Historical pest genomes inform debate about how rapid evolution proceeds

该项目计划比较存档和当代标本的基因组，以发现两种主要的澳大利亚害虫蛾是如何适应杀虫剂的，从而帮助预测它们未来的反应。农业害虫物种往往能够迅速适应杀虫剂，导致广泛的遗传抗性。这种抗性是建立在现有的基因变异上，还是利用新的突变来产生快速的适应性反应？澳大利亚主要害虫的适应策略有何不同？该项目旨在回答这些问题，并进一步了解支持快速进化的机制，以改进有害生物管理和农业保护的方法。

This project plans to compare the genomes of archived and contemporary specimens to discover how two key Australian pest moths have adapted to insecticides, aiding prediction of how they may respond in the future. Agricultural pest species are often capable of rapid adaptation to insecticides, resulting in widespread genetic resistance. Does this resistance build on existing genetic variation, or are fresh mutations used to produce a fast adaptive response? How do adaptive strategies differ among key Australian pests? This project aims to answer these questions and advance understanding of mechanisms that underpin rapid evolution to improve approaches toward pest management and agricultural protection.