A method for measuring the concentration of CO2 released by entomopathogenic nematodes/Método para medir la concentración de CO2 liberado por nematodos entomopatógenos

This study aimed to standardize a method for measuring the concentration of CO2 released by infective juveniles (IJ's), in order to assess their metabolic activity. The nematodes used in this experiment were Heterorhabditis amazonensis JPM4 and Steinernema carpocapsae All. A standardized gas chromatography (GC) method was used for CO2 analysis. There was a linear increase in CO2 concentration associated with increased numbers of IJs. Additionally, the CO2 concentration obtained for S. carpocapsae was higher than that obtained for H. amazonensis. The standardized GC method was adequate to measure the concentration of CO2 released by IJ's.