Nuclear polyhedrosis virus replication in epithelial cell cultures of lepidoptera

Several isolates of nuclear polyhedrosis viruses have been replicated in continuous cell cultures. The use of in vitro systems provides an effective means for studying the infection process or for the production of viruses as biological insecticides. Recently, new cell lines were developed from the imaginal disks of two lepidopterans, IAL-TND1 from Trichoplusia ni and IAL-SFD1 from Spodoptera frugiperda . The authors examined the suitability of these new cell lines for replication of the nuclear polyhedrosis viruses from T. ni (TnNPV), Autographa californica (AcNPV), and Anticarsia gemmatalis (AgNPV). These are the first cell cultures of epidermal origin from Lepidoptera, therefore they may offer greater possibility for the in vitro production of NPVs for use as biological insecticides.