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Professor, Department of Entomology Ph.D., Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS Contact Info: stuartjj@purdue.edu 765-494-4561 Training Group(s): Molecular Evolutionary Genetics

Current Research Interests:

My research is focused on the genomic analysis of plant-insect interactions and the evolution of the insect genome in response to those interactions. The majority of this research involves the Hessian fly (Mayetiola destructor), one of the most important insect pests of wheat. Like many plant pathogens, the Hessian fly has a gene-for-gene interaction with its host plant. It also has several attributes that make it well suited for molecular genetic investigation: it is genetically tractable, has a short life cycle, is easily reared in a small space, it has a small genome (158 Mb), and polytene chromosomes. Recent work has developed a physically anchored genetic map of the insect’s genome, and placed five Avirulence genes on the Hessian fly chromosomes (these are genes that determine whether the Hessian fly will live or die on wheat plants carrying specific Hessian fly resistance genes). The laboratory’s efforts are directed toward the discovery of these Avirulence genes and an understanding of how their products influence plant development.

Selected Publications:

Lobo, NF, Behura, SK, Aggarwal, R, Chen, M-S, Collins, FH, Stuart, JJ. 2006. Genomic analysis of a 1 Mb region near the telomere of Hessian fly chromosome X2 and avirulence gene vH13. BMC Genomics 7:7.

Benavides, P, FE Vega, J Romero-Severson, AE Bustillo, and JJ Stuart. 2005. Biodiversity and biogeography of an important inbred pest of coffee, coffee berry borer (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae). Annals Entomol. Soc. Am. 98:359-366.

Behura, SK, FH Valicente, SD Rider Jr., MS Chen, S Jackson, and JJ Stuart. 2004. A physically anchored genetic map and linkage to avirulence reveal recombination suppression over the proximal region of Hessian fly chromosome A2. Genetics 167:343-355.

Chen, MS, JP Fellers, JJ Stuart, JC Reese, and XM Liu 2004. A group of related cDNAs encoding secreted proteins from Hessian fly [Mayetiola destructor (Say)] salivary glands. Insect Mol. Biol. 13:101-108.

Rider, S. D., Jr., W. Sun, R. H. Ratcliffe and J. J. Stuart. 2002. Chromosome landing near avirulence gene vH13 in the Hessian fly. Genome: 45:812-822.