I am an insect molecular biologist with a research interest focused on studying host-pathogen interactions and discovering insect-specific viruses. I have investigated gene expression and the role of small non-coding RNAs in various host-pathogen models, particularly in crucial agricultural pests and medically significant vectors like the Aedes aegypti, responsible for transmitting dengue and Zika viruses. My previous project, aimed at exploring the function of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus in the biological control of the coconut rhinoceros beetle in the Pacific Islands, has substantially enhanced our comprehension of this invasive pest within the framework of an offshore biosecurity strategy. By establishing industry partnerships and securing funding to improve the Australian sugar industry, one of Australia's largest agricultural sectors, I have been able to focus on entomopathogenic viruses that affect root-feeding pests in sugarcane.
Journal Article: Transcription profile and genomic variation of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus (OrNV) in Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle
Etebari, Kayvan, Parry, Rhys, Beltran, Marie Joy B. and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Transcription profile and genomic variation of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus (OrNV) in Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle. Journal of Virology, 94 (22) e01097-20, 1-18. doi: 10.1128/jvi.01097-20
Journal Article: Complete genome sequence of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus isolated from the coconut rhinoceros beetle in Solomon Islands
Etebari, Kayvan, Filipović, Igor, Rašić, Gordana, Devine, Gregor J., Tsatsia, Helen and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Complete genome sequence of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus isolated from the coconut rhinoceros beetle in Solomon Islands. Virus Research, 278 197864, 197864. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.197864
Journal Article: Genome wide discovery of long intergenic non-coding RNAs in Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and their expression in insecticide resistant strains
Etebari, Kayvan, Furlong, Michael J. and Asgari, Sassan (2015). Genome wide discovery of long intergenic non-coding RNAs in Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and their expression in insecticide resistant strains. Scientific Reports, 5 (14642) 14642, 14642. doi: 10.1038/srep14642
Journal Article: Deep sequencing-based transcriptome analysis of Plutella xylostella larvae parasitized by Diadegma semiclausum
Etebari, Kayvan, Palfreyman, Robin W., Schlipalius, David, Nielsen, Lars K., Glatz, Richard V. and Asgari, Sassan (2011). Deep sequencing-based transcriptome analysis of Plutella xylostella larvae parasitized by Diadegma semiclausum. BMC Genomics, 12 (1) 446, 446.1-446.18. doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-12-446
Viruses to aid biological control of major root-feeding pests of sugarcane
(2023–2027) Sugar Research Australia Limited
(2022–2023) Sugar Research Australia Sugar Industry Research Awards
(2020–2021) UQ Early Career Researcher
Long-read sequencing of a single insect and its haploid cells: an approach to obtain high-quality genome assemblies in insect pests
Doctor Philosophy
(2022) Doctor Philosophy
Investigating pro and antiviral genes in the interaction of mosquitoes with arboviruses
Doctor Philosophy
Exploring entomopathogenic viruses for biological control of insect pests
Australia's $1.7 billion sugar industry faces a significant threat from severe root-feeding pests, such as canegrubs and soldier flies. The absence of effective control strategies for soldier flies, and the industry's heavy dependence on insecticides for canegrub control has led to detrimental impacts on both the industry and the broader environment, and it is not sustainable. The primary objective of this industry-funded project is to discover and characterize novel entomopathogenic viruses, with the ultimate aim of developing innovative tools for the efficient, and sustainable long-term biological management of these two primary pests.
The successful candidate will receive a PhD scholarship and work alongside the project team to undertake a comprehensive assessment of the efficacy of recently identified insect-pathogenic viruses against these pests. Utilizing metagenomics, the student will identify novel entomopathogenic viruses within target pest populations, evaluate their prevalence and determine their pathogenicity against soldier fly and canegrub as appropriate. The research will enhance our understanding of the interactions between these viruses and their hosts and has the potential lead to the identification of new biological control agents.
