dr. L (Lotte) Caarls

In the Insect Resistance group in Plant Breeding, our aim is to contribute to the development of sustainable solutions for pest control by identifying and understanding plant resistance to insects. Using state-of-the-art tools, we identify insect resistance traits in crop plants and their wild relatives, and then genetically characterize these traits to elucidate the underlying genes and study mechanisms of resistance.

I lead multiple projects focusing on resistance to various pests in crops such as potato, tomato, pepper, pumpkin, squash, and chrysanthemum. Our target insects include aphids, whiteflies, thrips, and the Colorado potato beetle. To ensure accurate research, we rear these insects on the crop plants under study. We maintain different biotypes of aphids, whiteflies, and thrips that could potentially overcome identified resistances. Additionally, we develop and optimize phenotyping assays to study antibiosis resistance, assessing insect survival and reproduction on different plants. To streamline our processes, we are also developing automated phenotyping tools to speed up counting of insects in the INSPIRE project. 

After identifying resistance in crops and their wild relatives, we perform genetic analyses to map these resistances and pinpoint the underlying genes. We study resistance mechanisms through metabolomics, morphological studies, and by examining insect behavior using techniques like electrical penetration graph (EPG) and video tracking.

Our team comprises several PhD students and two technicians dedicated to insect rearing and assays. Our current projects include understanding thrips resistance in chrysanthemum (link), identifying and mapping aphid and whitefly resistance in Cucurbita (link), investigating whitefly resistance in pepper, as well as insect resistance in potato (link). We also participate in SAGROPIA, a project focused on studying natural pesticides for insect control.

Please contact me for more information, to discuss potential collaborations and for oppurtunites for student projects.