Phys.Org: UC researchers unlock genetics of agricultural pest
UC biologist Joshua Benoit is looking at biological controls to replace pesticides
Phys.Org highlighted research by the University of Cincinnati to unlock the genetic code of an agricultural pest that causes $2 billion in losses each year in the United States.
UC College of Arts and Sciences associate professor Joshua Benoit worked with an international team to unlock the genetic code of stable flies, a common pest that harasses people and livestock alike.
Benoit and lead author Pia Untalan Olafson of the U.S. Department of Agriculture
“Stable flies are arguably one of the most important pests of livestock in the United States,” Olafson said.
By understanding the genes responsible for stable fly reproduction, researchers hope to design novel biological controls similar to methods that have worked to eradicate other pests.
Featured image at top: UC associate professor Joshua Benoit and his students sequence the genomes of insects to help develop more effective pest controls. Photo/Joseph Fuqua II/UC Creative + Brand
A stable fly. Photo/Geoffrey Attardo/UC Davis
More UC Biology News
- UC fruit fly study features sex, lasers and male competition
- Internship gives UC biology student zoo-keeping experience
- When push comes to shove, what is a fight?
- Scientific American: Tree snakes twist themselves into lassos to climb
- Biologists discover bizarre lasso snake locomotion
- UC survey covers two centuries of botany
Related Stories
UC remains an outlier nationally when it comes to enrollment...
November 8, 2024
UC President Neville Pinto spoke with the Cincinnati Business Courier about enrollment growth at the university. UC remains an outlier nationally with enrollment growing by 4.5% to 53,235 students in Fall 2024.
Experts recommend earlier screening as breast cancer rates rise...
November 8, 2024
The University of Cincinnati's Ann Brown, MD, was featured in a WLWT story discussing updated recommendations for women to begin screening for breast cancer at age 40.
Wrongful conviction: ‘If it can happen to me it can definitely...
November 8, 2024
Richard Horton and Nancy Smith, two exonerees of the Ohio Innocence Project at UC Law, speak with WYSO about wrongful conviction. OIP was founded in 2003 and is continuing its initial purpose: working to free every person in Ohio who has been convicted of a crime they didn’t commit.