A Biological Activity of Serratia marcescens Strains Isolated from Dead Larva of the Diamondback Moth, Plutella xylostella (Plutellidae, Lepidoptera)

The cause of death was investigated with several dead cabbage moth larvae in breeding box. Bacterial strains were isolated and selected from the dead larvae by bioassay. One of them was identified as Serratia marcescens used by morphological characteristics and gene sequencing. S. marcescens were cultured by Luria Bertani (LB) media broth for bioassay. When 100-fold dilution of culture broth to third larvae of diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, it was showed a 100% mortality at 2 days after treatment, and only 10-fold dilution of supernatant liquid was showed 86.6% mortality. When the culture broth of S. marcescens was applied to the larvae of beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua, contact and feeding toxicity were 20 and 8% of mortality, respectively. Otherwise, when the culture broth of S. marcescens was applied to 5 major plant pathogens, antibacterial activities against Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizoctonia solani, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Phytophthora capsici and Sclerotinias clerotiorum were 4. 7, 11.3, 20, 15.7 and 42.6%, respectively. Also, degradation ability of S. marcescens against protein and chitin were examined.