Microbes in Human Welfare — BIOLOGY STD 12 Science — Question

4. Sporeine

Explanation:

The first bioinsecticide developed on the commercial scale was sporeine. Sporeine is the trade name given to the commercial product made from Bacillus thuringiensis. The active ingredient in Bacillus thuringiensis is a toxic protein which gets activated in the alkaline pH of the insects. The protein actually binds to specific sites on the midgut of insects and creates pores which destroy the pests. It is mainly used as an insecticide in agriculture. The earliest commercial production of Bt began in France in approximately 1938, under the trade name 'sporeine'.