TERMITES ARE MAJOR STRUCTURAL PESTS THAT CAUSE AN ESTIMATED $40 BILLION USD IN DAMAGE A YEAR WORLDWIDE. DAMAGE IS CAUSED WHEN TERMITE COLONIES, WHICH CAN CONSIST OF AS MANY AS TENS TO HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF INDIVIDUALS, INFEST AND CONSUME WOODEN PARTS OF STRUCTURES. BECAUSE COLONIES LIVE UNDERGROUND AND CONSUME WOOD FROM THE INSIDE OUT, INFESTATIONS GENERALLY REMAIN UNNOTICED UNTIL SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE HAS ALREADY OCCURRED. THEREFORE, CONTROL EFFORTS ARE PRIMARILY FOCUSED ON PREVENTING NEW INFESTATIONS. SYNTHETIC TERMITICIDES ARE THE MOST COMMON AND COST-EFFECTIVE FORM OF CONTROL AND ARE POURED IN LIQUID FORM AROUND AT-RISK STRUCTURES TO CREATE A LONG-LASTING BARRIER THAT KILLS ANY TERMITE PASSING THROUGH IT. HOWEVER, SYNTHETIC TERMITICIDES ARE ALSO HARMFUL TO BENEFICIAL SOIL INVERTEBRATES SUCH AS EARTHWORMS AND SPRINGTAILS. IN ADDITION, IMPROPER APPLICATION CAN LEAD TO GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION, HARMING AQUATIC INVERTEBRATES AND FISH. TO DEVELOP ALTERNATIVE TERMITE CONTROL STRATEGIESTHAT ARE SUSTAINABLE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY, IT IS NECESSARY TO TARGET SPECIFIC ASPECTS OF TERMITE BIOLOGY, THEREBY REMOVING THE THREAT POSED TO OTHER ORGANISMS.ONE POSSIBILITY IS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE UNIQUE CASTE SYSTEMS PRESENT IN TERMITES. THE MAJORITY OF A TERMITE COLONY CONSISTS OF WORKERS AND SOLDIERS: WORKERS ARE PHYSICALLY WEAK AND RESPONSIBLE FOR A VARIETY OF TASKS, INCLUDING NEST CONSTRUCTION, FORAGING, AND BROOD CARE, WHILE SOLDIERS ARE PHYSICALLY STRONG AND RESPONSIBLE FOR DEFENDING THE COLONY FROM INTRUDERS. PREVIOUS WORK BY OUR LAB HAS REVEALED THAT SOLDIERS MAY ALSO PLAY A ROLE IN MANAGING STRESS OF THEIR NESTMATES. WORKERS THAT ARE CONTINUOUSLY EXPOSED TO SCENT CUES FROM A COMPETITOR SPECIES WILL DIE WITHIN ONE TO TWO DAYS. DEATH OCCURS EVEN WITHOUT PHYSICAL CONTACT BETWEEN THE WORKER AND ANY COMPETITORS, AND COMBINED WITH THE ERRATIC BEHAVIOR DISPLAYED BY WORKERS UNDER THESE CONDITIONS IMPLIES THAT IT IS A RESULT OF STRESS ALONE. IF A SOLDIER IS PRESENT ALONGSIDE THESE WORKERS, HOWEVER, THE WORKERS WILL NOT DIE. ESSENTIALLY, IF A WORKER KNOWS THAT A SOLDIER IS NEARBY, IT WILL REMAIN RELATIVELY FREE OF STRESS BECAUSE IT IS AWARE THAT THE SOLDIER WILL FIGHT OFF ANY PHYSICAL THREATS THAT MAY APPEAR. SOLDIERS ARE ALWAYS PRESENT AT THE PERIPHERY OF THE COLONY AND ARE THEREFORE ALWAYS AVAILABLE TO PROVIDE THIS "PEACE OF MIND" TO WORKERS, WHILE THEMSELVES APPEARING TO BE HIGHLY RESISTANT TO STRESS. DISRUPTING THIS RELATIONSHIP OF STRESS MANAGEMENT BETWEEN WORKERS AND SOLDIERS, OR ARTIFICIALLY INDUCING STRESS IN WORKERS COULD REPRESENT FEASIBLE ROUTES OF TERMITE-SPECIFIC CONTROL.THE GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO INVESTIGATE THE PHENOMENON OF TERMITE "PEACE OF MIND" SO AS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND ITS VIABILITY AS A TARGET FOR ALTERNATIVE TERMITE CONTROL METHODS. FIRST, THE BRAINS OF TERMITE WORKERS AND SOLDIER WILL BE DIRECTLY EXAMINED AND COMPARED TO ESTABLISH HOW THEY DIFFER STRUCTURALLY, WITH CONSIDERATION FOR HOW THESE DIFFERENCES MAY RELATE TO THE RESPONSE OF EACH CASTE TO STRESS. NEXT, THE STRESS EXPERIENCED BY TERMITES EXPOSED TO COMPETITORS WILL BE DIRECTLY QUANTIFIED BY MEASURING THE LEVELS OF SPECIFIC STRESS HORMONES PRESENT IN THE BRAIN AT DIFFERENT TIME POINTS AND UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS. FINALLY, THE REGIONS OF THE BRAIN THAT RESPOND STRESS WILL BE VISUALIZED AND COMPARED BETWEEN WORKERS AND SOLDIERS. TOGETHER, THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE A DETAILED, COMPREHENSIVE VIEW OF HOW TERMITE WORKERS AND SOLDIERS EXPERIENCE STRESS ALONGSIDE A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE ROLE THAT SOLDIERS PLAY IN ALLEVIATING STRESS IN WORKERS. THIS WORK WILL ESTABLISH A RATIONALE WHILE ALSO FORMING THE FOUNDATION FOR FUTURE ALTERNATIVE FORMS OF TERMITE CONTROL THAT SEEK TO EITHER DISRUPT THE RELATIONSHIP OF STRESS MANAGEMENT BETWEEN WORKERS AND SOLDIERS, OR ARTIFICIALLY INDUCE STRESS IN WORKERS TO INDUCE DEATH OF THE COLONY.