Etebari, Kayvan, Parry, Rhys, Beltran, Marie Joy B. and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Transcription profile and genomic variation of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus (OrNV) in Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle. Journal of Virology, 94 (22) e01097-20, 1-18. doi: 10.1128/jvi.01097-20
Etebari, Kayvan, Filipović, Igor, Rašić, Gordana, Devine, Gregor J., Tsatsia, Helen and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Complete genome sequence of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus isolated from the coconut rhinoceros beetle in Solomon Islands. Virus Research, 278 197864, 197864. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.197864
Etebari, Kayvan, Furlong, Michael J. and Asgari, Sassan (2015). Genome wide discovery of long intergenic non-coding RNAs in Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and their expression in insecticide resistant strains. Scientific Reports, 5 (14642) 14642, 14642. doi: 10.1038/srep14642
Etebari, Kayvan, Palfreyman, Robin W., Schlipalius, David, Nielsen, Lars K., Glatz, Richard V. and Asgari, Sassan (2011). Deep sequencing-based transcriptome analysis of Plutella xylostella larvae parasitized by Diadegma semiclausum. BMC Genomics, 12 (1) 446, 446.1-446.18. doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-12-446
Functions of small RNAs in mosquitoes
Hussain, M., Etebari, K. and Asgari, S. (2016). Functions of small RNAs in mosquitoes. Progress in Mosquito Research. (pp. 189-222) edited by Alexander S. Raikhel. London, United Kingdom: Academic Press. doi: 10.1016/bs.aiip.2016.04.001
Hussain, Mazhar, Etebari, Kayvan and Asgari, Sassan (2023). Analysing inhibition of dengue virus in Wolbachia-infected mosquito cells following the removal of Wolbachia. Virology, 581, 48-55. doi: 10.1016/j.virol.2023.02.017
Sex dependent transcriptome responses of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella L. to cold stress
Wang, Leyun, Etebari, Kayvan, Walter, Gimme H. and Furlong, Michael J. (2023). Sex dependent transcriptome responses of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella L. to cold stress. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part D: Genomics and Proteomics, 45 101053. doi: 10.1016/j.cbd.2022.101053
Dai, Zhenkai, Etebari, Kayvan and Asgari, Sassan (2022). N6-methyladenosine modification of the Aedes aegypti transcriptome and its alteration upon dengue virus infection in Aag2 cell line. Communications Biology, 5 (1) 607, 1-13. doi: 10.1038/s42003-022-03566-8
Filipović, Igor, Rašić, Gordana, Hereward, James, Gharuka, Maria, Devine, Gregor J., Furlong, Michael J. and Etebari, Kayvan (2022). A high-quality de novo genome assembly based on nanopore sequencing of a wild-caught coconut rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros). BMC Genomics, 23 (1) 426, 1-15. doi: 10.1186/s12864-022-08628-z
Wang, Leyun, Etebari, Kayvan, Zhao, Zihua, Walter, Gimme H. and Furlong, Michael J. (2022). Differential temperature responses between Plutella xylostella and its specialist endo‐larval parasitoid Diadegma semiclausum —Implications for biological control. Insect Science, 29 (3), 855-864. doi: 10.1111/1744-7917.12967
Discovery of a novel jingmenvirus in Australian sugarcane soldier fly (Inopus flavus) larvae
Colmant, Agathe M. G., Furlong, Michael J. and Etebari, Kayvan (2022). Discovery of a novel jingmenvirus in Australian sugarcane soldier fly (Inopus flavus) larvae. Viruses, 14 (6) 1140, 1-10. doi: 10.3390/v14061140
Etebari, Kayvan, Lenancker, Pauline, Powell, Kevin S. and Furlong, Michael J. (2022). Transcriptomics reveal several novel viruses from canegrubs (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in central Queensland, Australia. Viruses, 14 (3) 649, 649. doi: 10.3390/v14030649
Leitner, Michael, Etebari, Kayvan and Asgari, Sassan (2022). Transcriptional response of Wolbachia-transinfected Aedes aegypti mosquito cells to dengue virus at early stages of infection. Journal of General Virology, 103 (1) 001694. doi: 10.1099/jgv.0.001694
Etebari, Kayvan, Hereward, James, Sailo, Apenisa, Ahoafi, Emeline M., Tautua, Robert, Tsatsia, Helen, Jackson, Grahame V. and Furlong, Michael J. (2022). Corrigendum to ‘‘Examination of population genetics of the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros) and the incidence of its biocontrol agent (Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus) in the South Pacific Islands Current'' [Research in Insect Science 1 (2021) 100015](S2666515821000081)(10.1016/j.cris.2021.100015). Current Research in Insect Science, 2 100035, 100035. doi: 10.1016/j.cris.2022.100035
Etebari, Kayvan, Taylor, Dianne B.J., Rahman, Md. Mahbubur, Dhileepan, Kunjithapatham, Furlong, Michael J. and Asgari, Sassan (2021). Exploration of RNA-Seq data to identify a potential pathogen of the leaf-mining moth, Stomphastis thraustica (Meyrick, 1908) (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae). Data in Brief, 40 107708, 1-7. doi: 10.1016/j.dib.2021.107708
Etebari, Kayvan, Gharuka, Maria, Asgari, Sassan and Furlong, Michael J. (2021). Diverse host immune responses of different geographical populations of the coconut rhinoceros beetle to Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus (OrNV) infection. Microbiology Spectrum, 9 (2) e00686-21, e0068621. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.00686-21
Asselin, Angelique K., Etebari, Kayvan, Furlong, Michael J. and Johnson, Karyn N. (2021). A new dicistro-like virus from soldier fly, Inopus flavus (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), a pest of sugarcane. Archives of Virology, 166 (10), 2841-2846. doi: 10.1007/s00705-021-05171-2
Human blood microRNA hsa-miR-21-5p induces vitellogenin in the mosquito Aedes aegypti
Perdomo, Hugo D., Hussain, Mazhar, Parry, Rhys, Etebari, Kayvan, Hedges, Lauren M., Zhang, Guangmei, Schulz, Benjamin L. and Asgari, Sassan (2021). Human blood microRNA hsa-miR-21-5p induces vitellogenin in the mosquito Aedes aegypti. Communications Biology, 4 (1) 856, 856. doi: 10.1038/s42003-021-02385-7
Etebari, Kayvan, Hereward, James, Sailo, Apenisa, Ahoafi, Emeline M., Tautua, Robert, Tsatsia, Helen, Jackson, Grahame V. and Furlong, Michael J. (2021). Examination of population genetics of the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros) and the incidence of its biocontrol agent (Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus) in the South Pacific Islands. Current Research in Insect Science, 1 100015, 1-8. doi: 10.1016/j.cris.2021.100015
Shelomi, Matan, Lin, Wei, Johnson, Brian R., Furlong, Michael J. and Etebari, Kayvan (2021). Detection of deformed wing virus (DWV) in the Vietnamese walking stick Medauroidea extradentata (Phasmatodea). Virus Research, 293 198263, 198263. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.198263
Filipovic, Igor, Hereward, James P., Rasic, Gordana, Devine, Gregor J., Furlong, Michael J. and Etebari, Kayvan (2021). The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) based on long-read nanopore sequencing. PeerJ, 9 e10552, e10552. doi: 10.7717/peerj.10552
Etebari, Kayvan, Parry, Rhys, Beltran, Marie Joy B. and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Transcription profile and genomic variation of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus (OrNV) in Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle. Journal of Virology, 94 (22) e01097-20, 1-18. doi: 10.1128/jvi.01097-20
Identification of a novel Picorna-like virus in coconut rhinoceros beetles (Oryctes rhinoceros)
Etebari, Kayvan, Shelomi, Matan and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Identification of a novel Picorna-like virus in coconut rhinoceros beetles (Oryctes rhinoceros). Virus Research, 287 198100, 198100. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.198100
Etebari, Kayvan, Filipović, Igor, Rašić, Gordana, Devine, Gregor J., Tsatsia, Helen and Furlong, Michael J. (2020). Complete genome sequence of Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus isolated from the coconut rhinoceros beetle in Solomon Islands. Virus Research, 278 197864, 197864. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.197864
Etebari, Kayvan, Lindsay, Karel. R., Ward, Andrew L. and Furlong, Michael J. (2019). Australian sugarcane soldier fly's salivary gland transcriptome in response to starvation and feeding on sugarcane crops. Insect Science, 27 (4) 1744-7917.12676, 708-720. doi: 10.1111/1744-7917.12676
