Phase II IUCRC at University of Florida: Center for Arthropod Management Technologies

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The development of new pest management approaches is critical for the production of sufficient food for the increasing human population, and for prevention of arthropod-transmitted disease to plants and humans. The more widespread pest distribution associated with changing climatic conditions exacerbates the need for new pest management tools. The economic losses associated with the activities of arthropods and nematodes are a significant burden to society through both agricultural losses and human health costs. The Center for Arthropod Management Technologies (CAMTech) addresses issues that limit effective management of the major insect and nematode pests that impact agriculture and human health. The center addresses the need for specific knowledge and research tools to expedite delivery of pest management solutions by industry partners to the marketplace, and to investigate both new approaches, and expansion of existing approaches for pest suppression. The major limitations in the field are common to the agricultural biotechnology and urban pest management industries and restrict widespread adoption of strategies shown to be effective in some systems. The center contributes key advances through state of the art, industrially relevant research and by training of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers including underrepresented groups, toward continued advancement of the field. CAMTech serves as a platform for innovative, interdisciplinary research activities at the interface of academia, government, and industry. The center conducts non-competitive research of crucial importance to the industrial sector using advanced methods such as next-generation sequencing and -omics, confocal microscopy, RNA interference and genome editing. Research expertise at the University of Florida site, which has the largest entomology and nematology department in the U.S., includes insect physiology and toxicology, microbiology, resistance management, integrated pest management and agricultural nematology. University of Florida participants work with a very diverse agriculture and a diverse range of pests of urban and public health importance. This diversity results from the large number of invasive species in Florida combined with the sub-tropical climate that favors pest populations. The research needs of industries in the agricultural biotechnology and human health domains align well with the expertise of university participants providing for the expedited development of pest management solutions to the benefit of agricultural sustainability and to public wellbeing.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.