Mosquitoes are in trouble, thanks to a new trap that effectively attracts and kills them and biting flies. ARS researchers co-developed the trap under a cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) between ARS and BioSensory, Inc., of Willimantic, CT. Registered under the trade name Dragonfly, the trap was named for the mosquito-hunting insect. It lures mosquitoes with a blend of carbon dioxide, heat, and octenol—the same chemical cues that attract biting insects in nature. Mosquitoes find their human and animal blood meals first by sensing carbon dioxide in breath, which they can detect up to 100 feet away. Mosquitoes also can find their prey by using heat sensors on their antennae. The trap mimics the human or animal blood system, which helps lure them to the trap. The difference is that when mosquitoes home in on the target and stop to dine, they are killed with an electronic pulse and fall into a removable tray. That's a big advantage over traditional electrical bug-zapping traps that splatter the insect. ARS researchers conducted field studies showing the trap's effectiveness in capturing mosquitoes. The attractants are registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for controlling mosquitoes and other biting insects. ARS and BioSensory have a joint patent on the attractants used in the trap, with one patent pending. The trap should be commercially available this summer from BioSensory.

Center for Medical, Agricultural, and Veterinary Entomology, Gainesville, FL
Daniel L. Kline, (352) 374-5933, dkline@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu

Licenses

. . .To ExSeed Genetics, LLC, Owensboro, KY, to use a new type of corn from ARS that boosts the health of animals–and the environment. Unlike typical corn, the ARS-developed lines are low in phytic acid—a form of phosphorus that is unusable by pigs, poultry, fish, and other animals with one stomach. Phytic acid that ends up—undigested—in their manure, may contribute to phosphorus pollution of rivers and streams. Some evidence links that pollution to algal blooms and fish kills. Low-phytic-acid corn from ARS, however, is correspondingly high in inorganic phosphate—the form of phosphorus that animals can easily digest and use for proper growth and healthy bones. Use of this superior corn should help growers comply with increasingly strict environmental regulations that limit pollution from manure. And, the new corn reduces the need for costly phosphorus supplements often required to ensure animals get enough of this essential nutrient. ExSeed is incorporating the low-phytic-acid trait into its own proprietary lines of value- added corn for sale to producers worldwide. (PATENT NO. 5,689,054)

Small Grains and Potato Germplasm Research Unit, Aberdeen, ID
Victor Raboy, (206) 397-4162, vraboy@uidaho.edu

Cooperative Research And Development Agreements

. . . With Micro-Flo Company, Memphis, TN, to finish developing the next generation of biofungicides for controlling rot-causing fungi on apples, pears and citrus after harvest. As a result of ARS patents, the first generation of nontoxic biological coatings to replace synthetic chemicals was introduced in the United States 4 years ago. Under the new agreement, Micro-Flo and ARS scientists will optimize formulation of the second-generation biofungicide and fine-tune its application. ARS and Micro-Flo researchers combined two bioactive substances with the yeast Candida saitoana. Innocuous to people, the yeast is a formidable competitor against fungi that attack fresh fruits. The bioactive substances are chitosan—a naturally occurring fiber found in some weight-loss products—and a synthetic sugar used as a glucose substitute. Unlike the earlier biofungicides, the new coating stops fungi that already have a toehold on the fruit. In several years of tests in commercial packinghouses in California and Florida, the biofungicide proved as effective against rot-causing fungi as the two leading synthetic fungicides. Micro-Flo expects to have a product on the market within 2 years.

Appalachian Fruit Research Station, Kearneysville, WV
Charles L. Wilson, (304) 725-3451, ext. 330, cwilson@afrs.ars.usda.gov

. . .With the Grain Industry Alliance, which includes the American Institute of Baking and Kansas State University-Manhattan, to analyze the milling and baking qualities of hard red winter wheat and match those quality traits with the needs of foreign customers. Flour samples from U.S.-grown hard red winter wheat varieties will be provided to 12 foreign cooperators. The cooperators will furnish feedback about how well these varieties meet the quality traits they need. In the United States, more hard red winter wheat is grown than any other kind, and 50 percent of all U.S. wheat is currently exported. The CRADA joins federal and state research expertise with industry's ability to market a product. Because of this effort, U.S. wheat breeding is expected to increase its focus on improving quality for foreign and domestic markets. The expected outcome: a higher demand for U.S. wheat in foreign countries and a boost to the U.S. economy.

