The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences presents The 2016 Rossmann Manatt Seminar
Bryony Bonning, Professor and NSF Center Director, Iowa State University
From Plant Virus-Aphid Vector Molecular Interactions to Transgenic Resistance to Aphids
Monday, 4:10 p.m., E164 Lagomarcino Hall
Rossmann Manatt Seminar
Abstract: Aphids transmit some 300 plant viruses that result in considerable economic loss within the agricultural sector. Viruses within the family Luteoviridae are obligately transmitted by aphids in a persistent manner that requires virion accumulation in the aphid hemocoel. To enter the hemocoel, the virion must bind and traverse the aphid gut epithelium. The molecular mechanisms involved in this process are incompletely understood. By screening a phage display library, we identified a peptide that binds to the gut epithelium of the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris) and impedes the update of Pea enation mosaic virus from the pea aphid gut into the hemocoel. In this talk, the development of two novel aphid management technologies based on knowledge of pea aphid – Pea enation mosaic virus molecular interactions will be described. These technologies provide enhanced delivery of both gut active and neurotoxic peptides allowing for transgenic plant resistance to aphids.