Hormones regulate development and reproduction not only in humans, but in all animals, including pests that threaten livestock and crops. Invasive insect pests cost U.S. agriculture billions of dollars each year, threatening crops and challenging the farming industry. Some mimics of hormones are used to control insect pests, yet scientists still have much to learn about how they work or how insects develop resistance to them.
A new project from Lacy Barton , PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Neuroscience, Development and Regenerative Biology, will solve some of these mysteries by investigating a special class of hormones called juvenile hormones. These hormones are essential for the reproduction and development of insects, including invasive insects like the screw worm threatening livestock and the Mexican fruit fly threatening the citrus industry in South Texas.
After being awarded the prestigious Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award , Barton and her research team will help scientists understand how insects respond and adapt to excess juvenile hormones, which are used in several ways around the world to control insect populations.
The CAREER program is the National Science Foundation’s premier award for early-career faculty who demonstrate exceptional potential as both researchers and educators.
The five-year NSF CAREER Award comes with more than $860,000 of funding that will support an integrated research and education program to advance new approaches to protecting South Texas agriculture while training graduate students, providing undergraduate students with course-based research and expanding K–12 science education.
Protecting South Texas agriculture
Using the common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a laboratory model, Barton’s team will apply those discoveries to Anastrepha ludens, an invasive fruit fly species that threatens South Texas agriculture.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture , A. ludens infests more than 50 types of fruits and vegetables, including oranges, grapefruits, mangoes and avocados. Throughout the project, Barton will collaborate with the USDA’s Insect Management and Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory in Mission, Texas, to identify biological markers that could help scientists detect resistance to insect growth regulators earlier and inform sterile insect release programs already used to protect South Texas agriculture.
Barton’s lab studies how juvenile hormones control development and reproduction. By investigating how these hormones are regulated, and how insects develop resistance to them, Barton’s lab aims to improve future strategies for managing invasive insects.
“Juvenile hormones regulate development, reproduction, immunity, aging, behavior and other biological processes across nearly 75% of animal species,” Barton said. “While the immediate application is insect management, the discoveries could influence many areas of developmental biology, endocrinology, and fertility.”
Preparing the next generation of scientists
The project will also give undergraduate students the opportunity to contribute directly to the research by screening approximately 300 genes that may influence insecticide resistance, generating data for future scientific publications and providing valuable, hands-on research training.
Approximately 60 undergraduate students will participate through a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) , while three doctoral students will receive intensive research training. The graduate students will also gain outreach experience by working with middle school science teachers and collaborating with USDA scientists, helping prepare them for future careers in academia, government and industry.
Bringing science into South Texas classrooms
The CAREER project will also extend its impact beyond the university by strengthening STEM education throughout South Texas. Over the five-year award period, approximately 20 middle school science teachers will receive specialized training, equipping them with hands-on lessons about invasive species that are expected to reach an estimated 3,600 middle school students.
Teachers will guide students through activities such as building insect traps, identifying insect species, learning about local agriculture and participating in virtual “Meet a Scientist” sessions with UT San Antonio and USDA researchers.
“I am thrilled to give students at all levels the opportunity to contribute to research that has real-world applications,” Barton said. “We’re building a program where discoveries made in the lab can ultimately benefit South Texas and inspire the next generation of scientists.”