FOOD PRICES ARE DEPENDENT ON COSTS OF PRODUCTION, AND PEST CONTROL IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS COST. THE MORE EFFICIENT PEST CONTROL MEASURES ARE FOR CROPS, THE LESS COSTLY IT IS TO PRODUCE THEM, AND THE LESS COSTLY THEY ARE FOR CONSUMERS. COMMERCIALLY SOLD TRANSGENIC CROPS DESIGNED TO CONTROL INSECT PESTS HAVE SHOWN GREAT EFFICACY, WITHOUT SIGNIFICANTLY DISRUPTING NONTARGET ORGANISMS, CRITERIA WHICH ARE PART OF THE REGISTRATION PROCESS. TRANSGENES DESIGNED FOR FUNGAL PLANT DISEASE RESISTANCE ARE BEING INCREASINGLY FIELD TESTED IN CORN AND OTHER CROPS ALTHOUGH NONE HAVE YET BEEN REGISTERED. FUNGI DISEASES OF INSECTS ARE IMPORTANT AS CONTROL AGENTS FOR INSECT PESTS IN BOTH NATURAL SITUATIONS AND WHEN SPECIFICALLY APPLIED FOR INSECT PEST CONTROL. BECAUSE PLANT DISEASE AND INSECT DISEASE FUNGI ARE VERY SIMILAR IN MANY RESPECTS, THERE IS POTENTIAL THAT PLANTS EXPRESSING TRANSGENES DESIGNED TO INCREASE RESISTANCE TO FUNGAL PLANT DISEASES WOULD INTERFERE WITH THE NATURAL AND APPLIED FUNGAL DISEASES CONTROLLING INSECT PESTS, DUE TO THE COMMON TARGET SITES FOR THE GENE PRODUCTS IN BOTH TYPES OF FUNGAL DISEASES..WE PROPOSE TO COMPARE THE EFFECTS OF PLANT LINES RESISTANT AND SUSCEPTIBLE TO FUNGAL PLANT DISEASE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF FUNGAL INSECT DISEASE TARTETED TOWARD CATERPILLAR PESTS OF CORN. WE WILL COMPARE THE EFFECTS ON INSECT DISEASE EFFECTIVENESS BY FEEDING PEST INSECTS MATERIAL FROM FUNGAL PLANT DISEASE SUSCEPTIBLE AND RESISTANT INBREDS DEVELOPED BY CONVENTIONAL BREEDING, AND TRANSGENIC LINES EXPRESSING ANTIFUNGAL GENES FROM CORN THAT PRODUCE PLANT FUNGAL DISEASE RESISTANCE IN INBREDS OTHERWISE SUSCEPTIBLE TO FUNGAL DISEASE. RESULTS OF PROPOSED STUDIES SHOULD PROVIDE IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO REGULATORS REGARDING THE NEED FOR NONTARGET STUDIES ON INSECT DISEASE AS PART OF THE REGISTRATION PROCESS FOR TRANSGENIC PLANTS DESIGNED TO INCREASE PLANT RESISTANCE TO BACTERIAL OR FUNGAL PLANT DISEASES. IN ADDITION, RESULTS OF THE PROPOSED STUDIES WILL HELP SATISFY THE CONCERNS OF COMPANIES INTERESTED IN PROMOTING TRANSGENIC CROPS, AS WELL AS THOSE IN THE PUBLIC CONCERNED ABOUT THE NONTARGET EFFECTS OF TRANSGENIC CROPS.ULTIMATELY, RESULTS SHOULD LEAD TO MORE EFFICIENT CORN PEST CONTROL, PRODUCING LOWER COST AND BETTER QUAILITY CORN FOR PRODUCERS AND CONSUMERS. THIS PROJECT BEST ALIGNS WITH PROGRAM AREA PRIORITY 4 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF GE RELATIVE TO NON-GE ORGANISMS IN THE CONTEXT OF PRODUCTION SYSTEMS.