Dr. Ke Zhang
University of Michigan, US
Abstract: In recent years, scientists have developed RNA interference crops that express double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) biopesticides in their tissues. While these genetically modified crops have shown to be effective in controlling pests, they also release dsRNA biopesticides to receiving environments and pose potential ecological risks to non-target organisms depending on the environmental concentration of dsRNA biopesticides. My work aimed to enable the accurate ecological risk assessments of dsRNA biopesticides. Firstly, I developed a new method using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) to measure dsRNA in agricultural soils at environmentally relevant concentrations. Secondly, I characterized the chemical stability of dsRNA in aqueous solutions by examining the impacts of the duplex structure of dsRNA on alkaline hydrolysis. Finally, I elucidated a novel abiotic reaction by which RNA, but not DNA, degraded upon adsorption to minerals in soils and sediments under environmentally relevant physicochemical conditions. These studies advance our understanding of the fate of dsRNA biopesticides in receiving environments and contribute to the ecological risk assessment of dsRNA biopesticides.
Host：Associate Prof. Yide He
Nanjing Tech University
EEH Early Career Board Member
Time：09:00pm Mar 5, 2023 (Beijing time)
