ABSTRACT Loquat is attacked by many phytopathogenic fungi. Among these Spilocaea pyracanthae is of economic importance. The fungus received no attention in Pakistan and some other parts of the world. The current study is focused on the symptomatology of this disease and the etiology of the fungus. During extensive surveys of loquat orchards in 2013 heavy infestations of this disease were observed. The leaf symptoms were observed as olive brown, opaque necrotic sub-circular spots, with light brown coloration in the center. Two or more spots coalesced in severe infections covering large leaf areas. The fungus was identified as Spilocaea pyracanthae on the basis of conidia and morphological characters. The pathogenicity of the fungus was confirmed on healthy plants under greenhouse conditions by following Koch's postulates. The fungus produced characteristic leaf scab symptoms on young leaves. This is the first report of Spilocaea pyracanthae causing leafscab of loquat in Pakistan.

Quatro populações de Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Yponomeutidae) oriundas do Brasil, Ilha da Reunião, Filipinas e Benin foram avaliadas quanto à suscetibilidade ao B. thuringiensis através de bioensaios e quanto à variabilidade genética, através de RAPD-PCR. Os dois parâmetros avaliados mostraram similaridade de resultados entre as populações, sugerindo que as mesmas devem ser bastante homogêneas, embora estejam geograficamente distantes.

Four populations of Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Yponomeutidae) isolated in Brazil, Reunion Island, Philippines and Benin were evaluated for susceptibility to B. thuringiensis. Genetic variability was accessed by RAPD analysis. Although the populations were originated from diverse geographical origins, the two evaluated parameters showed a high degree of similarity. This suggests that although the populations were geographically distant, they have a high degree of similarity.

O gênero Diadegma compreende espécies que são parasitóides de larvas da traça-das-crucíferas Plutella xylostella, uma das mais importantes pragas das plantas da família Brassicacea. Este gênero possui distribuição mundial. Neste trabalho, três populações de Diadegma spp. oriundas de diferentes países (Brasil, Ilha da Reunião e Malásia) foram caracterizadas geneticamente por meio da técnica de RAPD-PCR. Não foi constatada variabilidade intra-populacional, no entanto o alto coeficiente de similaridade entre populações sugeriram que esses insetos poderiam pertencer a espécies diferentes.

The genus Diadegma has species that are parasitoids of larvae of diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, one of the most important pests of Brassicacea. This genus has a worldwide distribution. Representative samples of three Diadegma populations from Brazil, Reunion Island and Malaysia were characterized by RAPD-PCR. No intra-population variability was found. However, the high coefficient of genetic similarity between the populations suggests that they could belong to different species.