RNAi technology: a new platform for crop pest control

The insect pests are big threat in meeting the food demands for future generation. The present pest control strategies, including the existing transgenic approaches show certain limitations and are not completely successful in limiting the insect pests. However, the sequence-specific gene silencing via RNA interference (RNAi) holds a great promise for effective management of agricultural pests. RNAi is naturally occurring conserved process responsible for gene regulation and defense against pathogens. The efficacy of RNAi varies among different insect orders and also depends upon various factors, including the target gene selection, method of dsRNAs delivery, expression of dsRNAs and presence of off-target effects. RNAi-mediated silencing of different insect genes involved in various physiological processes was found to be detrimental to insects growth, development and survival. In this article, we have reviewed the potential of RNAi-based strategies for effective management of insect pests. We have also discussed the various parameters, which are to be considered for host-induced RNAi-mediated control of insect pests without producing any effect on non-target organisms and environment.