In the pipeline: Two-spotted spider mite

The two-spotted spider mite has a wide crop host range. The mite consumes many fruits and vegetables and causes the yellowing of normally green leaves.

The polyphagous pest, managed in greenhouse and field settings, rapidly develops resistance to conventional insecticides, yielding losses of more than 10% in fruits and vegetables and up to 60% in row crops such as corn. The mite also damages economically important crops such as grapes.

GreenLight Bio is making progress in its solutions to control the mite. Within 10 days of applying GreenLight Bio’s sequences, the leaves in our tests show statistically significant mortality rates, with adult female mites’ survival near zero in vitro.