ISSN: 0973-7510

E-ISSN: 2581-690X

Review Article | Open Access
R. Katherine, M. Samuel and Jissin Mathew
Division of Biotechnology, School of Engineering and Technology, Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
Article Number: 10944 | © The Author(s). 2026
J Pure Appl Microbiol. 2026;20(2):1081-1093. https://doi.org/10.22207/JPAM.20.2.18
Received: 10 September 2025 | Accepted: 25 March 2026 | Published online: 05 May 2026
Issue online: June 2026
Abstract

The Xenorhabdus genus encompasses of the bacteria that forms symbiotic association with the Entomopathogenic nematodes of Steinernema genus. The Xenorhabdus spp. exhibits dual relationship of pathogenic relationship with insects and mutualistic relationship with the nematodes. The Xenorhabdus spp. isolation is performed using Galleria mellonella as a bait. Xenorhabdus spp. produces secondary metabolites that have various inhibitory activities, from insecticidal to anti-tumour activity, with mechanisms ranging from membrane disruption to inhibition of RNA, protein synthesis, and immune suppression. These activities have been employed in various fields such as agriculture field for pesticides, mosquito control for larvicide, in medicine for antibiotics and particularly in cancer therapy. The compounds like rhabduscin is used in insecticides, lecithinase in larvicide, Xenorhabdicin as antibiotic and rhabdopeptides in anti-tumour activity. In general, Xenorhabdus is an important but not thoroughly investigated resource for creating sustainable biocontrol agents and new therapeutic compounds.

Keywords

Entomopathogenic Nematodes, Biocontrol Agents, Anti-microbial Activity, Insecticidal Activity, Anti-tumour Activity, Therapeutic Compounds

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