Understanding resistance of key crop pests in Brazil

害虫是当前和未来粮食安全的主要威胁，全世界每年平均有20%的作物因食草昆虫而损失。这个问题在巴西尤为严重，因为农业是经济的关键组成部分，占国内生产总值（GDP）的22%。巴西的农民和种植者广泛使用合成杀虫剂，以减少虫害造成的产量损失。不幸的是，对杀虫剂的日益依赖导致了害虫种群的出现，这些种群对用于控制的许多化学品具有抗药性。在这方面最重要的两个经济物种是新热带褐臭虫（Euschistus heros）和秋粘虫（Spodoptera frugiperda）。e .英雄是大豆和蔬菜作物的重要害虫,导致严重破坏棉花和玉米,而美国frugiperda以超过80植物物种但尤其具有破坏性的玉米。这些物种现已出现对几种重要杀虫剂的抗药性，并威胁到对它们的可持续控制。尽管这一问题很严重，但很少进行研究来了解E. heros和S. frugiperda的耐药性演变，并利用这一知识制定对抗其出现和传播的方法。这在一定程度上是由于缺乏这些主要害虫物种的基因组资源，特别是在英雄e的情况下。这个第一阶段的项目有两个目标，首先，它将产生关键的“组学”（基因组和转录组学）资源和数据，这将是研究这些物种的宝贵资源。这些将包括首个带注释的英雄肠杆菌基因组草图，英雄肠杆菌和frugiperda肠道中整个微生物群落（微生物组）的序列特征，以及两种物种的组织特异性基因表达数据，这些数据可用于确定候选基因（如与抗性有关的基因）的表达位置。在这一建议的背景下，这些数据将极大地促进这些物种中与杀虫剂抗性相关的基因和DNA标记的未来表征，这些基因和DNA标记可用于开发预防、减缓或克服抗性发展的工具。为了确保在本项目和后续项目中获得的知识能够产生应用影响，该项目的第二个主要目标是在巴西农业中建立一个关键利益相关者群体网络。为实现这一目标，将与种植者协会、政府和行业成员举行讲习班，包括巴西杀虫剂抗性行动委员会（IRAC-BR）、巴西棉花种植者协会（ABRAPA）、大豆和玉米种植者协会（APROSOJA）、巴西农业部和农药技术咨询委员会（CTA）的代表。这些会议将确定未来研究的优先事项，并制定路线，将科学转化为巴西农业生态系统中这两种重要害虫的抗性管理和合理控制的工具和战略。

Insect pests represent a major threat to current and future food security with an average of 20% of crops worldwide lost annually to herbivorous insects. This issue is particularly acute in Brazil where agriculture forms a key component of the economy accounting for 22% of gross domestic product (GDP). Synthetic insecticides are widely used by farmers and growers in Brazil in an attempt to reduce yield loss from insect pests. Unfortunately, the growing reliance on insecticides has resulted in the emergence of insect pest populations that are resistant to many of the chemicals used for control. Two of the most economically important species in this regard are the neotropical brown stink bug, Euschistus heros, and the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda. E. heros is a major pest of soybean and vegetable crops and causes severe damage to cotton and maize, while S. frugiperda feeds on more than 80 plant species but is particularly destructive on maize. Resistance to several important insecticides has now emerged in these species and threatens their sustainable control. Despite the seriousness of this issue very little research has been carried out to understand the evolution of resistance in E. heros and S. frugiperda and to use this knowledge to develop means to combat its emergence and spread. This is, in part, due to a lack of genomic resources for these key pest species - particularly in the case of E. heros. This Stage 1 pump-prime project has two aims, firstly it will generate key 'omic' (genomic and transcriptomic) resources and data for E. heros and S. frugiperda that will be a valuable asset to the community studying these species. These will include the first annotated draft genome for E. heros, sequence characterization of the entire microbial community (the microbiome) in the gut of E. heros and S. frugiperda, and tissue-specific gene expression data for both species that can be used to determine where candidate genes (such as those involved in resistance) are expressed. In the context of this proposal these data will greatly facilitate future characterization of genes and DNA markers associated with insecticide resistance in these species that can be used to develop tools to prevent, slow or overcome the development of resistance. To ensure that the knowledge gained in this and follow on projects can achieve applied impact the second main aim of this pump-prime project is to develop a network of key stakeholder groups in Brazilian agriculture. This will be achieved by holding workshops with members of growers associations, government and industry including representatives of Insecticide Resistance Action Committee Brazil (IRAC-BR), the Brazilian Cotton Growers Association (ABRAPA), the Soybean and Maize Growers Association (APROSOJA), the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture and the Technical Advisory Committee of Pesticides (CTA). These meetings will define the priorities of future research and develop routes for translation of the science into tools and strategies for resistance management and rational control of these two important insect pests of Brazilian agri-ecosystems.