Revolutionizing Urban Pest Management with Wolbachia in Cockroaches.

A new study has found that Wolbachia, a type of bacteria commonly found in insects, is present in four out of 16 cockroach species across three families. Researchers hope that further study may lead to new management methods for pest cockroach species, potentially using Wolbachia as a tool for urban insect management instead of relying on conventional insecticides. Wolbachia can manipulate the reproductive biology of its insect host, and the type of manipulation depends on the strain found in an insect.