White nose syndrome caused by the fungal pathogen pseudogymnoascus destructans that has caused significant declines in numerous north american BAT species and continues to spread- threatening BAT…

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded Oregon State University (OSU) a $385,709 Project Grant under the White-nose Syndrome National Response Implementation program (CFDA 15.684) to advance solutions for controlling the fungal pathogen Pseudogymnoascus destructans, which causes white-nose syndrome in North American bat populations. The key products and services to be delivered through this 20-month grant include:

1. Evaluating the lack of non-target effects of the proposed gene-silencing treatments on closely related fungal species.
2. Testing the effectiveness of the treatments on non-bat model substrates and infected environmental substrates like soil and wood.
3. Confirming the nontoxicity of the treatments to bats.
4. Trialing nanoparticle substrates to increase the stability and prolong the effects of the treatments.
5. Partnering with the agricultural industry to build large-scale production capacity for the treatments.
6. Identifying appropriate field sites with state agencies to test the optimized treatments in bat hibernacula and mines.

This critical research will lay the foundation for large-scale field testing and deployment of the novel, environmentally-safe treatments to combat the devastating impacts of white-nose syndrome on North American bat populations.

White nose syndrome caused by the fungal pathogen pseudogymnoascus destructans that has caused significant declines in numerous north american BAT species and continues to spread- threatening BAT populations across the continent. While fungicides targeting pseudogymnoascus destructans exist- their effects on nontarget organisms make them undesirable. There is thus a critical need for pseudogymnoascus destructans controls that are nontoxic to other organisms. We propose an innovative solution using gene-silencing treatments to disrupt key cellular functions and of pseudogymnoascus destructans. The strengths of this control are that IT is highly specific- ideally affecting the target pathogen and no other organisms- and is environmentally safe- occurring naturally and degrading rapidly in the environment. In advance of largescale deployment- we will build on our successful development of a pseudogymnoascus destructans inhibitor by pursuing the following six goals: 1. Evaluate lack of nontarget effects on closely related organisms- 2. Test effectiveness of treatments on non-BAT model substrates (porcine ears) and on infected environmental substrates (soil and wood)- 3. Confirm nontoxicity to bats- 4. Trial nanoparticle substrates to increase stability and prolong its effects of the treatment- 5. Partner with entities in the agricultural industry to build largescale production capacity in advance of field trials- 6. Work with agencies to identify appropriate field sites for testing in mines and hibernacula. Although we target pseudogymnoascus destructans- IT is vital to evaluate the treatments effects on closely related fungal species to confirm target specificity. To do this- we will perform experiments to evaluate inhibitory effects on nontarget fungi. Treatments that effectively inhibit pseudogymnoascus destructans growth with minimal nontarget effects will be trialed on various pseudogymnoascus destructans-contaminated substrates to determine real world inhibitory effects. We will simultaneously investigate ways to prolong the treatments stability and duration of effects. To affordably produce large quantities of the treatment- we are pursuing a partnership with an industry innovator that manufactures similar agricultural products at commercial scales. Finally- we plan to work with state wildlife agencies to scout appropriate sites to test our optimized treatments in the field. The research performed with funding from this award will lay the foundation for largescale field testing.