Etebari, K., Afrad, M. H., Tang, B., Silva, R., Furlong, M. J. and Asgari, S. (2018). Involvement of microRNA miR-2b-3p in regulation of metabolic resistance to insecticides in Plutella xylostella. Insect Molecular Biology, 27 (4), 478-491. doi: 10.1111/imb.12387
Nouzova, Marcela, Etebari, Kayvan, Noriega, Fernando G. and Asgari, Sassan (2018). A comparative analysis of corpora allata-corpora cardiaca microRNA repertories revealed significant changes during mosquito metamorphosis. Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 96, 10-18. doi: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2018.03.007
Global transcriptome analysis of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in response to Zika virus infection
Etebari, Kayvan, Hedge, Shivanand, Saldaña, Miguel A., Widen, Steven G., Wood, Thomas G., Asgari, Sassan and Hughes, Grant L. (2017). Global transcriptome analysis of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in response to Zika virus infection. MSphere, 2 (6) e00456-17, e00456-17. doi: 10.1128/mSphere.00456-17
Discovery of new orbiviruses and totivirus from Anopheles mosquitoes in Eastern Australia
Colmant, Agathe M. G. , Etebari, Kayvan, Webb, Cameron E., Ritchie, Scott A., Jansen, Cassie C. , van den Hurk, Andrew F., Bielefeldt-Ohmann, Helle, Hobson-Peters, Jody, Asgari, Sassan and Hall, Roy A. (2017). Discovery of new orbiviruses and totivirus from Anopheles mosquitoes in Eastern Australia. Archives of Virology, 162 (11), 1-6. doi: 10.1007/s00705-017-3515-x
Saldana, Miguel A., Etebari, Kayvan, Hart, Charles E., Widen, Steven G., Wood, Thomas G., Thangamani, Saravanan, Asgari, Sassan and Hughes, Grant L. (2017). Zika virus alters the microRNA expression profile and elicits an RNAi response in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 11 (7) e0005760, e0005760. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0005760
Colmant, Agathe M. G., Hobson-Peters, Jody, Bielefeldt-Ohmann, Helle, van den Hurk, Andrew F., Hall-Mendelin, Sonja, Chow, Weng Kong, Johansen, Cheryl A., Fros, Jelke, Simmonds, Peter, Watterson, Daniel, Cazier, Chris, Etebari, Kayvan, Asgari, Sassan, Schulz, Benjamin L., Beebe, Nigel, Vet, Laura J., Piyasena, Thisun B. H., Nguyen, Hong-Duyen, Barnard, Ross T. and Hall, Roy A. (2017). A new clade of insect-specific flaviviruses from Australian Anopheles mosquitoes displays species-specific host-restriction. mSphere, 2 (4) e00262-17, e00262-17.1-e00262-17.19. doi: 10.1128/mSphere.00262-17
Lee, Morris, Etebari, Kayvan, Hall-Mendelin, Sonja, van den Hurk, Andrew F., Hobson-Peters, Jody, Vatipally, Sreenu, Schnettler, Esther, Hall, Roy and Asgari, Sassan (2017). Understanding the role of microRNAs in the interaction of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes with an insect-specific flavivirus. Journal of General Virology, 98 (7) 000832, 1892-1903. doi: 10.1099/jgv.0.000832
Long noncoding RNAs: unexplored players in the drug response of the sea louse Caligus rogercresseyi
Valenzuela-Miranda, Diego, Etebari, Kayvan, Asgari, Sassan and Gallardo-Escárate, Cristian (2017). Long noncoding RNAs: unexplored players in the drug response of the sea louse Caligus rogercresseyi. Agri Gene, 4, 1-7. doi: 10.1016/j.aggene.2017.03.001
Niu, Jinzhi, Meeus, Ivan, DeConinck, Dieter IM, Deforce, Dieter, Etebari, Kayvan, Asgari, Sassan and Smagghe, Guy (2017). Infections of virulent and avirulent viruses differentially influenced the expression of dicer-1, ago-1, and microRNAs in Bombus terrestris. Scientific Reports, 7 (1) 45620, 45620.1-45620.11. doi: 10.1038/srep45620
Wolbachia suppresses cell fusing agent virus in mosquito cells
Zhang, Guagmei, Etebari, Kayvan and Asgari, Sassan (2016). Wolbachia suppresses cell fusing agent virus in mosquito cells. Journal of General Virology, 97 (12) 000653, 3427-3432. doi: 10.1099/jgv.0.000653
Revised annotation of Plutella xylostella microRNAs and their genome-wide target identification
Etebari, K. and Asgari, S. (2016). Revised annotation of Plutella xylostella microRNAs and their genome-wide target identification. Insect Molecular Biology, 25 (6), 788-799. doi: 10.1111/imb.12263
Etebari, Kayvan, Asad, Sultan, Zhang, Guangmei and Asgari, Sassan (2016). Identification of Aedes aegypti long intergenic non-coding RNAs and their association with Wolbachia and Dengue virus infection. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 10 (10) e0005069, e0005069. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0005069
