PubMed · 2026-04-01
Scientists introduced a bacterial passenger from pea aphids into bird-cherry oat aphids—a major cereal pest—and found it slowed reproduction and reduced the proportion of winged aphids, which are responsible for spreading the pest to new fields. The bacterial passenger did not stop the aphid from transmitting barley yellow dwarf virus, but its other costs hint at a potential biological tool for limiting aphid dispersal.
Transinfected aphids had a lower intrinsic rate of increase (r), meaning they reproduced more slowly than aphids without the introduced bacterium.
Alate (winged) aphid production was reduced in the transinfected strain, suggesting the bacterium could limit the pest's ability to disperse to new host plants.
The Rickettsiella transinfection did not affect barley yellow dwarf virus acquisition or transmission, so the virus risk to crops remains unchanged despite the fitness costs to the aphid.
