Progress 03/31/24 to 03/30/25
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences for this project during the past year included several different groups of people. First, the project served fellow scientists and researchers across academic, government, and private industry sectors. The integrative nature of this research wasof widescale appeal to scientists of both agriculture and evolutionary biology disciplines as it concerns an important biological control agent, as well as a complex symbiotic relationship at its focus. Additionally, I expanded my advisory group that has been served by the project to include faculty members at the University of Tennessee with expertise in integrated pest management strategies.I continuedto benefit from current advisory group members, including USDA scientistson Hawaii Island who work on tephritid fruit fly and parasitoid wasp biology, as well as colleagues within the field of entomology that work on insect-microbe interactions. The advisory group was kept abreast of the completion of project milestones and was tapped for their thoughts on the scientific merits of the research as it progresses, as well asinsights they could provide regarding unexpected results. In addition, this project served regulatory agencies by promoting basic research that will lead to innovative and sustainable pest control strategies in the future. This project also served different groups of students, including university graduate and undergraduate students that were mentored by me this past year. Finally, the general public was served by this project through science communication outlets that I published in during the last year. Changes/Problems:The project timeline has been extended by one year due to administrative delays associated with transitioning to a new university procurement system, which was implemented in the past year. These systematic changes resulted in unexpected delays in purchasing critical equipment necessary for completing planned experiments. With these issues now resolved, the additional time will ensure that all research objectives--particularly those involving molecular analyses--can be fully completed as originally proposed. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Over the past year, project activities supported several impactful training and professional development opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students. As a new faculty member, I provided one-on-one mentorship as the major advisor for to a new M.S. student in my lab, guiding him through the development of a comprehensive thesis research plan. This mentorship included hands-on training in experimental design, molecular biology techniques, bioinformatics protocols, and scientific communication, with the goal of building his independent research capacity and professional skill set. Additionally, I served as a faculty mentor for two undergraduate students in the UTK Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology's REEU summer research program. Through this program, the students received individualized instruction in handling a microsatellite sequencing dataset, learned to analyze genomic signatures of fire ant hybridization, and gained exposure to scientific communication and career pathways in genomics research. The program culminated in the students creating a research poster and presenting it as part of a university-wide symposium for undergraduate research. My professional development was further enriched through participation in national and international conferences and seminar series as an invited speaker. In the last year, I delivered seven invited talks at multiple institutions, including the University of Illinois, Mississippi State University, and Rutgers University. I also participated in symposia at major scientific meetings such as the International Congress of Entomology (Kyoto, Japan), the American Society for Virology Annual Meeting, and Entomology 2024 (Phoenix, AZ). These engagements provided critical opportunities to expand my scientific network, stay current in the field, and bring new ideas back to my research group and collaborators. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Over the past year, I actively disseminated project results to a range of communities of interest, including academic researchers, professional stakeholders, and members of the public who are traditionally less engaged with scientific research. Dissemination to the scientific community occurred through multiple invited and peer-reviewed presentations at national and international meetings. These included talks at the International Congress of Entomology in Kyoto, the American Society for Virology Annual Meeting, and Entomology 2024, where I shared findings on the genomic and functional evolution of mutualistic viruses in parasitoid wasps. These venues allowed me to connect with entomologists, virologists, and biological control practitioners across disciplines and global regions. To extend the impact of this research beyond the scientific community, I also engaged in multiple science communication efforts aimed at the general public. Notably, I authored a piece for The Conversation titled "In Hawaii, parasites and viruses team up in the battle against fruit flies" (Oct 2024), which explained the applied significance of our findings in accessible language and reached a broad, non-specialist readership. This article was further syndicated by other media outlets and sparked public interest in biological control and symbiotic virus research. In addition, I was interviewed for Knowable Magazine in a feature titled "The wasps that tamed viruses" (May 2024), which highlighted the broader implications of mutualistic virus evolution for global agriculture and pest management. These public-facing efforts were designed to enhance understanding of emerging topics in insect virology and to foster greater appreciation for the role of science in addressing real-world challenges. I also gave an outreach talk at the Alabama Regenerative Growers Conference (Nov 2024), presenting "Parasitoid wasps: nature's hidden allies" to a diverse audience of farmers, educators, and sustainable agriculture advocates. This event helped bridge the gap between basic research and applied practice, encouraging stakeholder engagement with biocontrol innovations rooted in symbiosis research. Together, these dissemination and outreach efforts contributed to increasing public understanding of insect-microbe interactions and underscored the broader societal value of fundamental science that this project supports. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the next reporting period, I will focus on completing the final research objectives outlined in the original project plan to deepen our understanding of virus-like particle (VLP) production and function in Fopius arisanus. Specifically, I will (1) finalize temporal and spatial characterization of VLP development in the wasp ovary and (2) experimentally determine the role of individual viral genes using gene knockdown and transcriptomic profiling approaches. These experiments will build on the genomic and molecular tools already developed in earlier stages of the project. In parallel, I plan to prepare and submit at least one additional manuscript for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, summarizing key findings related to viral gene function and its relevance to parasitoid reproductive biology. I will also continue disseminating results through upcoming conference presentations and seminar invitations, including an invitedtalk for the USDA-APHIS-PPQ Science & Technology, Domestic and Emergency Scientific Support (DESS) community in May 2025 and an invited presentation at the Entomological Society of America meeting in November 2025. To support the development of early-career scientists, I will continue mentoring two graduate students, a postdoctoral researcher, and new undergraduate students, integrating them into project activities such as sample preparation, data analysis, and figure generation. This hands-on training will provide essential experience in molecular biology, entomology research, and scientific communication. Lastly, I plan to expand public outreach efforts by developing new science communication content about parasitoid-virus mutualisms, and seek opportunities to present at community-oriented events or through media partnerships, continuing to enhance awareness of beneficial insect-microbe relationships and their relevance to agriculture and pest management.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
I continued to benefit from project funding in my first year as a faculty member and made substantial progress on the goals outlined in the Project Plan. Support from the award enabled me to successfully participate in several career development opportunities that broadened my scientific network and ultimately helped me lay the foundations for my newly established research program. I prioritized the remaining project funding to complete the original award's research program and to communicate my findings to various communities of interest, including stakeholders and the broader scientific community. Funding from this grant this past year allowed me to make progress on several research objectives outlined in the original award Project Plan under the goal to "Execute a research program" and to prepare two manuscripts for submission to peer-reviewed journals. Over the past year, I focused on two main aims that laid the foundation for our understanding of F. arisanus virus-like particles (VLPs): Characterizethe progression of VLP production in F. arisanus ovaries. Determine the function of individual VLP genes involved in VLP production. Building on the tools and knowledge developed earlier in the project, I used molecular biology and genomic sequencingtechniques to assess the transcriptional dynamics of VLPs during wasp development. The results from this work have continued to inform our understanding of the molecular mechanisms that contribute to the success ofF. arisanusas a dominant biological control agent of tephritid fruit fly pests worldwide. Additionally, these findings have opened new avenues for futuredevelopment of innovative pest control strategies that harness viral mechanisms to suppress fly pest populations.
Publications
- Type:
Peer Reviewed Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2024
Citation:
Coffman KA, Kauwe AN, Gillette NE, Burke GR, Geib SM. Host range of a parasitoid wasp is linked to host susceptibility to its mutualistic viral symbiont. Molecular Ecology. 2024;33: e17485. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17485
- Type:
Peer Reviewed Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Coffman KA. The roles of viruses in tephritid pest multitrophic interactions and an outlook for biological control. Current Opinion in Insect Science. 2025;68: 101333. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cois.2025.101333
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