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UW-Platteville’s Mark Levenstein will research new approaches to crop protection with 2022 Regent Scholar Award


MADISON—In April, the University of Wisconsin System announced UW-Platteville Assistant Professor of Biology Mark Levenstein as a 2022 Regent Scholar Award recipient.

The award, which comes with one-time grants to pursue a project in their field of study, recognizes UW System faculty for their extraordinary efforts in support of undergraduate research, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

Levenstein’s project is “Aryl Fluorinated Ethers to Develop the Next Generation of Agrochemicals.”

This project focuses on the development of new agrochemicals for crop protection, an increasingly vital area of research. Pesticide resistance is particularly important in the state of Wisconsin where agriculture contributes significantly to the economy and accounts for nearly 12 percent of the state’s workforce. 

The Project Investigator and collaborators have developed a novel, photocatalytic, chemical technique for synthesizing fluorinated compounds with the potential to improve the functionality of existing agrochemicals and to fuel the development of a new generation of biological agents with improved potency, increased longevity, and reduced environmental signatures.

The Regent Scholar program is coordinated by Arjun Sanga, President of WiSys, along with Dr. Adhira Sunkhara, Assistant Director for WiSys. WiSys is an independent, nonprofit-supporting organization for the UW System that advances scientific research throughout the state by patenting technologies developed out of the universities and licensing these inventions to companies capable of developing them to benefit Wisconsin and beyond.

(Via UW System)