• NSF, 2007-2012, MO: Exploring the Associations Between Tropical Social Insects and Actinomycetes
• Hatch Act Formula Fund, 2008-2012, Exploring Symbiotic Associations Between Antibiotic-Producing Bacteria and Honey Bees
• Dow Agrosciences, 2009-2012, Exploring insect associated actinobacteria for natural products of interest in crop protection
• DHHS, PHS, NIH, 2010-2013, Discovery of natural product-based drugs from bacterial symbionts of insects

• "The role of symbiont genetic distance and potential adaptability in host preference towards Pseudonocardia symbionts in Acromyrmex leaf-cutting ants"

Maynard J, Roland DL, Currie CR, et al., Journal of Insect Science 11: 120 Sep 2011. Fungus-growing ants display symbiont preference in behavioral assays, both towards the fungus they cultivate for food and Actinobacteria they maintain on their cuticle for antibiotic production against parasites. 

• "Preliminary In Vitro Insights into the Use of Natural Fungal Pathogens of Leaf-cutting Ants as Biocontrol Agents"

Gorosito N, Poulsen M, Currie CR, et al., Current Microbiology 63(3): 250-258 Sep 2011. Here, we evaluate, using microbial in vitro assays, whether defenses in the ant-cultivated fungus strain (Leucoagaricus sp.) and Actinobacteria from the ant pest Acromyrmex lundii have the potential to limit the use of Escovopsis in biocontrol.

• "Specificity in the symbiotic association between fungus-growing ants and protective Pseudonocardia bacteria"

Cafaro MJ, Poulsen M, Price SL, et al., Proceedings of the Royal Society B-Biological Sciences 278(1713): 1814-1822 Jun 2011. Here we generate a two-gene phylogeny for Pseudonocardia associated with 124 fungus-growing ant colonies, evaluate patterns of ant-Pseudonocardia specificity and test Pseudonocardia antibiotic activity towards Escovopsis.

• "Genome Sequence of Streptomyces griseus Strain XylebKG-1, an Ambrosia Beetle-Associated Actinomycete"

Grubbs KJ, Biedermann PHW, Suen G et al., Journal of Bacteriology 193 (11): 2890-2891 Jun 2011. We present the genome of XylebKG-1 and discuss its similarity to the genome of S. griseus subsp. griseus NBRC13350.