Etebari, Kayvan, Osei-Amo, Solomon, Blomberg, Simon Phillip and Asgari, Sassan (2015). Dengue virus infection alters posttranscriptional modification of microRNAs in the mosquito vector Aedes aegypti. Scientific Reports, 5 (1) 15968, 15968.1-15968.14. doi: 10.1038/srep15968
Etebari, Kayvan, Furlong, Michael J. and Asgari, Sassan (2015). Genome wide discovery of long intergenic non-coding RNAs in Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and their expression in insecticide resistant strains. Scientific Reports, 5 (14642) 14642, 14642. doi: 10.1038/srep14642
Mayoral, Jamie G., Etebari, Kayvan, Hussain, Mazhar, Khromykh, Alexander A. and Asgari, Sassan (2014). Wolbachia infection modifies the profile, shuttling and structure of MicroRNAs in a mosquito cell line. PLoS One, 9 (4) e96107, e96107. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0096107
Etebari, Kayvan and Asgari, Sassan (2014). Accuracy of microRNA discovery pipelines in non-model organisms using closely related species genomes. PloS One, 9 (1) e84747, 1-10. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0084747
Conserved microRNA miR-8 blocks activation of the Toll pathway by upregulating Serpin 27 transcripts
Etebari, Kayvan and Asgari, Sassan (2013). Conserved microRNA miR-8 blocks activation of the Toll pathway by upregulating Serpin 27 transcripts. RNA Biology, 10 (8), 1356-1364. doi: 10.4161/rna.25481
Etebari, Kayvan, Hussain, Mazhar and Asgari, Sassan (2013). Identification of microRNAs from Plutella xylostella larvae associated with parasitization by Diadegma semiclausum. Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 43 (4), 309-318. doi: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2013.01.004
Suppression of scavenger receptors transcription by parasitoid factors
Etebari, Kayvan, Hussain, Mazhar and Asgari, Sassan (2012). Suppression of scavenger receptors transcription by parasitoid factors. Developmental and Comparative Immunology, 38 (4), 517-524. doi: 10.1016/j.dci.2012.08.006
Etebari, Kayvan, Palfreyman, Robin W., Schlipalius, David, Nielsen, Lars K., Glatz, Richard V. and Asgari, Sassan (2011). Deep sequencing-based transcriptome analysis of Plutella xylostella larvae parasitized by Diadegma semiclausum. BMC Genomics, 12 (1) 446, 446.1-446.18. doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-12-446
Zibaee, Arash, Jalali Sendi, Jalal, Ghadamyari, Mohammad, Alinia, Faramarz and Etebari, Kayvan (2009). Diazinon resistance in different selected strains of Chilo suppressalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) in northern Iran. Journal of Economic Entomology, 102 (3), 1189-1196. doi: 10.1603/029.102.0343
Daryaei, Mehrdad Ghodskhahe, Darvishi, Simin, Etebari, Kayvan and Salehi, Mansor (2008). Host preference and nutrition efficiency of the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar L. (Lymantriidae: Lepidoptera), on different poplar clones. Turkish Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 32 (6), 469-477. doi: 10.3906/tar-0712-23
The effects of BmNPV on biochemical changes in primary cultures of Bombyx mori embryonic tissue
Matindoost, Leila, Jalali Sendi, Jalal, Soleimanjahi, Hoorieh, Etebari, Kayvan and Rahbarizadeh, Fateme (2008). The effects of BmNPV on biochemical changes in primary cultures of Bombyx mori embryonic tissue. In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology - Animal, 44 (3-4), 121-127. doi: 10.1007/s11626-008-9083-3
Shekari, Maryam, Jalali Sendi, Jalal, Etebari, Kayvan, Zibaee, Arash and Shadparvar, Abdolahad (2008). Effects of Artemisia annua L. (Asteracea) on nutritional physiology and enzyme activities of elm leaf beetle, Xanthogaleruca luteola Mull. (Coleoptera: Chrysomellidae). Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology, 91 (1), 66-74. doi: 10.1016/j.pestbp.2008.01.003
Etebari, Kayvan, Ebadi, Rahim and Matindoost, Leila (2007). Physiological changes of silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) larvae fed on mulberry leaves supplemented with nitrogenous compounds. Journal of the Entomological Research Society, 9 (2), 1-15.
