Resistance in Pink Bollworm Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) against Bt Cotton, a Major Threat to Cotton in India: A Brief Review

Abstract

The pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) is a primary pest of cotton in many regions of the world.  In many parts of India, pink bollworm (PBW) has become resistant to BG-I (Bollgard I®) that expresses a single Bt gene (Cry1Ac) in 2009 and BG-II (Cry1Ac and cry 2Ab) in 2015. The brief review addresses the possible reasons and solutions to resistance posed by this insect. The review addresses the following points: reasons for resistance in PBW is discussed; the life-history is discussed how it’s distinctness from other bollworms; the introduction of hybrid cotton lead to insecticide treadmill in India; reduced accomplishment of the refugia recommendations also contributed to the problem; poor compliance of the bio-safety laws also led to the problem; unfavorable crop management practices prove to be an add-on to the problem. Furthermore, the possible solutions of the problem are discussed; monitoring and mating disruption; cultivation of High-density short season (HD-SS) pure line varieties; case studies of sterile insect technique (SIT) proved to be supporting in control of PBW; RNA interference technique can overcome the problem of resistance; use of chemical insecticides in different manner can change the perspective; proper cultural or farming practices can make the difference; Bio-control agents can overcome the problem; extension functionaries can help in solving the PBW problem. Therefore the management of resistance in PBW requires a broader vision and development of technology.