Agricultural Research Service

June 30, 1999

This invention relates to novel mosquito-infecting baculovirus and to insecticidal compositions which include baculovirus effective for control of insects, especially mosquitos, Culex quinquefasciatus and Culex nigripalpus, for example. The composition further contains a divalent cation such as magnesium, cobalt, strontium, and nickel. Insect control using baculoviruses is an attractive approach because baculoviruses only infect invertebrates, and they can generally be produced in sufficiently high numbers for commercial use. The virus of this invention can be produced with a novel in vitro propagation method in cultured mosquito cells which are grown in a culture medium containing a divalent cation as described above along with a chelator or binder that selectively reduces the effective calcium ion concentration.

James J. Becnel USDA, ARS, CMAVE Gainesville, FL (352) 374-5961 / Fax: (352) 374-5922	Fukuda Tokuo (Same address as first inventor) (352) 374-5398 / Fax: (352) 374-5922
Susan White (Same address as first inventor)	Andrew Cockburn (Same address as first inventor)
Bettina Moser (Same address as first inventor)	Albert Undeen 311 Cozy Cove Whittier, NC 28789 (828) 586-2502

biocontrol, organisms, cell lines, hybridomas, monoclonal antibodies, vaccines