MICROBIAL CONTROL Defination: Microbial control refers to the exploitation of disease causing organisms(viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, rickettsia, mycoplasma and nematodes) to reduce the population of insects pests below the damaging levels. Steinhaus (1949) Coined the term ‘Microbial Control’ when microbial organisms or other products (toxins) are employed by man for the control of pests on plants, animals or man. Insect diseases and their symptoms have been recognized as far back as 2700 BC in China with the honeybee, Apis mellifera and silkworm, Bombyx mori . In Europe, Aristotle was the first to mention that the bees suffered from diseases. In 1835, Agostino Bassi published his great work on muscardine disease of silkworm. A. Bassi is called the Father of Insect Pathology. A Russian Entomologist, Metschnikoff, conducted the first systematic experiments on the control on the control of injurious ...