Fungi as Biocontrol Agents: Progress, Problems and Potential

Main Description
There is increasing interest in the use of fungi for the control of pests, weeds and diseases. This book brings together perspectives from pathology, ecology, genetics, physiology, production technology, to address the use of fungi as biological control agents.

Reviews
• "This book covers an exceptionally wide range of topics, many of them in considerable depth. It is a good buy and should be on the shelves of all those involved in teaching plant pathology or researching in biological control, as well as scientific libraries with free access to students who will find it useful as an up-to-date treatment of a fascinating area of applied biology".
Roland W S Weber, The Mycologist
• "The study of fungi as agents for the biological control of pests has enjoyed renewed interest among scientists in both research and regulatory settings. This is especially true in light of changes in laws resulting in more restrictions on the use of certain classes of chemical insecticides."
John D Vandenberg, USDA Agricultural Research Service, USA
• "For anyone interested in the areas of mycology, insect and plant pathology or pest management, this is a highly recommended read".
Biological Agriculture and Horticulture, November 2002
Main Contents
o Introduction - fungal biological control agents: progress, problems and potential, T M Butt, University of Wales, UK, C Jackson, University of Southampton, UK and N Magan, Cranfield University, UK
o Commercial use of fungi as plant disease biological control agents: status and prospects, J M Whipps, Horticulture Research International, UK and R D Lumsden, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, USA
o Use of hyphomycetous fungi for managing insect pests, G D Inglis, Mississippi State University, USA, M S Goettel, Lethbridge Research Centre, Canada, H Strasser, Leopold-Franzens University Innsbruck, Austria and T M Butt
o Biology, ecology and pest management potential of entomophthorales J K Pell, IACR-Rothamsted, UK, J Eilenberg, Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Denmark, A E Hajek, Cornell University, USA and D C Steinkraus, University of Arkansas, USA
o Exploitation of the nematophagous fungus Verticillium chlamydosporium Goddard for the biological control of root-knot nematodes (Medoidogyne spp.) B R Kerry, IACR-Rothamsted, UK
o Fungal biocontrol agents of weeds, H C Evans, CABI Bioscience, UK, M P Greaves, University of Bristol, UK and A K Watson, McGill University, Canada
o Monitoring the fate of biocontrol of fungi, M J Bidochka, Trent University, Canada
o Prospects for strain improvement of fungal pathogens of insects and weeds, R St Leger, and S Screen, University of Maryland, USA
o Physiological approaches to improving ecological fitness of fungal biocontrol agents, N Magan
o Production, stabilisation and formulation of fungal biocontrol agents S P Wraight, USDA, Agricultural Research Service, USA, M A Jackson, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research and S L De Kock, Anchor Yeast, South Africa
o The spray application of mycopesticide formulations R Bateman, CABI Bioscience, UK and A Chapple, Aventis GmbH, Germany
o Toxic metabolites of fungal biocontrol agents, A Vey, Station Recherches de Pathologie Comparee, INRA-CNRS, France, R Hoagland, USDA-REE-ARS-MSA-SWS LAB, USA and T M Butt
o Safety of fungal biocontrol agents, J P Siegel, USDA/ARS, USA, M S Goettel, A E Hajek, and H C Evans
o Fungal biological control agents - appraisal and recommendations, T M Butt, C Jackson and N Magan