''Lecanicillium lecanii'' is now an approved name of an entomopathogenic fungus species, that was previously widely known as ''

Verticillium ''Verticillium'' is a genus of fungi in the division Ascomycota, and are an anamorphic form of the family Plectosphaerellaceae. The genus used to include diverse groups comprising saprobes and parasites of higher plants, insects, nematodes, mol ...

lecanii'' (Zimmerman) Viegas), but is now understood to be an anamorphic form in the '' Cordyceps'' group of genera in the

Clavicipitaceae The Clavicipitaceae are a family (biology), family of fungi within the order Hypocreales. A 2008 estimate placed 43 genus, genera in the family, but a study in 2020 has increased this number to 50. Phylogeny Molecular phylogeny, phylogenetic ana ...

. Isolates formerly classified as ''V. lecanii'' could be ''L. attenuatum, L. lecanii, L. longisporum, L. muscarium'' or ''L. nodulosum''. For example, several recent papers, such as Kouvelis ''et al.'' who carried out

mitochondrial DNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA and mDNA) is the DNA located in the mitochondrion, mitochondria organelles in a eukaryotic cell that converts chemical energy from food into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is a small portion of the D ...

studies, refer to the name ''L. muscarium''. ''L. lecanii'' itself appears primarily to be a pathogen of soft scale insects ( Coccidae).

Synonyms

The

Index Fungorum ''Index Fungorum'' is an international project to index all formal names (scientific names) in the fungus kingdom. As of 2015, the project is based at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, one of three partners along with Landcare Research and th ...

, referring to ''L. lecanii'', lists the following

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

: * '' Cephalosporium coccorum'' Petch, Trans. Br. mycol. Soc. 10: 175 (1925)

924 __NOTOC__ Year 924 (Roman numerals, CMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January—March * January 5 – The monastery of San Martín de Albelda is founded in the Kingdom of Navarre in what is now ...

* ''Cephalosporium dipterigenum'' Petch, Naturalist (Hull), ser. 3: 102 (1931) * ''Cephalosporium lecanii'' Zimm., Teysmannia 9: 243 (1898) * ''Cephalosporium lecanii'' f. coccorum (Petch) Bałazy, Borbäsia 14: 132 (1973) * ''Cephalosporium subclavatum'' Petch, Trans. Br. mycol. Soc. 25: 262 (1942) 941* '' Cordyceps confragosa'' (Mains) G.H. Sung, J.M. Sung, Hywel-Jones & Spatafora, in Sung, Hywel-Jones, Sung, Luangsa-ard, Shrestha & Spatafora, Stud. Mycol. 57: 49 (2007) * ''Sporotrichum lichenicola'' Berk. & Broome, J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 14(2): 102 (1875) * '' Torrubiella confragosa'' Mains, Mycologia 41(3): 305 (1949) * ''

coccorum'' (Petch) Westerd., CBS List of Cultures (Baarn): 103 (1935) * ''Verticillium lecanii'' (Zimm.) Viégas, Revista Inst. Café São Paulo 14: 754 (1939)

Role in Horticulture

This fungus was first described in 1861 and has a worldwide distribution.

Insects Insects (from Latin ') are hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed ...

are infected when they come into contact with the sticky fungal

spores In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plant ...

which then grow and invade the body, thus the internal organs are consumed, leading to their death. In

horticulture Horticulture (from ) is the art and science of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs and ornamental plants. Horticulture is commonly associated with the more professional and technical aspects of plant cultivation on a smaller and mo ...

and

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

, "''V. lecanii''" isolates were developed for controlling insect pests such as

whitefly Whiteflies are Hemipterans that typically feed on the undersides of plant leaves. They comprise the family Aleyrodidae, the only family in the superfamily Aleyrodoidea. More than 1550 species have been described. Description and taxonomy The A ...

thrips Thrips (Order (biology) , order Thysanoptera) are minute (mostly long or less), slender insects with fringed wings and unique asymmetrical mouthparts. Entomologists have species description , described approximately 7,700 species. They fly on ...

and

aphid Aphids are small sap-sucking insects in the Taxonomic rank, family Aphididae. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white Eriosomatinae, woolly ...

s, by RA Hall and HD Burges (scientists at the Glasshouse Crops Research Institute, now Warwick HRI: formerly part of

Horticulture Research International Warwick HRI (formerly Horticulture Research International) was a United Kingdom organisation tasked with carrying out horticultural research and development and transferring the results to industry in England. History Horticulture Research Inter ...

Biological pesticide A biopesticide is a biological substance or organism that damages, kills, or repels organisms seens as pests. Biological pest management intervention involves predatory, parasitic, or chemical relationships. They are obtained from organisms incl ...

s based on '' Lecanicillium'' spp. are now marketed as 'Mycotal' (now ''L. muscarium'') and 'Vertalec' (now ''L. longisporum'') by Koppert in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

(who provide good illustrations of the fungus). Other products based on these fungi have been developed elsewhere for use in

cash crops A cash crop, also called profit crop, is an agricultural crop which is grown to sell for profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. The term is used to differentiate a marketed crop from a staple crop ("subsistence crop") ...

, oil seeds,

soybeans The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source of f ...

, ornamentals and vegetables.Copping L.G. (ed.) (2009). ''The Manual of Biocontrol Agents'' 4th Edition. British Crop Production Council (BCPC), Farnham, Surrey UK; 851 pp.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6511477 Biopesticides Cordycipitaceae Fungi described in 2001 Fungus species