Home Site Map Make Your Home Page Suggestions Enquiry Advertise With Us
Wednesday, February 10, 2010  
 
 
Press Releases
Features
Events
Special Articles
News Home
   
  News Updated on Wednesday, February 10, 2010 3:17:37 AM
» India » Asia » World » Sports » Business » Sci-Tec » Health » Entertainment » Have your say » Picture Gallery
Top Stories
  India
  Asia
  World
  Sports
  Business
  Sci-Tec
  Health
  Entertainment
 
 Science

Scorpion toxin can target troublesome pest
College Park, Md. | November 13, 2007 12:01:13 AM IST
 

A scorpion's toxin can be used to kill specific harmful insects while not harming the environment, the University of Maryland reported.

Entomology professor Raymond St. Leger discovered the scorpion's genes can be used to create an extremely poisonous fungus that kills certain pests, such as malaria-carrying mosquitoes or coffee crop-destroying beetles, the university in College Park, Md., reported in a news release.

St. Leger and Chengshu Wang, a colleague from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, describe in the November issue of Nature Biotechnology their ability to bio-engineer a new version of the fungus to inject specific insects with the scorpion toxin insect neuro-toxin, killing them within a few days.

Scorpions have toxins that are superbly adapted to killing insects, St. Leger said. A scorpion kills by stabbing its prey, so we were looking for a way to get the toxin into the insect without the scorpion.

St. Leger said the fungus attaches itself on the insect's outer surface but grows within the insect.

If you can get the fungus to insert a toxin into the insect, you can kill the insect very quickly, he said.

(UPI)

  Viewer's Comment
Comments Not Available
 
 More Stories

Films from northeast take centrestage at Mumbai International Film Festival 

Shiv Sainiks vandalize cinema hall in Mumbai over Shah Rukh Khan\'s movie 

BJP elects Nitin Gadkari as its new chief 

India, Turkey discuss bilateral, regional and global issues 

Recuperating Vayalar Ravi to reach Chennai by a special aircraft 

Army chief releases joint operational doctrines 

Chidambaram asks Maoists to "abjure violence" 

India and Turkey jointly denounce terrorism 


Print this Page
Printer Friendly Version
E-Mail this page to a Friend
Send This page to A Friend

Search Archives :  



Quick Links - Webindia123.com
Services
Hobbies
Entertainment
Classifieds
Career / Education
UK, USA, Canada
Utilities
E-Booking
India Reference
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IndianStates
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
Pradesh

Copyright 2000-2010 Suni Systems (P) Ltd.
All rights reserved