PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Aurélie Babin AU - Marie-Paule Nawrot-Esposito AU - Armel Gallet AU - Jean-Luc Gatti AU - Marylène Poirié TI - Adverse effects of <em>Bacillus thuringiensis</em> bioinsecticide on non-target <em>Drosophila</em> species AID - 10.1101/541847 DP - 2019 Jan 01 TA - bioRxiv PG - 541847 4099 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/03/26/541847.short 4100 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/03/26/541847.full AB - Biopesticides based on Bacillus thuringiensis kurstaki (Btk) and israelensis (Bti) spores and toxins are widely used to control insect pests, increasing environmental risks to non-target biodiversity. Here, we tested for potential effects of larval ingestion of Bt commercial formulations on Drosophila species. Doses equivalent to those recommended for field application (⩽106 CFU/g of fly medium) had no effect whereas Btk doses 10 to 100-fold higher (107-108 CFU/g) altered the development (decreased emergence due to larval mortality and increased development time), and moderately influenced adult fitness-related traits. At the highest Btk and Bti dose (109 CFU/g), all larvae died before pupation. The impact of Btk formulations resulted from the spores/cleaved toxins synergy, but also additives. While recommended doses had no effect on non-target Drosophila species, the accumulation of Bt bioinsecticides in the environment could have adverse side-effects on the populations of these species and therefore their associated communities.