Dedicated to the Late Dr. Suey.Sheng KAO
Research History of Dr. Suey-Sheng Kao
Dr. Suey-Sheng Kao was born in 1946. He studied entomology at University of Minnesota, USA. He worked as head of the biopesticides division, Taiwan Agricultural Chemicals and Toxic Substances Research Institute (TACTRI) from 1985. Being concerned about the safety of crops and foods, Dr. Kao began to develop new biopesticides with the assistance of biotechnology in 1983. He made concerted efforts towards the development of biopesticide technology in the Taiwan in the last 26 years. Therefore much effort has been devoted to establishing a technology for quality control and bioassay of biopesticides to support regulatory control, and provided application technologies of biopesticides for farmers.
The missions of the biopesticides division which had been lead by Dr. Kao are to integrate the application of biopesticides with chemical pesticides to ensure the safe, effective and economic usage of pesticides and to maintain the sustainable agroecosystems. In particular, the division is currently focusing on various following activities such as, (1) developing and applying biochemical pesticides, (2) exploring and using the plant genes encoding insecticidal proteins, (3) developing formulation and field applications of biochemical pesticides, (4) extending and utilizing biochemical pesticides in IPM system, (5) establishing guidelines for regulatory control of biochemical pesticides.
Recently, the division has successfully developed and applied the sex pheromones and the microbial control agents. The R&D efforts of researchers over a long period of years have led to the achievements of tchnologies in the Taiwan in biopesticides and biofertilizers. For examples, sex pheromones of Cylas formicarius elegantulus, Cydia (Eucosma) notanthes, Cryptophelebia ombrodelta, Planococcus minor, Lymantria xylina, Conopomorpha sinensis, Spodoptera litura and S. exigua have been isolated, identified and synthesized. Sex pheromones of sweet potato weevil, carambola fruit borer, tobacco cut worm and beet armyworm are being used in IPM programs.Cheap and efficient pheromone based insect traps have been developed.
Bacillus thuringiensis, B. subtilis, B .amyloliquefaciens, Trichoderma spp. and several other microorganisms have also been isolated from different biotypes around the island. Strain improvement through UV irradiation and transgenic manipulation was conducted to broaden the host spectrum and enhance bioactivity. Solid and liquid fermentation technologies have been established for mass production of several organisms, more particularly the serial plot-scale liquid fermenters for microbial fungicides. Separation and concentration of lipophilic fungal spores and their metabolites were invented. Nomuraea raleyi against beet armyworm in soybean and Metarhizium anisopliae against Nilaparvata lugens in rice provided a control comparable with the synthetic insecticides. The use of rice cooker has been reported as very handy for the on-farm mass production of these entomopathogenic fungi. Microbes such as Rhizobium, associative and free living nitrogen fixing bacteria, phosphate solubilizing bacteria, arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi and organic materials degrading organisms are being isolated from different ecosystems as potential biofertilizers for the future. Most successful rhizobial inoculants were applied successfully to leguminous crops and muskmelons. Multifunctional biofertilizers were developed to reduce the chemical fertilizer requirement.
Dr. Kao regretfully died on December 9, 2011, aged 65. The commercialization of B. amyloliquefaciens was the last wish of Dr. Kao. His colleagues will make every effort to let his wish come true. Dr. Kao was both a beloved leader and a dear friend to those who knew him. His loss is extremely painful to all of his family and friends. Dr. Kao will live forever in the hearts and minds of his many friends, his loving family, and in the division he created.
---- The article was written by Dr. Feng-Chia Hsieh, Associate Researcher, Biopesticides Division, Taiwan Agricultural Chemicals and Toxic Substances Research Institute, Council of Agriculture, Taiwan.
Recent some papers by Dr. Suey-Sheng KAO:
Lekhnath Kafle, Wen-Jer Wu, Suey-Sheng Kao, Cheng-Jen Shih (Dept. of Entomol., Natl. Taiwan Univ., Taipei, Taiwan.)
