The first 100 years in the history of entomopathogenic nematodes

The field of entomopathogenic nematology has grown exponentially since the discovery of the first species, Steinernema kraussei (=Aplecatna kraussei), in 1923. Initially, entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) were solely viewed as a curiosity. The discovery of the nematode-bacteria association in 1965 and the incipient research for mass production motivated their recognition as biological control agents for agricultural pests. Subsequent studies were focused on the discovery of new species and/or populations, the early studies to understand the biotic and abiotic factors that contribute to their performance in the field and success in insect pest management. However, as we entered the 21st century, and with the advent of molecular biology, research on these organisms took a fascinating turn, unraveling a deeper understanding of the complex symbiotic relationship EPN has with their bacterial symbionts and the insect host. Furthermore, because of their experimental tractability, EPNs have proven to be model organisms that are used among various biological sciences to gain further insights into host-symbiont, host-pathogen interactions, population dynamics, and as resources for pharmaceutical bioprospecting. This special issue commemorates the first 100 years of research in entomopathogenic nematology and summarizes the contributions of ten symposia and presentations at the 100th Anniversary of the First EPN Discovery Congress in Logroño, Spain (https://www.icvv.es/english/epn). This specific article focuses on the historical review of EPN, their bacterial partners and the numerous and diverse applications in disciplines in basic such as phylogeny, biogeography, symbiosis, and soil biology and ecology, or more applied venues such as formulation and mass production, application technology, commercialization and regulation, from 1923 to the present time.

SPS acknowledges the Agricultural Research Institute (ARI) from California State University for providing partial support to attend the EPN 100 Anniversary Conference in Logroño Spain. RCH was also supported by the frame of the Grant PID2022-136487OB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033 and, by “ERDF A way of making Europe”.

Peer reviewed