Grand Challenge

USDA-ARS Grand Challenge:

Integrated Approaches for the Control of Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases of Livestock.

 

Goal: The synergistic goal of this Grand Challenge project is to use cattle fever ticks and bovine babesiosis as a model to inform strategies to prevent or mitigate future incursions of invasive tick species in the US.

 

To meet this goal we will:

1. Define the biogeographical factors that allow for tick success and range expansion.
2. Identify genetic determinants of traits that enable adaptation by tick populations.
3. Develop novel and refine existing interventions targeting ticks and cattle pathogens.
4. Determine the costs and benefits of various interventions to control ticks and tick-borne diseases.

 

Summary narrative can be found here.