Gary Felton

Professor and Department Head of Entomology

Gary Felton

Research Summary

Plant-herbivore interactions. Adaptive responses of herbivores to plant defenses. Herbivore cues recognized by plants with specific focus on biochemical and molecular analysis of salivary secretions.

Huck Affiliations

Most Recent Publications

The Salient Aroma Hypothesis: Host plant specialization is linked with plant volatile availability in Lepidoptera

Po An Lin, Wei Ping Chan, Liming Cai, Yun Hsiao, Even Dankowicz, Kadeem J. Gilbert, Naomi E. Pierce, Gary Felton, 2025, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Plant defense against insect herbivory: Flavonoid-mediated growth inhibition of Helicoverpa zea

Debamalya Chatterjee, Charles Colvin, Tyler Lesko, Michelle Peiffer, Gary W. Felton, Surinder Chopra, 2025, Plant Stress

Effects of baculovirus-killed cadavers on plant defenses and insect behavior

Asher G. Jones, Ikkei Shikano, Charles J. Mason, Michelle Peiffer, Gary W. Felton, Kelli Hoover, 2025, Arthropod-Plant Interactions

Tomato Defenses Under Stress: The Impact of Salinity on Direct Defenses Against Insect Herbivores

Sahil V. Pawar, Sujay M. Paranjape, Grace K. Kalowsky, Michelle Peiffer, Nate McCartney, Jared G. Ali, Gary W. Felton, 2025, Plant, Cell and Environment on p. 3647-3659

Stomata: gatekeepers of uptake and defense signaling by green leaf volatiles in maize

Feizollah A. Maleki, Irmgard Seidl-Adams, Gary W. Felton, Mônica F. Kersch-Becker, James H. Tumlinson, 2024, Journal of Experimental Botany on p. 6872-6887

Gut bacteria of lepidopteran herbivores facilitate digestion of plant toxins

Nan Zhang, Zhaoyi Qian, Jintao He, Xiaoqiang Shen, Xiaoyu Lei, Chao Sun, Jie Fan, Gary W. Felton, Yongqi Shao, 2024, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

Integrating water and insect pest management in agriculture

Po An Lin, Sulav Paudel, Pin Chu Lai, Raj K. GC, Dan Hong Yang, Gary W. Felton, 2024, Journal of Pest Science on p. 521-538

Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Lepidoptera Microbiome

Yongqi Shao, Charles J. Mason, Gary W. Felton, 2024, Annual Review of Entomology on p. 117-137

Stomatal closure prevents xylem transport of green leaf volatiles and impairs their systemic function in plants

Feizollah A. Maleki, Irmgard Seidl-Adams, Azadeh Fahimi, Michelle L. Peiffer, Monica F. Kersch-Becker, Gary W. Felton, James H. Tumlinson, 2024, Plant, Cell and Environment on p. 122-139

Erratum: Correction to: Helicoverpa zea-Associated Gut Bacteria as Drivers in Shaping Plant Anti-herbivore Defense in Tomato (Microbial ecology (2023) 86 3 (2173-2182))

Qinjian Pan, Ikkei Shikano, Tong Xian Liu, Gary W. Felton, 2023, Microbial Ecology on p. 2183

Most-Cited Papers

Cues from chewing insects - the intersection of DAMPs, HAMPs, MAMPs and effectors

Flor E. Acevedo, Loren J. Rivera-Vega, Seung Ho Chung, Swayamjit Ray, Gary W. Felton, 2015, Current Opinion in Plant Biology on p. 80-86

Tritrophic Interactions: Microbe-Mediated Plant Effects on Insect Herbivores

Ikkei Shikano, Cristina Rosa, Ching Wen Tan, Gary W. Felton, 2017, Annual Review of Phytopathology on p. 313-331

Fall armyworm-associated gut bacteria modulate plant defense responses

Flor E. Acevedo, Michelle Peiffer, Ching Wen Tan, Bruce A. Stanley, Anne Stanley, Jie Wang, Asher G. Jones, Kelli Hoover, Cristina Rosa, Dawn Luthe, Gary Felton, 2017, Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions on p. 127-137

Host plant and population source drive diversity of microbial gut communities in two polyphagous insects

