Fig. 1

Silencing of Shp gene in Sitobion avenae that fed on dsRNA sprayed barley leaves. Leaves were sprayed in a semi-systemic setup as previously described [17] with a final concentration of 20 ng μl^− 1 dsRNA. cDNA was generated after total RNA extraction from aphids at 5 days of inoculation after dsRNA spray. The Shp gene silencing was measured via the 2^−ΔΔCt method in which the expression of the respective Shp gene was normalized against the aphid reference gene 18S ribosomal RNA (GenBank APU27819), and this Δ-Ct value was then normalized against the Δ-Ct of the mock sprayed control. The reduction in Shp gene expression in the aphids that fed on Shp-dsRNA sprayed leaves compared to the mock sprayed control was statistically significant. Error bars represent SE of three independent experiments each using 5–10 adult aphids for each treatment (**p < 0.01; students t-test)