Max Scott

Bio

My interests are the control of gene expression and application of this knowledge to develop engineered strains for genetic control programs. Recent projects include developing male-only strains of the livestock pests, Lucilia cuprina (the Australian sheep blowfly) and Cochliomyia hominivorax (the New World screwworm) and also for spotted wing Drosophila, an invasive pest of soft- skinned fruit. We are also working on developing gene drive systems for suppression of these pests and for replacement of Aedes aegypti populations with mosquitoes that cannot transmit disease. A new project for 2018 is on engineering insects that vector viruses that infect maize.

Research:

Our main interest is in developing transgenic “male-only” strains of insect pests for genetic control programs.  For example, we have developed strains of flies that are pests of livestock (e.g. New World screwworm), which carry genetic systems that cause female lethality unless tetracycline is added to the diet.  We are also interested in developing genetic systems for replacing mosquito populations with strains that have a reduced capacity to transmit diseases such as dengue fever.  Our applied work is underpinned by fundamental research on the regulation of gene expression in the model insect Drosophila melanogaster.  For example, we have investigated how the MSL chromatin-modifying complex regulates X-linked gene expression and the importance of histone modifying enzymes in long-term memory.

Teaching:

ENT 506/591/791, GN 895, GES 506: “Genetic Pest Management”
GGS 770 Genetics & Genomics Survey Course, module on gene drive

Area(s) of Expertise

Genetic Pest Management

Publications

• Antennal transcriptome analysis reveals sensory receptors potentially associated with host detection in the livestock pest Lucilia cuprina , PARASITES & VECTORS (2024)
• Doxycycline is a viable alternative to tetracycline for use in insect Tet-Off transgenic sexing systems, as assessed in the blowflies Cochliomyia hominivorax and Lucilia cuprina (Diptera: Calliphoridae) , JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY (2024)
• Identification of a gene promoter active in Lucilia sericata larval salivary glands using a rapid transient expression assay , INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY (2024)
• CRISPR/Cas9-based split homing gene drive targeting doublesex for population suppression of the global fruit pest Drosophila suzukii , Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023)
• Development of transgenic corn planthopper Peregrinus maidis , Insect Molecular Biology (2023)
• Expansion of the genetic toolbox for manipulation of the global crop pest Drosophila suzukii: Isolation and assessment of eye colour mutant strains , Insect Molecular Biology (2023)
• Identification and functional analysis of Cochliomyia hominivoraxU6 gene promoters , Insect Molecular Biology (2023)
• A chromosomal-scale reference genome of the New World Screwworm,Cochliomyia hominivorax , DNA Research (2022)
• CRISPR/Cas9 Genome Editing in the New World Screwworm and Australian Sheep Blowfly , Methods in Molecular Biology (2022)
• Evaluation of Additional Drosophila suzukii Male-Only Strains Generated Through Remobilization of an FL19 Transgene , FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY (2022)