E se il punteruolo affamasse Steinernema carpocapsae?

Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier 1790) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), phytophagus of palms, has been used as a model to deepen the knowledge of the host-entomopathogen relationship. The effects of Steinernema carpocapsae (Nematoda: Steinernematidae) on the growth and immunoactivity of R. ferrugineus larvae were compared with another model insect Galleria mellonella L. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Although S. carpocapsae had a negative effect on the weight and mortality of R. ferrugineus, it was not able to replicate in the hemolymph with the same rates found for the moth. In vivo and in vitro effects of S. carpocapsae on the phagocytic responsesof the hemocytes of R. ferrugineus and G. mellone…