The insects of the order Lepidoptera are the main pests affecting the crop of corn and can cause up to 34% reductions in production. The control of these pests is achieved primarily through the use of chemical insecticides, a system that brings negative effects to man, animals and environment. The use of biological control in pest management has emerged as an alternative to minimize these effects of the application of synthetic chemical insecticides, preserving the natural environment and the gains from producer. Despite many benefits, only 1% of agricultural pests have been controlled by biological processes. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a gram-positive soil bacterium that produces large quantities of protein crystals. These proteins are toxic to a variety of insects from the orders Lepidoptera, Diptera, and Coleoptera. With the advent of biotechnology, it is possible the introduction of cry genes in plants of
corn, creating a genetic modified organism that is resistant to insect pests such as Spodoptera frugiperda. The Bt gene present in the market today are Cry1Ab and Cry1F, Cry3A, Cry3Bb1, Cry9C, Cry1Ac and Vip3A for various pests and crops. We are proposing with this project the increasing of the number of cry1C events and data association of gene insertion, copy number and gene expression with the effect of insecticides on armyworm. The amino acid sequence of the gene cry1C used in this project is the same as obtained in the preliminary results. Transgenic maize plants obtained by Agrobacterium are analyzed by PCR to confirm integration of the transgene into the genome by Southern blot to verify the number of copies per real-time PCR for gene expression. The Southern blot also help to discriminate number of events and copies of segregation in the F1 progeny. The end result is the demonstration of insecticidal effect of cry1C gene by measuring mortality of armyworm fed with leaves of transgenic maize in both T0 and T1 generation, obtained at Embrapa, compared with commercial events. These results fit the theme of health defense and are may provide a viable product for producers of low and middle income.