La. Castrillo et al., Long-term retention of ice-nucleating active Pseudomonas fluorescens by overwintering Colorado potato beetles, CRYO-LETT, 21(1), 2000, pp. 5-12
Ice nucleating-active Pseudomonas fluorescens F264C was fed to Colorado pot
ato beetles to determine bacterial retention in the beetle gut and its effe
ct on the cold-hardiness of this insect pest. The bacterium was present in
beetles recovered after overwintering in the field, seven months after thei
r initial exposure to P. fluorescens. Retention was evident not only in the
detection of the P. fluorescens ice nucleation gene, inaW, in bacterial cu
ltures from beetle guts but also in the elevated supercooling points of som
e of the treated beetles.