Latest Bruce Tabashnik Stories

To slow resistance of western corn rootworm beetles to genetically protected crops, much larger 'refuge' acreages of conventional crops have to be planted, 2 experts warn in a paper published in the Journal of Economic Ecology Genetically modified crops that produce insect-killing proteins from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) have reduced reliance on insecticide sprays since 1996. These proteins are lethal to some devastating crop pests, but do not harm most other creatures...

A slight change in molecular structure introduced by genetic engineering gives crop-protecting proteins called Bt toxins a new edge in overcoming resistance of certain pests, a UA-led team of researchers reports in Nature Biotechnology One of the most successful strategies in pest control is to endow crop plants with genes from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt for short, which code for proteins that kill pests attempting to eat them. But insect pests are evolving resistance...

Combining pest-resistant cotton with the controlled release of sterile pink bollworm moths, a UA-led initiative has virtually rid Arizona of one the world's most damaging cotton pestsUsing pests as part of an insect birth control program helps to get rid of them, UA researchers find. A new approach that combines the planting of pest-resistant cotton and releasing large numbers of sterile moths has virtually eliminated of the world's most destructive cotton pests from Arizona.The novel control...

Biologists call for making available more detailed maps of the  locations of biotech crops. Access to maps of biotech crops on a county and township level will give researchers greater ability to analyze the effects of biotech crops on wildlife, water quality, and on pest and beneficial insects. "Since 1996 more than a billion acres have been planted with biotech crops in the U.S.," said Michelle Marvier of Santa Clara University in Calif. "We don't really know what are the...