The Role of Methoprene on Silk Production of Silkworm Antheraea assamensis Helfer, 1837 (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae)

Abstract Juvenile hormone analogues (JHAs) have been extensively studied in silkworms for the improvement of silk production. Accordingly, the effect of JHA methoprene in silkworm Antheraea assamensis Helfer has been studied in the present study. 5th instar larvae of A. assamensis were injected with selected doses of methoprene after 48 h of fourth ecdysis to assess the quantitative cocoon parameters like cocoon weight, shell weight, shell ratio, filament length and denier followed by qualitative cocoon characters like non-breakable filament length, reelability, raw silk percentage, tensile strength and elongation. The most effective dose of methoprene was found to be 0.01 µL/larva which showed improved cocoon characters compared to control leading to better silk yield. It was also observed that the prolongation of larval period upto a certain period causes development of the silk gland giving good silk yield but further larval prolongation led to poor silk gland functioning giving reduced silk yield. Thus, methoprene can be beneficial for improved silk yield when used with appropriate dose and time.