Wheat Pathogen Mystery Solved
June 4, 2010| |
A mystery faced by plant pathologists – as to why a pathogen that attacks wheat can be so adaptable, diverse and virulent – has been solved. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service (ARS) led by Yue Jin found out that stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis, is capable of sexually reproducing on the leaves of an alternate host called barberry, a common ornamental. Results were published in the journal Phytopathology.
An ARS press release says that "sexual recombination promotes rapid reshuffling of virulence gene combinations and produces a genetic mix more likely to pass along traits that improve the chances for survival." Barberry serves as a sexual or alternate host for stripe rust. When spores of the stripe rust fungus germinate in the spring, they produce spores that reach barberry leaves. Structures are formed on top of the leaves that allow mating between races or strains of the fungus. The resulting spores infect wheat.
See the ARS press release at http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2010/100601.htm
| |
Biotech Updates is a weekly newsletter of ISAAA, a not-for-profit organization. It is distributed for free to over 22,000 subscribers worldwide to inform them about the key developments in biosciences, especially in biotechnology. Your support will help us in our mission to feed the world with knowledge. You can help by donating as little as $10.
-
See more articles:
-
News from Around the World
- FAO Urges Early Action on Climate Change Responses
- CLI Perspective on Food Security
- Wheat Rust Website Launched
- ‘Resurrection Plant' Researcher Receives Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Award
- Success Stories in African Agriculture
- U.S. EPA Approves VipCot Cotton for Natural Refuge
- Planting Bt Maize Does Not Affect Earthworms
- Bayer and CTC Team Up to Produce High-Yielding Sugarcane
- Scientists Reveal the Authentic Potato Germplasm Neo-Tuberosum Origin
- Wheat Pathogen Mystery Solved
- IFIC Survey: Consumers Favor Biotech Foods
- USDA Seeks Public Comments to Prepare EIS on GM Sugar Beets
- Australian OGTR Invites Comments to Limited Controlled Release of GM Canola
- GRDC Funds Research of Cereals for Drought Conditions
- FSSA Operationalizes Regulation of GM Foods in India
- National Biosafety Board and GMAC Established in Malaysia
- Zinc Gene Switches in Plants
- Good and Bad News About Fighting Potato Blight
-
Research Highlights
- Carotenoid Content and Genetic Variations of Orange Peppers
- Expansin Genes Expression and Cell Expansion in Potato Organs
- Positional Cloning of Cold Tolerance Trait in Rice
-
Announcements
- Tropical Vegetable Improvement Seminar
- Biotech Symposium In Italy
- Legume Conference in Guatemala
-
Read the latest: - Biotech Updates (April 24, 2024)
- Gene Editing Supplement (April 24, 2024)
- Gene Drive Supplement (February 22, 2023)
-
Subscribe to BU: - Share
- Tweet