Efficacy of Beauveria bassiana against the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), in Taiwan.
Pest Manag Sci. 2011 May 2; 21538803
Jen-Chieh Pang, Ming-Lun Chen, Yi-Cheng Ho, Chi-Yea Yang, Ching-Chou Tzeng, Suey-Sheng Kao, Hau-Yang Tsen (Dept. of Biotechnol., Van-Nung Univ., Chung-Li, Taoyuan County 320, Taiwan, ROC.)
Rapid detection and characterization of surfactin-producing Bacillus subtilis and closely related species based on PCR.
Curr. Microbiol. 2004 Sep. 49 (3):186-91 15386102 Cit:20
Feng-Chia Hsieh, Mei-Chen Li, Tsung-Chun Lin, Suey-Sheng Kao(Biopestc. Div., Taiwan Agric. Chemi. and Toxic Subs. Research Inst., Council of Agric., 11 Kuang-Ming Road, Wufeng, Taichung Hsien 413, Taiwan.)
Enterotoxigenicity and cytotoxicity of Bacillus thuringiensis strains and development of a process for Cry1Ac production.
J. Agric. Food Chem. 2003 Jan 1;51 (1):100-5 12502392 Cit:6
Chi-Yea Yang, Jen-Chieh Pang, Suey-Sheng Kao, Hau-Yang Tsen Dept. of Food Sci., Natl. Chung-Hsing Univ., Taichung, Taiwan.
Aerosol infectivity of a Baculovirus to Trichoplusia ni larvae: An alternative larval inoculation strategy for recombinant protein production.
Amer. Inst. of Chem. Eng. Biotechnol. Prog., 2009. Mar 30; 19334290 Cit:1
Jen-Chieh Pang, Ming-Lun Chen, Yi-Cheng Ho, Chi-Yea Yang, Ching-Chou Tzeng, Suey-Sheng Kao, Hau-Yang Tsen
Dept. of Biotechnol., Van-Nung Univ., Chung-Li, Taoyuan County 320, Taiwan, ROC.
Effect of fermentation conditions on the enterotoxigenicity, cytotoxicity and pesticidal activity of Bacillus thuringiensis strains isolated in Taiwan.
Bioresource Technol. 2009 Oct 30; 19880313
Feng-Chia Hsieh, Mei-Chen Li, Tsung-Chun Lin, Suey-Sheng Kao
Biopest. Div., Taiwan Agric. Chemi. and Toxic Subs. Research Inst., Council of Agric., 11 Kuang-Ming Road, Wufeng, Taichung Hsien 413, Taiwan.
Rapid detection and characterization of surfactin-producing Bacillus subtilis and closely related species based on PCR.
Curr. Microbiol. 2004 Sep ;49 (3):186-91 15386102 Cit:20
Chi-Yea Yang, Jen-Chieh Pang, Suey-Sheng Kao, Hau-Yang Tsen
Dept. of Food Sci., Natl. Chung-Hsing Univ., Taichung, Taiwan.
Enterotoxigenicity and cytotoxicity of Bacillus thuringiensis strains and development of a process for Cry1Ac production.
J. Agric. Food Chem. 2003 Jan 1;51 (1):100-5 12502392 Cit:6
Feng-Chia Hsieh, Tsung-Chun Lin, Menghsiao Meng, Suey-Sheng Kao.
Comparing Methods for Identifying Bacillus strains capable of producing the antifungal lipopeptide Iturin A.
Curr. Microbiol. 2007 Nov 20; 18027023 Cit:3
Tzyy-Rong Jinn, Suey-Sheng Kao, Jason T C Tzen, Tzong-Yuan Wu
Graduate Inst. of Biotechnol., Natl. Chung Hsing Univ., Taichung, Taiwan.
Coral red fluorescence protein as genetic modified baculovirus tracer.
J. Biotechnol. 2005 Sep 29;119 (3):255-9 15979186 Cit:2
