美国 肯塔基大学昆虫学系 (Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky) 是肯塔基大学 Martin-Gatton 农业、食品与环境学院下属的州立昆虫学研究与推广部门，驻地列克星敦 (Lexington)，承担教学、科研、推广三重职能，同时也是肯塔基州昆虫学家办公室 (Office of the State Entomologist) 的依托单位。昆虫学系成立于 20 世纪早期，历经逾百年发展，已成为美国东南部昆虫学研究和昆虫媒介疾病防控的核心学术机构之一，涵盖从分子生物学、田间害虫综合防治到蜂类健康、城市害虫管理、授粉昆虫保护等完整学科链条。
历史沿革与组织归属
昆虫学系隶属于 Martin-Gatton 农业、食品与环境学院，与作物科学、动物科学、植物病理学、植物与土壤科学等学科并列为学院核心教学单位。系内常设 14 名以上专职教研人员 (Faculty)，配套研究员、博士后、研究生和技术员队伍。昆虫学系同时承担肯塔基州昆虫学家办公室职能，负责全州的植物销售许可 (plant sales licensing)、出口认证 (export certifications)、外来入侵害虫调查 (exotic pest surveys) 与害虫管理策略制定，并通过覆盖全州 120 个县的合作推广网络 (Cooperative Extension) 把鉴定、监测与防控服务送达公众。
研究方向与重点实验室
昆虫学系的研究活动围绕三大方向：① 昆虫分子生物学、生理学与遗传学，重点包括 RNA 干扰 (RNAi)、昆虫激素受体、杀虫剂抗性机理，由 Subba Reddy Palli 教授 (AAAS Fellow, 2017 入选) 主持；② 昆虫行为、生态、进化与系统学，涵盖化学通讯、社会性昆虫、城市昆虫生态；③ 害虫综合防治与应用生态学，包括田作物害虫、储藏物害虫、森林害虫、城市景观害虫、人畜共患媒介昆虫。代表性实验室包括 Palli Lab、DeVries Lab (城市与仓储害虫代谢与抗性)、Rieske-Kinney Lab (森林昆虫 RNAi)、Teets Lab (极地昆虫抗寒生理)、Rittschof Lab (行为基因组学与社会性昆虫)、Zain Syed Lab (医学昆虫与杀虫剂抗性)，配套英国昆虫标本馆 (UK Insect Collection, UKIC) 等共享资源。
教育项目与人才培养
昆虫学系设有完整的本、硕、博三级学位体系。本科提供农学学士下设的昆虫学个性化方向 (BS in Agriculture, individualized program in Entomology) 及辅修专业 (Minor in Entomology)，核心课程包括普通昆虫学 (ENT 300)、园艺昆虫学 (ENT 320)、畜牧昆虫学 (ENT 340)、昆虫生理学 (ENT 635)、昆虫分类学 (ENT 564)、害虫综合治理 (ENT 530) 等。研究生项目面向在校与在线两种模式：在校生攻读 PhD 或 MS (Plan A 研究型，须完成论文)；在线项目仅提供 MS (Plan B 课程型，面向全球学生，不分州籍均按州内学费收取)。昆虫细胞系库 (Insect Cell Lines)、UKIC 昆虫标本馆、英国短训班 (UK Short Course)、城市森林倡议 (Urban Forest Initiative, UFI) 等特色项目为学生提供实践与跨学科训练。
主要成果与社会影响
昆虫学系师生近十年来多次获美国昆虫学会 (ESA) 各类奖项 (Early Career Innovation Award、Career Innovation Award、Travel Award 等)，Palli 教授 2017 年当选美国科学促进会 (AAAS) Fellow。本系牵头的蜱虫监测项目 (Kentucky Tick Surveillance Project) 长期收集全州蜱虫样本，为蜱传疾病 (莱姆病等) 公共卫生研究提供基础数据；持续运行的 Kentucky Pest News (KPN) 与 Kentucky Bugs 公众科普平台向居民和推广员发布最新虫情警报与防控建议，涵盖臭虫 (Bed Bug)、亚洲长角蜱 (Asian Longhorned Tick)、光肩星天牛 (Asian Longhorned Beetle)、斑衣蜡蝉 (Spotted Lanternfly)、舞毒蛾 (Spongy Moth)、铁杉球蚜 (Hemlock Woolly Adelgid)、绿灰象甲 (Emerald Ash Borer)、茶翅蝽 (Brown Marmorated Stink Bug) 等关键入侵与本地害虫。
The Department of Entomology at the University of Kentucky, housed within the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, is the state’s primary academic and extension hub for entomological research, teaching, and public service. Based in Lexington, Kentucky, the department also serves as the home of the Office of the State Entomologist, the statutory authority responsible for plant sales licensing, export certifications, exotic pest surveys, and pest-management policy across the Commonwealth. Tracing its roots to the early twentieth century, the department has grown over more than a century into a comprehensive program spanning molecular insect biology, field-crop and urban pest management, pollinator health, and medical/veterinary entomology, and functions as a flagship institution in the U.S. Southeast for both fundamental research and translational extension work.
