[01] Sidra Sarwar, Department of Botany, Government Post Graduate College, Faisalabad, Pakistan. [02] Muhammad Sarwar, Nuclear Institute for Food & Agriculture (NIFA), Peshawar, Pakistan.

Everywhere on our planet, insects are the most common animals contributing variably in the environment and have a significant impact on the ecosystem. Most of insects are adapted to live with plants, important as predators and parasitoids, and some are important vectors of diseases that weaken or kill the hosts. In this article information is described on insect vectors of plant diseases and the basic requirements for insect and disease management for the plant scientists. The four basic types of plant pathogens transmitted by insects are fungi (most important plant pathogens), bacteria, viruses (second most important pathogens) and mycoplasma-like organisms, that can replicate within both their host and vector. Spread of plant pathogens by insects involves interactions of plant, pathogen, insect vector, environment, weather, cultural practices, farming operations and agro-ecosystem. The factors contributing to plant diseases spreading are new emerging and re-emerging environmental changes, microbial adaptation and change, human demographics and behavior, technology and economic development, international travel and commerce, and introduction of exotic or invasive species. Control of plant disease vectors is crucial to the reliable production of food, and it provides significant reductions in agricultural use of land, water, fuel and other inputs. The services to vector borne diseases control can be include plant disease identification and disease assessment, insect and insect injury identification along with their assessments, and nutritional and cultural problem assessment as well as Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program. Integrated pest management is an ecological approach to pathogens transmission control that focuses on prevention, observation, thoughtful assessment and careful intervention only when needed. In the IPM system, chemical pesticide is employed as a last defense option against the vectors and pests.

Insect, Vector, Virus, Bacteria, Fungus, Mycoplasma, Toxaemia, Pathogen, Disease

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