Biochemical changes in haemolymph of silkworm larvae due to pyriproxyfen residue
Etebari, K., Bizhannia, A. R., Sorati, R. and Matindoost, L. (2007). Biochemical changes in haemolymph of silkworm larvae due to pyriproxyfen residue. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology, 88 (1), 14-19. doi: 10.1016/j.pestbp.2006.08.005
Rajabi Kanafi, R., Ebadi, R., Mirhosseini, S. Z., Seidavi, A. R., Zolfaghari, M. and Etebari, K. (2007). A review on nutritive effect of mulberry leaves enrichment with vitamins on economic traits and biological parameters of silkworm Bombyx mori L. Invertebrate Survival Journal, 4 (2), 86-91.
The effect of BmNPV infection on protein metabolism in silkworm (Bombyx mori) larva
Etebari, Kayvan, Matindoost, L., Mirhoseini, S. Z. and Turnbull, M. W. (2007). The effect of BmNPV infection on protein metabolism in silkworm (Bombyx mori) larva. Invertebrate Survival Journal, 4 (1), 13-17.
Shadparvar, AA, Ghanipoor, M, Mirhosseini, SZ and Etebari, K (2005). Derivation of economic values for productive and reproductive traits of Bombyx mori (Lepidoptera : Bombycidae) from profit equation. Journal of Economic Entomology, 98 (5), 1717-1722. doi: 10.1093/jee/98.5.1717
Selection indices for cocoon traits in six commercial silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) lines
Mirhosseini, SZ, Ghanipoor, M, Shadparvar, A and Etebari, K (2005). Selection indices for cocoon traits in six commercial silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) lines. Philippine Agricultural Scientist, 88 (3), 328-336.
Etebari, Kayvan and Matindoost, Leila (2005). Application of Multi-vitamins as Supplementary Nutrients on Biological and Economical Characteristics of Silkworm Bombyx mori L. Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology, 8 (1), 107-112. doi: 10.1016/S1226-8615(08)60078-3
Effects of hypervitaminosis of vitamin B3 on silkworm biology
Etebari, Kayvan and Matindoost, Leila (2004). Effects of hypervitaminosis of vitamin B3 on silkworm biology. Journal of Biosciences, 29 (4), 417-422. doi: 10.1007/BF02712113
Reponses of Diadegma semiclausum to temperature
Wang, Leyun, Etebari, Kayvan, Walter, Gimme and Furlong, Michael (2020). Reponses of Diadegma semiclausum to temperature. The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.14264/8c63210
Etebari Jirsaraei, Kayvan (2013). The impact of parasitism on the host transcriptome and microRNA profile in Diadegma semiclausum - Plutella xylostella system. PhD Thesis, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland.
Viruses to aid biological control of major root-feeding pests of sugarcane
(2023–2027) Sugar Research Australia Limited
(2022–2023) Sugar Research Australia Sugar Industry Research Awards
(2020–2021) UQ Early Career Researcher
Manipulation of regulatory microRNAs to supress insecticide resistance in the diamondback moth
(2014–2017) Horticulture Australia Limited
Long-read sequencing of a single insect and its haploid cells: an approach to obtain high-quality genome assemblies in insect pests
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
Investigating pro and antiviral genes in the interaction of mosquitoes with arboviruses
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
(2022) Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
(2021) Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.
Exploring entomopathogenic viruses for biological control of insect pests
Australia's $1.7 billion sugar industry faces a significant threat from severe root-feeding pests, such as canegrubs and soldier flies. The absence of effective control strategies for soldier flies, and the industry's heavy dependence on insecticides for canegrub control has led to detrimental impacts on both the industry and the broader environment, and it is not sustainable. The primary objective of this industry-funded project is to discover and characterize novel entomopathogenic viruses, with the ultimate aim of developing innovative tools for the efficient, and sustainable long-term biological management of these two primary pests.
The successful candidate will receive a PhD scholarship and work alongside the project team to undertake a comprehensive assessment of the efficacy of recently identified insect-pathogenic viruses against these pests. Utilizing metagenomics, the student will identify novel entomopathogenic viruses within target pest populations, evaluate their prevalence and determine their pathogenicity against soldier fly and canegrub as appropriate. The research will enhance our understanding of the interactions between these viruses and their hosts and has the potential lead to the identification of new biological control agents.