Rajeswaran Jagadeesan
Dr. Rajeswaran Jagadeesan (Raj) is a Research Scientist in postharvest grain protection team at the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF), Australia. He holds BSc and MSc degrees in Agriculture from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), India, and a PhD in Molecular Entomology from the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. Since joining QDAF in 2011, Raj has gained significant research experience in fumigant toxicology, in particular on managing genetic resistance to phosphine (a fumigant insecticide). Raj has characterized the genetics of resistance to phosphine in, red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, and identified the first phosphine resistance gene, dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase (dld) in grain insect pests, that has revealed significant insights in to the management of resistance. He has also developed practical skills in pest management such as developing fumigation protocols in the laboratory and evaluating them in the field. Raj has played a pivotal role in developing international linkages level between QDAF, UQ and TNAU, through two international collaborative research projects between Australia and India, both aimed at securing food supply and market access. He has won a number of awards, including the inaugural Early Research Career and Leadership Award sponsored by Entomological Society of America (ESA), and published twelve papers in high profile international journals including Science and Heredity. Currently, Raj is also exploring the efficacy of sulfuryl fluoride (SF) by itself and in combination with other fumigants, to alleviate phosphine resistance in grain pests.
Abstracts this author is presenting: