonella to produce quality, unstressed larvae with the least genetic variability. In order to standardize these procedures, cost-effective protocols for the propagation and maintenance of G. mellonella larvae using an artificial diet, which has been successfully used in our own laboratory, requiring minimal equipment and expertise, are herein described. Examples for the application of this model in fungal pathogenicity and gene knockout studies as feasible alternatives for traditionally used animal models are also provided.

The control of house flies, Musca domestica (L.), currently relies on the use of chemical insecticide spray and bait formulations. Entomopathogenic fungi, such as Metarhizium anisopliae, may provide an alternative to these products. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a mycoinsecticide bait formulation containing a virulent M. anisopliae isolate. Five M. anisopliae isolates were screened against M. domestica and isolate M16 was selected for bait development. Bait formulations containing a variety of additives, including (Z)-9-tricosene, were tested for their ability to increase fly visitation. A bait formulation containing M. anisopliae and skim milk powder was found to have the highest house fly visitation and was subsequently compared to a conventional chemical bait in an efficacy assay. The chemical bait (0.5% imidacloprid) caused faster mortality than the mycoinsecticide bait, however, similar levels of mortality were achieved by 4–5 days’ post exposure. These results suggest that M. anisopliae mycoinsecticide baits may offer an alternative to conventional chemical insecticides for the control of house flies in suitable areas.

Carpophilus beetles are serious pests of Australian fruit and nut crops, causing significant damage through adult and larval feeding and vectoring plant diseases. Six strains of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana ((Balsamo) Vuillemin; Hypocreales: Cordycipitaceae), isolated from a range of hosts in Australia, together with one commercial strain, were screened for virulence to adult and larval stages of Carpophilus attacking stone fruits (C. davidsoni (Dobson)) and almonds (C. truncatus (Murray)) under laboratory conditions. The two species differed significantly in their susceptibility to the B. bassiana isolates. In the adult beetle assay, C. truncatus had a maximum Abbott’s control corrected mortality of 19% when treated with the most effective isolate, B54, compared to 52% for C.davidsoni. In larval bioassays, mortality rates for the two species were generally higher than adults: four isolates caused greater than 80% mortality in C. davidsoni; while only one isolate was considered effective against C. truncatus (causing 73% mortality), all other isolates caused less than 40% mortality. The results indicate promising potential for B. bassiana to be applied as a biopesticide as part of an integrated pest management strategy, which might take the form of a soil application against larvae or an autodissemination program using adult beetles.