Grain Marketing Production and Research Center, Manhattan, KS
Don Koeltzow, (785) 776-2701, dek@usgmrl.ksu.edu

. . .With Trece, Inc., Salinas, CA, to study and test natural flower compounds as the basis for technologies that provide safer and more effective methods for controlling and monitoring moth pests of agriculture. This will help farmers and agricultural consultants as well as other researchers. The technologies will use natural airborne compounds, called volatiles, released by flowers of the Japanese honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica. ARS scientists discovered and patented (PATENT NO. 5,665,344) volatiles called cis-jasmone from these flowers. These natural chemicals attract a variety of adult Lepidoptera (moth) pests. The larval stage of these pests causes yield losses, reduces crop quality, and increases production costs worldwide. Currently, most monitoring systems use sex pheromones as baits for one gender—usually the male. But the ARS scientists found that cis-jasmone—alone or with other floral volatiles, particularly linalool or phenylacetaldehyde—attracts both sexes. The volatiles can be combined with other agents, such as Lepidopteran sex pheromones, feeding stimulants, or insect toxins. Trece will analyze compounds and develop optimal formulas for commercially monitoring and controlling a broad range of moth pests. ARS and Trece will work cooperatively to screen the formulas and evaluate final selections in field tests.

South Central Agricultural Research Laboratory, Lane, OK
Sam D. Pair, (580) 889-7395, spair-usda@lane-ag.org

. . .With M&M Mars, Inc., Hackettstown, NJ, to develop environmentally compatible biocontrol systems for controlling major fungal diseases of cacao. Researchers will focus on beneficial fungal microorganisms currently on the market, those in ARS collections, and newly isolated fungi from various cacao-growing countries. The tropical cacao tree, Theobroma cacao, produces beans used to make chocolate. But three major fungal diseases—black pod rot, witches' broom, and frosty pod rots—caused by Phytopthora, Crinipellis perniciosa, and Moniliophthora rorei, can make the beans inedible or unusable. These fungal diseases have caused severe cacao yield losses and hardship for 5 to 6 million small farmers in South America, Africa, and Asia. If cacao supplies do not increase for the year 2003 and beyond, a chocolate shortfall is forecast. Chemical controls for the fungi don't work very well and are expensive. Fungi-tolerant cacao cultivars are largely unidentified or have not been propagated in sufficient quantities. ARS and Mars will study and test existing biocontrol agents that are available commercially (Trichoderma virens and Burkholderia vietnamienis) and those shown to have potential (T. stromaticum and Cladobotryum amazonense).

Biocontrol of Plant Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville, MD
Robert D. Lumsden/Prakash K. Hebbar, (301) 504-5682,
rlumsden@asrr.arsusda.gov/phebbar@asrr.arsusda.gov

Patents

. . . For a diagnostic test developed by ARS scientists for identifying animals in the early stages of a costly dairy cattle disease. Mycobacterium paratuberculosis—the organism that causes Johne's disease—has been difficult to identify in its early stages with current laboratory tests. These tests can only detect the presence of an antibody. Because Johne's disease progresses slowly, it can take years before the immune system of an infected animal produces antibodies against the organism. There is no cure for Johne's, which causes severe loss of milk production, diarrhea, and death. For this reason, dairy producers need to identify infected cows quickly and remove them from the herd. Johne's is spread within and among dairy herds by an infected cow passing the organism to an unborn fetus, by calves coming into contact with bacteria-laden manure, and by calves nursing an infected cow. The newly patented test is based on a genetic sequence discovered by ARS researchers. It can pinpoint M. paratuberculosis from blood, tissue, and fecal samples. (PATENT NO. 5,985,576)

Zoonotic Diseases Research, National Animal Disease Center, Ames, IA
Judith R. Stabel, (515) 663-7304, jstabel@nadc.ars.usda.gov

. . . For a biodegradable spherical decoy to fatally attack apple maggot flies and other insect pests. Hung in trees just outside orchards, the decoy is coated with sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, latex enamel paint and an insecticide. It may provide an alternative to repeatedly spraying trees and the apples on them with insecticide. If not controlled, 1/4-inch-long, black-and-white-striped adult apple maggot flies can inflict millions of dollars in damage to orchards. They lay eggs just below the apples' skins. Maggots hatch and feed, creating tunnels through the apples, which begin to decay and then drop to the ground. The decoy is designed to suit insects' preferences for color, shape, size, and surface texture. Apple maggot flies fall for an apple-size sphere painted black which, like a red apple, doesn't reflect ultraviolet light. ARS, the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and the Biotechnology Research and Development Corporation, Peoria, IL, were granted a patent on the decoy. Preliminary field tests in cooperation with Michigan State University showed the decoy has promise as a replacement for pesticidal sprays in blueberries as well. Commercial manufacture and sales of the decoys containing registered pesticides for use in the United States would require approval by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. ARS is seeking an industrial cooperator to produce decoys for large-scale tests on the apple maggot fly and related insects such as the cherry fruit fly and the walnut husk fly. (PATENT NO. 5,720,968)

