Faculty Research Labs
We are seeking to understand rudimentary elements of insect olfaction involving signal acquisition and signal transduction using advanced imaging techniques such as atomic force microscopy in conjunction with neurophysiological recordings. We would like to get a better understanding of the evolution of olfaction in insects by using a comparative approach that involves moth species from several families, flies, and mosquitoes.
Sustainable and Organic Crop Entomology--Our research focuses on the effects of agricultural production practices on biological control of insect pests and on soil arthropod diversity and soil function as it relates to system sustainability.
Insect Biochemistry and Physiology Lab
Molecular Parasitology Lab--Molecular parasitology with a focus on the malaria parasites (epigenetics, developmental biology and epidemiology).
Research in our laboratory focuses on understanding the interactions between plants and herbivores.
Insect Dynamics and Management in Agroecosystems--This lab is involved in researching the structure, dynamics, and management of insect populations. Resulting sampling plans have been adopted in alfalfa, hardwood forests, and leafy greens in the Caribbean; regional monitoring programs have been developed for diversified vegetable farms.
Honey Bee Behavioral Genomics--We study the molecular bases of social behavior in honey bees and other social insects, including bumble bees, paper wasps, and fire ants. We focus on mechanistic and evolutionary bases of chemical communication, including queen-worker interactions and the effects of pathogens and parasites.
Invasive Species Research Lab--We study mechanisms of resistance in the gypsy moth to its host specific baculovirus, pheromones and gut symbionts of the Asian longhorned beetle, biological control of hemlock woolly adelgid, and methods to prevent movement of invasive species around the world.
Honey bee and native pollinator health
The Read Group Lab -- We work on the ecology and evolution of infectious disease. We exploit modern notions of adaptive evolution to attack biomedically and theoretically challenging phenomena like virulence and infectiousness, adaptation to new hosts, and vaccine escape, and drug and insecticide resistance.
Our research explores many aspects of the ecology and evolution of "enemy-victim" interactions with the aim of better understanding the consequences of global change (climate change, invasive species, biodiversity loss) and improving the effectiveness and sustainability of pest and disease management. We combine empirical and theoretical approaches to address issues of fundamental and applied significance.
Plant-Insect Interactions in Agroecosystems--We study relationships among plants, insect herbivores, and natural enemies to understand factors that regulate populations of herbivorous insects. We are interested in both plant- and natural-enemy-mediated factors and how they influence insect behavior, community composition, and herbivore mortality. Our long-term goal is to exploit the ecology/biology of our study organisms to provide strategies and tactics for more sustainable insect pest management.
Insect Behavior and Plant-Insect Interactions--researching chemicals that affect insect behavior, plant-insect interactions, plant signaling, and plant defenses
Population ecology and population dynamics with particular emphasis on mathematical and computational aspects.
Chemically mediated ecological interactions among plants, herbivores, and parasitoids.
Our research focuses on the role of plant volatiles in mediating ecological and evolutionary interactions among plants, insects, and pathogens. The main areas of interest of our lab are chemical ecology, disease ecology, co-evolution, and tritrophic interactions.