Asher G. Jones, Charles J. Mason, Gary W. Felton, Kelli Hoover, 2019, Scientific Reports

Plant defenses interact with insect enteric bacteria by initiating a leaky gut syndrome

Charles J. Mason, Swayamjit Ray, Ikkei Shikano, Michelle Peiffer, Asher G. Jones, Dawn S. Luthe, Kelli Hoover, Gary W. Felton, 2019, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America on p. 15991-15996

Host plant species determines symbiotic bacterial community mediating suppression of plant defenses

Seung Ho Chung, Erin D. Scully, Michelle Peiffer, Scott M. Geib, Cristina Rosa, Kelli Hoover, Gary W. Felton, 2017, Scientific Reports

Stomata-mediated interactions between plants, herbivores, and the environment

Po-An Lin, Yintong Chen, Gabriela Ponce, Flor Acevedo, Jonathan P. Lynch, Charles Anderson, Jared G. Ali, Gary W. Felton, 2021, Trends in Plant Science on p. 287-300

Helicoverpa zea gut-associated bacteria indirectly induce defenses in tomato by triggering a salivary elicitor(s)

Jie Wang, Michelle Peiffer, Kelli Hoover, Cristina Rosa, Rensen Zeng, Gary W. Felton, 2017, New Phytologist on p. 1294-1306

Ethylene contributes to maize insect resistance1-mediated maize defense against the phloem sap-sucking corn leaf aphid

Joe Louis, Saumik Basu, Suresh Varsani, Lina Castano-Duque, Victoria Jiang, W. Paul Williams, Gary W. Felton, Dawn S. Luthe, 2015, Plant Physiology on p. 313-324

Symbiotic polydnavirus of a parasite manipulates caterpillar and plant immunity

Ching Wen Tan, Michelle Peiffer, Kelli Hoover, Cristina Rosa, Flor E. Acevedo, Gary W. Felton, 2018, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America on p. 5199-5204

News Articles Featuring Gary Felton

Apr 15, 2025

Feeling salty? Increased salt stress reduces tomato pest activity

Increased soil salinity can reduce damage from prominent tomato pests such as the tomato fruitworm, according to researchers at Penn State. They published their findings in the Journal of Plant, Cell and Environment.

Full Article

Apr 03, 2025

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

In a recent study published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, an international team of researchers tested a new hypothesis for why some Lepidoptera have very specific diets, feeding on only a few types of plants, while others are far less picky.

Full Article

Mar 02, 2025

Select corn lines contain compounds that sicken, kill major crop pest

A team of researchers at Penn State conducted a study that demonstrated that genetic lines of corn have inherent compounds that serve as insecticides, protecting them from the larvae that feed on them.

Full Article

Feb 19, 2025

Select corn lines contain compounds that sicken, kill major crop pest

The compounds, called flavonoids, have an insecticidal effect on corn earworm larvae.

Full Article

Feb 20, 2023

Grant will promote STEM graduate studies for students from diverse backgrounds

A consortium of institutions led by faculty in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences has received a $75,000 planning grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation aimed at expanding the recruitment of and opportunities for Black, Indigenous and Latino students to enroll in science, technology, engineering and mathematics graduate programs.

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Aug 23, 2022

Flavonoids from sorghum plants kill fall armyworm pest on corn; may protect crop

Flavonoids produced by sorghum leaves have shown promising results in combating fall armyworm larvae. When sprayed on the leaves of corn, sorghum flavonoids stunt the growth of fall armyworm and often kill the pest, Penn State researchers report in a new study.

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Feb 17, 2021

Silencing the alarm

An enzyme in the saliva of certain insects prevents their food plants from warning neighboring plants of an attack.

Full Article

Jul 22, 2019

Plants defend against insects by inducing 'leaky gut syndrome'

Plants may induce "leaky gut syndrome" — permeability of the gut lining — in insects as part of a multipronged strategy for protecting themselves from being eaten, according to researchers at Penn State.

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Jul 13, 2025

Scents of survival: How plant aromas shape insect diets

Every spring, gardens and fields fill the air with rich, floral aromas. But it’s more than just a pleasant smell; these plant-released scents play a vital role in the lives of butterflies and moths.

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