Extraordinary Adaptive Plasticity of Colorado Potato Beetle: "Ten-Striped Spearman" in the Era of Biotechnological Warfare

Abstract

Expanding from remote areas of Mexico to a worldwide scale, the ten-striped insect, the Colorado potato beetle (CPB, Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say), has risen from being an innocuous beetle to a prominent global pest. A diverse life cycle, phenotypic plasticity, adaptation to adverse conditions, and capability to detoxify or tolerate toxins make this insect appear to be virtually "indestructible". With increasing advances in molecular biology, tools of biotechnological warfare were deployed to combat CPB. In the last three decades, genetically modified potato has created a new challenge for the beetle. After reviewing hundreds of scientific papers dealing with CPB control, it became clear that even biotechnological means of control, if used alone, would not defeat the Colorado potato beetle. This control measure once again appears to be provoking the potato beetle to exhibit its remarkable adaptability. Nonetheless, the potential for adaptation to these techniques has increased our knowledge of this pest and thus opened possibilities for devising more sustainable CPB management programs.

Keywords: Colorado potato beetle; biological control; plant-insect co-evolution; transgenic potato.

Figure 1

Different eco-physiological adaptations that give the Colorado potato beetle (CPB) characteristics of one of the most invasive species worldwide, and the “superpest” status.

Figure 2

Potato defense strategies (green boxes) and the reciprocal CPB countermeasures (red boxes) that reflect co-evolutionary “arms race” between these two species.