Principal Investigator:
Omprakash Mittapalli, Entomology
Collaborator:
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)
Description:
Helicoverpa armigera is a generalist insect pest of high agricultural importance in developing countries, in particular. It causes significant damage to cotton, grain legumes, cereals, vegetables and fruit crops due to the development of resistance to conventional insecticides. Hence, there is an urgent need to develop alternate control methods for this pest to minimize over dependence on insecticides. We propose to decipher the molecular processes that influence successful adaptation of H. armigera on resistant and susceptible host plants using genomic approaches. These studies will lay the foundation for developing environment friendly pest management strategies.