Invisible viruses as ’influencers’ of insect life
Vera Ros works at the Laboratory of Virology. She received her Vici for the research project Invisible influencers: How hidden virus infections shape insect life. "Insects appear to harbour an enormous diversity of viruses, most of which do not cause any visible disease," Ros says. "With this research, we will map whether and how these ’hidden’ virus infections affect insects’ immune defence, fitness and behaviour."Ros will also look at situations where several viruses are present at the same time, and what that means for how insects respond to new (pathogenic) infections, within and across generations. "This knowledge will help us better understand host-virus and virus-virus interactions," Ros explains. "That is relevant for optimising large-scale insect rearing and for biological control programmes."
Female development in insects: which genes drive it?
Eveline Verhulst, from the Laboratory of Entomology, will examine which genes control female development in insects in her Vici project DOUBLE-IN-SEX: Redefining sexual development and its evolution in insects. "For many insects, we have a reasonable idea of which genes regulate male development, but for females that knowledge is often missing," Verhulst says. In a growing number of insect species, the well-known gene Doublesex seems to be needed mainly for male development. Which genes, then, steer female development is often still unknown.In young embryos of parasitoid wasps, she will therefore search for previously unknown genes involved in male and female development. She will then investigate what these genes do and where they are active in the body. "This will provide new insights into how sexual development is regulated in insects and how these mechanisms have evolved," Verhulst says. The findings are also relevant for species used in biological control, where the male-to-female ratio matters.
About the Vici grant
The Vici grant is part of the NWO Talent Programme and is intended for experienced researchers. It offers scope to pursue innovative, curiosity-driven research and to further build up a research group. A Vici is worth up to ¤1.5 million and runs for five years. This year, 39 researchers received this grant, including four researchers from Wageningen University & Research.Our research focuses on plant viruses, arboviruses and insect viruses. We aim to unravel the molecular and ecological mechanisms underlying virus-host and virus-vector interactions to understand how these determine pathology and transmission.
At the Laboratory of Entomology, led by chairholder Bregje Wertheim, we work on the physiology of insect-plant interactions and the ecology of parasite-host and predator-prey interactions. Since the last decade we also study arthropod vectors of human and animal diseases.
Sanne Boesveldt awarded Vici grant to study how smell influences health and eating behaviour
Wageningen researcher Sanne Boesveldt has been awarded a Vici grant of ¤1.5 million from the Dutch Research Council (NWO).Science philosopher David Ludwig has been awarded a prestigious NWO Vici grant for his project Doing Science Differently? A Philosophy of Transgressive Science.