History and Organizational Affiliation
The department sits within the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment alongside crop science, animal science, plant pathology, and plant & soil science. It maintains more than 14 core faculty, supplemented by postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and technical staff. As host of the Office of the State Entomologist, the department administers plant-sales licensing, export certifications, and statewide exotic-pest surveillance, and delivers diagnostic assistance and recommendations to residents through a Cooperative Extension network spanning all 120 Kentucky counties. Service is provided free of charge to Kentucky residents; out-of-state inquiries are redirected to local or regional extension services.
Research Areas and Core Laboratories
Departmental research is organized around three emphases: (1) Insect Molecular Biology, Physiology, and Genetics — including RNAi-based pest control, juvenile-hormone and ecdysone receptor signaling, and insecticide-resistance mechanisms (Palli Lab, AAAS Fellow 2017); (2) Insect Behavior, Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics — covering chemical communication, social-insect biology, urban landscape ecology, and pollinator genomics; (3) Pest Management and Applied Ecology — spanning field-crop pests, stored-product insects, forest pests, urban entomology, and medical/veterinary vectors. Additional centers include the DeVries Lab (urban and structural pest metabolism and resistance), the Rieske-Kinney Lab (forest-insect RNAi), the Teets Lab (polar insect cold tolerance), the Rittschof Lab (behavioral genomics and social insects), and the Zain Syed Lab (medical entomology and insecticide resistance). Shared resources include the UK Insect Collection (UKIC) and the Insect Cell Lines repository.
Academic Programs and Training
The department offers a complete undergraduate–graduate pipeline. Undergraduate students may pursue an individualized program in Entomology within the BS in Agriculture or a Minor in Entomology, with coursework spanning General Entomology (ENT 300), Horticultural Entomology (ENT 320), Livestock Entomology (ENT 340), Insect Physiology (ENT 635), Insect Taxonomy (ENT 564), and Integrated Pest Management (ENT 530). Graduate training is delivered in two modes: on-campus students may pursue a PhD or research-based MS (Plan A, thesis required); an online MS (Plan B, coursework-based) is open to students worldwide and charged in-state tuition regardless of residence. Hands-on opportunities include the Insect Cell Lines facility, UKIC, the annual UK Short Course, the Urban Forest Initiative (UFI), and the Entomology Club.
Outcomes and Public Impact
Faculty and students have repeatedly been recognized by the Entomological Society of America (Early Career Innovation Award, Career Innovation Award, Travel Awards); Professor Palli was elected an AAAS Fellow in 2017. The department leads the Kentucky Tick Surveillance Project, which collects statewide tick specimens to inform public-health research on tick-borne illness. Two flagship outreach platforms — Kentucky Pest News (KPN) and Kentucky Bugs — deliver timely alerts and integrated pest management recommendations to residents and extension agents, covering bed bugs, Asian longhorned ticks, Asian longhorned beetles, spotted lanternfly, spongy moth, hemlock woolly adelgid, emerald ash borer, brown marmorated stink bug, and other priority invasive and native pests.
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