SD16: Biorational RNAi pesticides for management of pest insects

The development of innovative, environmentally sustainable, and cost-effective insect control tools is essential for advancing both public health and sustainable agriculture. Our lab has developed a novel class of RNA interference (RNAi) insecticides that effectively target a wide range of urban and agricultural pests, including disease-vectoring mosquitoes, ants, roaches, and major crop pests such as spotted wing Drosophila (Drosophila suzukii) and various Lepidopteran species. These insecticides are designed with 25 bp target sequences that are conserved across multiple pest species but absent in humans and other non-target organisms, ensuring high specificity and safety. Utilizing genetically engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker’s yeast) to express short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs), this platform enables scalable, cost-efficient production. The yeast is heat-killed before application, and the insecticides have shown strong efficacy and specificity in laboratory trials, particularly against D. suzukii and several pest moth species. In D. suzukii, we confirmed the mode of action through neural gene silencing and disruption of neural activity. As part of an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy, our approach targets economically damaging pests that threaten global food security—such as those affecting cherries, apples, corn, soybeans, and cotton—while minimizing harm to ecologically beneficial insects.