Malek Alwedyan

Malek Alwedyan, Ph.D., is a doctoral student in the Texas A&M University Department of Entomology. His research interests lie in plant-insect interactions using field ecology and chemical ecology tools. This work addresses the effect of the Hemiptera order (Cotton fleahopper and Leaffooted bug) feeding on cotton plants (squares and bolls). His research is specifically focused on three areas of study. The first area of study focuses on the response of commercial cotton cultivars (differing in their maturing expression) to feeding by cotton fleahoppers. The next area characterizes the production of cotton volatile emissions in response to square and boll feeding by a group of sucking bugs. The last area examines the behavioral responses of cotton fleahoppers feeding on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released by cotton squares in laboratory and field bioassays. His goal-oriented focus is to apply his research results to innovate pest management strategies.