Centers
Message From The Director
PETER ATKINSON
Director, Center for Disease Vector Research
New Opportunities for Insect Control
Diseases vectored by pest insects cause a tremendous health and economic burden upon even developed societies. In developing societies the effects are even more severe. Human diseases transmitted by mosquitoes and biting flies affect hundreds of millions of people every day resulting in mortality and morbidity rates that are significant factors preventing many developing countries from realizing their full potential in the global community. Diseases of agriculture transmitted by insects that feed on plants continue to present challenges of effective economic and environmental control in all countries. Our technologies are constantly challenged by the ability of pest insects to overcome any barriers we present to them leading to a necessity to both improve and refine existing approaches to insect control and to develop new ones.
The rapid growth in modern technology provides new opportunities for approaches to insect control. The computational basis of genomics, bioformatics and proteomics combined with affordable and inexpensive sequencing technology will soon provide researchers with the completed genome sequences of many pest species as well as those genomes of closely related species. In addition the sequencing of genetic strains that differ in their ability to vector pathogens or destroy crops will be expected to lead to the identification of critical genes and pathways that contribute to the pestiferous nature of these insects. This wealth of new genetic information combined with generic technologies to introduce or silence genes into these species will lead to new opportunities for insect control. In addition it will provide a basis for using chemical genetics to identify new small molecules that could act as species-specific insecticides.
These new opportunities and approaches, when judiciously combined with existing strategies and expertise in insect control place insect science in an exciting position. The Center for Disease Vector Research seeks to development and implement these approaches through cross-disciplinary research and undergraduate and graduate student training in these areas. The UC Riverside campus has a strong and long record in developing innovative approaches to insect control and so provides an ideal and unique environment in which to combine existing and new technologies for this important purpose.
Peter W. Atkinson
Director, Center for Disease Vector Research
Professor of Entomology
Phone: (951) 827-4782
Email: peteratk@ucr.edu