Antonio Gugliuzzo

Research and Professional experience

• 06/2023-ongoing: Post-Doc position (postdoc fellowship) - University of Catania. Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A). “Development of innovative biological control strategies for the sustainable management of invasive pests in greenhouse crops” within the HORIZON-Europe project: “EU-China joint action to increase development and adoption of IPM tools - ADOPT IPM”. Under the supervision of Prof. Antonio Biondi.

• 04/2023-06/2023: Research collaborator - University of Catania. Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A). “Evaluation of sublethal effects of insecticides on the olfactory ability of two parasitoid insects” within the project: “Development of an experimental protocol for the study of olfactory reactions in Ganaspis brasiliensis and Necremnus tutae”. Under the supervision of Prof. Antonio Biondi.

• 10/2019-10/2022: PhD Course in Agricultural, Food and Environmental Science (International), University of Catania. Research project: “Development of new tools for sustainable management of non-native Ambrosia Beetles”. Under the supervision of Prof. Antonio Biondi and Prof. Giovanna Tropea Garzia.

• 04/2021-09/2021: DAAD Research Grant (German Academic Exchange Service) + Erasmus+ Mobility, Albert-Ludwigs University of Freiburg (Germany), Forest Entomology and Protection. Research project: “Multi-mutualistic interactions for optimized management of exotic fungus-farming beetles”. Under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Peter Biedermann, Chair of Forest Entomology and Protection.

• 07/2019-10/2019: Research and Development Advisor, ARGITAL S.r.l., Modica (Italy). “Assessment of repellence of clays towards different tomato pests and/or beneficials (i.e., Tuta absoluta, Bemisia tabaci and Nesidiocoris tenuis).”

• 07/2019-10/2019: Research and Development Advisor, NDG Group S.r.l., Castel Maggiore (Italy). “Insecticidal activity of different substances toward the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys.”

• 05/2018–05/2019: Research collaborator - University of Catania. Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A). “Field and laboratory studies to evaluate biology, control strategies and biological activity of volatile substances against Xylosandrus compactus” within the project: “Phytosanitary defense against the ambrosia beetle Xylosandrus compactus on Carob tree”. Under the supervision of Prof. Giovanna Tropea Garzia.

• 11/2018: Visiting Research Assistant - Council for Agricultural Research and Agricultural Economy Analysis - Research Centre for Agrobiology and Pedology (Florence) (CRA CRA-ABP). Collaboration on research topics concerning “Coleoptera Scolytinae infesting plants of agricultural and forest interest”. Under the supervision of Dr. Fabrizio Pennacchio, Senior Researcher of the Center.

• 01/2018–03/2018: Research collaborator - University of Catania. Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A). “Development of new experimental protocols for rearing and exposure to biocides of the pest Drosophila suzukii and its parasitoid Trichopria drosophilae” within the project: “Target and non-target entomotoxicity of bioinsectide nanoformulations”. Under the supervision of Prof. Antonio Biondi.

Grants / Awards

• Editor of Distinction Award - Springer Nature
  • Springer Nature Author Service Award for the contributions to Neotropical Entomology - May 2025
  • This award recognises the exceptional service in improving the author experience and ensuring the peer review process is efficient, constructive and fair

• Presentation Award for Young Scientists - XXVII International Congress of Entomology (ICE2024Kyoto)
  • Invited speaker for the XXVII International Congress of Entomology (ICE2024Kyoto) - August 25-30 – Kyoto, Japan
  • Winner of PAYS (Presentation Award for Young Scientists) – Awarded for the winning Oral Presentation during ICE2024.
  • Presentation title: “Toward the optimization of alternative plant diversity for managing Nesidiocoris tenuis in cold tomato greenhouses”
  • Award ceremony during the ICE2024Kyoto on August 30, 2024

• Best PhD Thesis by the Italian Association of the Agricultural Science Societies (AISSA)
  • Awarded for the best national PhD Thesis in Entomology discussed in 2022/23
  • February 2024 – Florence, Italy
  • Award ceremony during the AISSA national conference on February 15, 2024.

• Awarded for “Program Enhancement Funds” by ESA (Entomological Society of America)
  • Invited speaker for the 2022 ESA, ESC, and ESBC Joint Annual Meeting - November 13-16 - Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
  • Presentation title: “Biological control of invasive ambrosia beetles of the genus Xylosandrus”

• DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) Research Grant
  • DAAD is a joint organization of the universities and other institutions of higher education in the Federal Republic of Germany. Supported from public funds, the DAAD promotes international academic cooperation, especially through the exchange of students and academics. Grants are awarded by selection committees comprising a panel of independent academics.
  • Award-winning research project: “Multi-mutualistic interactions for optimized management of exotic fungus-farming beetles”
  • Scientific supervisor: Prof. Dr. Peter Biedermann; Host institution: University of Freiburg (Germany); Period: 04/2021 – 09/2021

• Mobility for Traineeship – Erasmus+
  • Traineeship during the PhD Course (04/2021-07/2021) at the research group on Forest Entomology & Protection at the Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources of the University of Freiburg (Germany)

Editorial tasks

- Associate Editor

• Associate editor for Neotropical Entomology (Springer)
  • Section: Pest Management
  • Journal Citation report WoS 2023: Impact factor 1.4; Ranking: 46/109, Q2 in Entomology

- Editorial Board Member

• Editor for Agricultural and Forest Entomology (Royal Entomological Society, Wiley)
  • Journal Citation report WoS 2023: Impact factor 1.6; Ranking: 36/109, Q2 in Entomology

- Associate Editor and Topic Editor 

• Associate Editor for Frontiers in Microbiology (Frontiers)
  • Section: Microbial Symbioses
  • Journal Citation report WoS 2023: Impact factor 4.0; Ranking: 53/161, Q2 in Microbiology
• Research Topic Editor for Frontiers in Microbiology (Frontiers)
  • Section: Microbial Symbioses
  • Research Topic: Diversity of Beetles and Associated Microorganisms, Volume II

- Guest editor

• Guest Editor for Biological Control (Elsevier)
  • Special Issue: “Biological control of pests and pathogens in forests: current status and future trends in the years to come.”
  • Journal Citation report WoS 2023: Impact factor 3.7; Ranking: 10/109, Q1 in Entomology

• Guest Editor for Entomologia Generalis (Schweizerbart)
  • Special Issue: “System-level integrated studies to increase the adoption of ‘green’ IPM tactics”
  • Journal Citation report WoS 2023: Impact factor 5.6; Ranking: 3/109, Q1 in Entomology

Peer reviewer

• Agricultural and Forest Entomology (Wiley)
• Annals of Applied Biology (Wiley)
• Annals of Forest Science (BMC Springer)
• Biocontrol (Springer)
• Biocontrol Science and Technology (Taylor & Francis)
• Biologia (Springer)
• Biological Control (Elsevier)
• Biological Invasions (Springer)
• CABI Agriculture and Bioscience (CABI)
• Ecotoxicology (Springer)
• Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata (Wiley)
• Entomologia Generalis (Schweizerbart)
• Entomological Science (Wiley)
• Environmental Entomology (Oxford Academic)
• European Journal of Entomology
• Frontiers in Microbiology (Frontiers)
• Journal of Economic Entomology (Oxford Academic)
• Journal of Pest Science (Springer)
• Neotropical Entomology (Springer)
• Oecologia (Springer)
• Pest Management Science (Wiley)
• Phytoparasitica (Springer)
• PLoS ONE (PLOS)