Breeding for Resistance to Insect Pests

Abstract

The relationship between man and insect pests exists since the beginning of agriculture. Historically, the pest control most widely used is the chemical, however, despite its importance in controlling pests in various crops, its intensive use has been environmentally harmful, causing problems such as selection of populations of insect pests resistant to the products used outbreaks of secondary pests, reduction of natural enemies, undesirable residues in food poisoning in humans, animals, and environmental contamination. The alternative would be the development of resistant cultivars, it has significant advantages in the use of insecticides, and is considered an alternative strategy, at leorast complement, the use of insecticides. Furthermore, does not represent additional burden brings farmers and does not require transfer of a new technology. The methods used in breeding programs for resistance to insects are similar to those used for other traits of agronomic interest. In the literature, the methods used to incorporate resistance genes in plants are arthropods: mass selection, pedigree method, bulk, single seed descent, backcross, and recurrent selection. The procedures used in plant breeding have made significant progress with the development of techniques of molecular biology and genetic engineering. The transfer of exogenous genes for agronomic species can be considered the most significant advances in the biological sciences in recent years. Unlike what happens in the classic improvement where a large part of the genome is transferred by hybridization, genetic engineering techniques allow isolated genes are engineered and introduced in cultivars. Biotechnology is not intended to replace the conventional breeding, but the progress is undeniable and the contributions they have given to basic research and advanced genetics, as well as the development of cultivars with recognized contribution to agriculture.