SBIR Phase I: A novel biological method to suppress Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) Toxin resistance

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is the development of a technology to sustain the efficacy of transgenic plants expressing the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxin. Transgenic expression of Bt toxins is a major tool for the control of insect pests in agriculturally important crops. Bt transgenic technology has been deployed on over one billion acres because it improves crop yields and reduces the environmental problem of using toxic chemical pesticides. Insects, however, are becoming increasingly resistant to the Bt toxin, which is threatening its sustainability. This project proposes to develop alternative means to suppress populations of important lepidopteran pest(s) targeted by Bt. There is no greater threat to sustainability of the Bt technology than the development of resistance, with current evidence indicating that resistance is increasingly impacting producers globally. Novel strategies to suppress or eliminate insect populations resistant to Bt represent a significant commercial opportunity. This SBIR Phase I project proposes to develop a novel biological control agent for use in specifically suppressing insect populations that are developing resistance to the Bt toxin. This project will produce a biological control agent, and test it for the ability to replicate in the target insect and determine if it has the predicted pathology. Once the agent is developed and its properties evaluated in the laboratory, experiments will be performed to establish methods for efficient infection of target pests. Phase II will assess impacts on pest populations in microcosm experiments with data used to develop population models of effects in the field. Successful experimental results will develop the technology to the point of field testing and commercialization planned for Phase III.