ARS | Publication request: Searching for Natural Resistance to the Northern Corn Rootworm at the USDA/ARS Lab in Brookings

Submitted to: Brookings Register
Publication Type: Popular Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: December 27, 2006
Publication Date: December 27, 2006
Citation: Dashiell, K.E., Prischmann, D.A. 2006. Searching for Natural Resistance to the Northern Corn Rootworm at the USDA/ARS Lab in Brookings. Brookings Register, December 27, 2006, p. A7.

Technical Abstract: Corn rootworms and their management costs US farmers over 1 billion dollars annually. In recent years companies have developed corn hybrids with resistance to corn rootworms by inserting bacterial genes into the corn genome. These hybrids are often called GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and are becoming increasingly popular. However, scientists at the North Central Agricultural Research Laboratory (NCARL) in Brookings (USDA, Agricultural Research Service) are investigating alternatives to GMOs, and are searching for corn hybrids that have natural, non-genetically modified, resistance to corn rootworms. So far, progress is promising, with several of the hybrids exhibiting some resistance to corn rootworms. If you have any questions about this or any other research conducted by the USDA/ARS please contact us at 605-693-5201. We would be glad to give any group or organization a tour of the lab, which is located one mile north of the Highway 14 bypass on Medary Ave., Brookings SD.