National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Peoria, IL
Michael R. McGuire, (309) 681-6595, mcguirmr@mail.ncaur.usda.gov

. . . For BEETLBAR, a new plastic barrier that blocks pesky beetles from boring into wood structures. It will save poultry farmers money in losses from beetle-damaged broiler houses that cost thousands of dollars more to heat and cool than undamaged houses. Beetle-damaged insulation can cost more than $30,000 a house to repair. ARS researchers developed this nontoxic barrier, which can be placed around trees, poultry house foundations, and a variety of residential, commercial, industrial, and farm buildings. Two insects in particular pose problems for poultry farmers—darkling beetles, also called lesser mealworms, and hide beetles. The larvae of these beetles develop in poultry litter and manure under high-rise poultry houses, then crawl up walls and posts into ceiling insulation, burrowing many holes and causing major structural damage. In Georgia and Virginia alone, annual losses from these insects are estimated at $9.8 million and $15.9 million, respectively. BEETLBAR's slick surface prevents this migration. Another problem: Floor-reared birds feed on migrating beetles, which can harbor Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, tapeworms, and avian leukosis virus, leading to major economic losses for farmers. The new barrier is strong, long lasting, lightweight, and easy to apply and clean. It is pesticide free and it reduces pesticides needed to control litter beetles. ARS has filed for a patent on this new invention (PATENT APPLICATION NO. 09/216,513).

Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology, Mosquito and Fly Research Unit, Gainesville, FL
David A. Carlson/Christopher J. Geden, (352) 374-5931,
dacarlson@nersp.nerdc.ufl.edu/cgeden@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu

. . . For an invention that can be used to genetically transform microbes or plants and holds promise for streamlining technology to make new, useful products from agricultural materials. Using the technique on the fungus Fusarium sporotrichioides, ARS researchers have inserted a variety of multigene packages, or cassettes, into the fungus—producing several strains that are each capable of making a specific compound in abundance. F. sporotrichioides is best known for releasing toxins into stored grains. But someday genetically modified strains may do good works such as making vitamins, rubber, and drugs. The inventors systematically synthesized and inserted gene packages into the fungus, creating strains that make large amounts of lycopene or beta-carotene. Lycopene gives red tomatoes their color, while beta-carotene is a vitamin precursor in carrots. Other carotenoids—zeaxanthin and astaxanthin—are used as food colorants, food supplements, or livestock and fish feed additives. The advance is important because, until now, attempts to genetically engineer organisms to make large quantities of useful products have been limited to introducing only one or two highly expressed genes at a time. (PATENT APPLICATION NO. 09/360,083)

National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Peoria, IL
James D. Jones, (309) 681-6376, jonesjd@mail.ncaur.usda.gov

. . . For producing and using natural yeasts or bacteria sprayed on grain plants' flowering heads to reduce severity of an important disease of wheat and barley up to 80 percent in field tests. ARS scientists say the friendly microbes may work by gobbling up two compounds, choline and betaine, that are naturally present on flowering heads of grain, where they stimulate pathogen growth. Then, when the wind blows disease-causing spores onto the flowers' male organs, little if any nourishment is left for the culprit fungi. The fusarium fungus may never gain a foothold to damage the developing kernel deeper inside the flower. The disease, called head scab or head blight, reduced U.S. wheat yields in the 1990s by an estimated half-billion bushels. Breeding of wheat and barley to resist the pathogenic fungi Gibberella zeae or Fusarium graminearum is still considered the best first-line defense against yield loss from head scab. But the biological control approach might someday limit the severity of infections, especially on crop varieties with some resistance. ARS scientists are researching liquid fermentation media to economically produce the most effective microbes. (PATENT APPLICATIONS NOS. 09/414,097 and 09/414,200)

National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Peoria, IL
David A. Schisler, (309) 681-6567, schislda@mail.ncaur.usda.gov