**2.4 Production on solid substrates**

The entomopathogenic fungi were grown on solid substrate (rice grains) as described in our previous study (Hussain et al., 2011). In brief, 50 % diluted 10 ml inoculum obtained from above media was added into a self-aerating bag containing 20 g of sterilized par boiled rice, separately. Inoculated rice granules were mixed thoroughly from the outside of the bag. Inoculated rice bags were then incubated for 18 days at ambient conditions (24 ± 2 ºC, 75- 85% RH). The sporulating rice in bags from each growth medium was then allowed to dry for 10 d at 30 °C. The spores were separated from the rice by sieving through a 300 µm mesh. A collecting vessel, such as a bucket was fitted to the plastic sheeting at the bottom of the sieve to create a funnel into the collecting vessel. The sieve was shaken until all the loose spores had been removed from the rice and had collected in the vessel below. The spores were then further sieved using a 106 μm sieve to separate the larger rice dust particles from the spores. The spores as powder were kept at 4 ºC for subsequent analysis of the activity of extracellular protease Pr1.
