Saumik Basu

I am an Assistant Professor (Vegetable IPM Entomologist) in the Department of Entomology at the University of Georgia (UGA), Tifton Campus.
I did my BS in Human Physiology from the University of Calcutta and MS in Biotechnology from Visva-Bharati University in India. I received my Ph.D. from School of Life Science at Jawaharlal Nehru University in India in Molecular Plant Virology, where my research was focused on understanding molecular mechanisms of host-mediated symptom recovery associated with whitefly-transmitted Tomato leaf curl virus (ToLCV) infection. I did my first postdoc with Dr. Joe Louis at UNL to understand various aspects of diverse plant-insect interactions for developing novel and sustainable pest management strategies. Then I joined Dr. David Crowder’s lab at WSU to investigate molecular, biochemical, and ecological tools to study various aspects of complex species to community interactions in diverse cropping systems for seeking sustainable IPM strategies. My previous research findings have shown that beneficial soil mutualistic microbes improve plant responses to both pathogens and pests by enhancing plant defense chemistry and nutritional quality (Basu et al. 2021, Functional Ecology; Basu et al. 2022, Basic and Applied Ecology). One of my coolest research study have shown that pest attack order and complexity changes plant defense and nutrition (Basu et al. 2021, Molecular Ecology). I was an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Entomology and associated faculty member of molecular plant sciences (MPS) at WSU before joining UGA as an assistant professor. Besides research, I love to spend time with my family, like to explore new things, and trying new cuisines etc.