INTRODUCTION

Recent developments in scientific research have made it possible to employ certain bacteria as pesticides. These include the live of Bacillus thuringiensis, sold under the brandname Dipel, as well as the bacterium B. subtilis, which is sold under the brandname Kodiak. Both of these biological insecticides are based on naturally occurring compounds. These bacteria produce protein toxins that are deadly to pests, but are considered completely safe for humans and other wildlife.

BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS
Bacillus thuringiensis is a Gram-positive, soil-dwelling bacterium, which is commonly used as a biological pesticide. This organism occurs naturally in the gut of caterpillars of various types of moths and butterflies, animal feces, insect rich environments, as well as grain processing facilities. B. thuringiensis is closely related to B.cereus, a soil bacterium, and B.anthracis, the cause of anthrax: the three organisms differ mainly in their plasmids. Like other members of the genus, all three are aerobes capable of producing endospores.

HISTORY OF BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS

B. thuringiensis was first discovered in 1901 by Japanese biologist Ishiwata Shigetane. In 1911, B. thuringiensis was rediscovered in Germany by Ernst Berliner, who isolated it as the cause of a disease called Schlaffsucht in flour moth caterpillars. In 1976, Robert A. Zakharyan reported the presence of a plasmid in a strain of B. thuringiensis and suggested the plasmid's involvement in endospore and crystal formation.

SPORULATION AND ENDOTOXINS

During sporulation, many strains of this bacteria produce crystal proteins that are endotoxins. These endotoxins have insecticidal properties. Upon sporulation, B. thuringiensis forms crystals of proteinaceous insecticidal -endotoxins. These are called crystal proteins or Cry proteins, and are encoded by cry genes. In most strains of B. thuringiensis, the cry genes are located on a plasmid. In other words, cry is not a chromosomal gene in most strains of this microorganism. Cry toxins have specific activities against insect species of the orders Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies), Diptera (flies and mosquitoes), Coleoptera (beetles), Hymenoptera (wasps, bees, ants and sawflies) and nematodes. When insects ingest toxin crystals, the alkaline pH of their digestive tract denatures the insoluble crystals, making them soluble and thus amenable to being cut with proteases found in the insect gut, which liberate the cry toxin from the crystal. The Cry toxin is then inserted into the insect gut cell membrane, forming a pore. The pore results in cell lysis and eventual death of the insect.

BIOCIDAL FUNCTION OF DIPEL

To be effective, the pesticide DiPel must be eaten. It contains protein endotoxin crystals as well as living spores. The protein endotoxin is a selective stomach poison. Spores contribute to toxicity by causing blood poisoning and providing environmental persistence. The process is as follows: a) Larvae ingest DiPels crystal proteins from treated leaves. b) Feeding stops within minutes after crystals are solubilized in the gut and gut cells are damaged. c) After toxin damage to gut, spores enter through gut wall and germinate rapidly in body cavity causing blood poisoning. d) Larvae stop feeding in as little as half an hour and die in 13 days.

ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF DIPEL

This microorganism is considered to be environmentally friendly. It has not been observed to be harmful to wildlife. In addition, studies have shown that DiPel is not harmful to beneficial insects, including bees. DiPel can be handled by workers efficiently without the use of costly protective gear normally associated with other pesticides. In addition, tests have shown DiPel wont harm bees, birds, fish or other wildlife. Studies have shown that DiPel will NOT harm beneficial insects that help keep secondary insects in check. Lastly, because of DiPels specific mode of action, DiPel is not harmful to humans or animals.

BACILLUS SUBTILIS

This organism is also known as the hay bacillus. It is a Gram-positive, catalase-positive bacterium and a member of the genus Bacillus. B. subtilis is rod-shaped, and has the ability to form a tough, protective endospore, allowing the organism to tolerate extreme environmental conditions. Although this species is commonly found in soil, more evidence suggests that B. subtilis is a normal gut commensal in humans.

HISTORY OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS

In 1835, the bacterium was originally named Vibrio subtilis by Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg, and renamed Bacillus subtilis by Ferdinand Cohn in 1872. It was used by the German medical corps in 1941 to treat dysentery during the North African campaign after seeing local Arabic population using it for this purpose. Cultures of B. subtilis were used throughout the 1950s as an alternative medicine due to the immunostimulatory effects of its cell matter. It was marketed throughout America and Europe from 1946 as an immunostimulatory aid in the treatment of gut and urinary tract diseases such as Rotavirus and Shigella.

SAFETY
B. subtilis is only known to cause disease in severely immunocompromised patients, and can conversely be used as a probiotic in healthy individuals. It rarely causes food poisoning. Some B. subtilis strains produce the proteolytic enzyme subtilisin. B. subtilis spores can survive the extreme heat during cooking. Some B. subtilis strains are responsible for causing ropiness a sticky, stringy consistency caused by bacterial production of long-chain polysaccharides in spoiled bread dough. For a long time, bread ropiness was associated uniquely with B. subtilis species by biochemical tests. The Bacillus subtilis microbial strain and substances derived from this microorganism were subjects of evaluation by different authoritative bodies for their safe and beneficial use in food and has been regarded as not presenting safety concerns.

REPRODUCTION
B. subtilis can divide symmetrically to make two daughter cells (binary fission), or asymmetrically, producing a single endospore that can remain viable for decades and is resistant to unfavourable environmental conditions such as drought, salinity, extreme pH, radiation and solvents. The endospore is formed at times of nutritional stress, allowing the organism to persist in the environment until conditions become favourable. Prior to the process of sporulation the cells might become motile by producing flagella, take up DNA from the environment, or produce antibiotics. These responses are viewed as attempts to seek out nutrients by seeking a more favourable environment, enabling the cell to make use of new beneficial genetic material or simply by killing of competition..

BIOCIDAL PROPERTIES

B. subtilis is known to be antagonistic toward many fungal plant pathogens. This antagonism may be achieved in several ways including nutrient competition, site exclusion, colonization and attachment of the bacteria to the fungal pathogen. This bacterium can stop plant pathogen spores from germinating, disrupt germ tube growth and inhibit attachment of the plant pathogen to the leaf. The pests controlled include Powdery mildew (Podosphaera leucotricha, Uncinula necator, Sphaerotheca macularis, Oidiopis taurica, Leveillula taurica ), Gray mold (Botrytis cinerea), Downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola, Bremia lactucae, Peronospora spp.), Early Blight (Alternaria solani), Late Blight (Phytophera infestans), Bacterial spot (Xanthomanas spp) and Walnut blight (Xanthomanas campestris). B. subtilis is common in soil and plant litter without documented toxicity or pathogenicity in the environment.

CONCLUSION

Biopesticides such as the bacteria mentioned in this report are an important form of pest management intervention. These occur through predatory, parasitic, or chemical relationships. The US EPA states that these biocides "include naturally occurring substances that control pests (biochemical pesticides), microorganisms that control pests (microbial pesticides), and pesticidal substances produced by plants containing added genetic material (plantincorporated protectants) or PIPs". They are typically created by growing and concentrating naturally occurring organisms and/or their metabolites including bacteria and other microbes, fungi, nematodes, proteins, etc. They are often considered to be important components of integrated pest management (IPM) programmes, and have received much practical attention as substitutes to synthetic chemical plant protection products. .