The efficacy of genetically modified (GM) corn Bt11 against Ostrinia furnacalis (Guenee) and Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner)

Corn pests such as corn stem borer Ostrinia furnacalis and corn earworm Helicoverpa armigera could reduce yield quantitatively and qualitatively. Bt11 is a genetically modified corn that contains the cry1Ab gene that has been proven in other countries can control the lepidopteran insect pest of corn. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the efficacy of Bt11 against O. furnacalis and H. armigera that are found in Indonesia. The experiments were conducted in a containment facility at ICABIOGRAD using leaf tissue and whole plant assays for O. furnacalis and fresh ear assay for H. armigera. The experimental design was completely randomized with two treatments, Bt11 and non-Bt11 plants with 20 replicates for leaf tissue assay and fresh ears assay and 16 replicates for whole plant assay. The statistical analysis was a t-test. The results showed that Bt11 is highly efficacious against O. furnacalis and H. armigera.