Wheat Landraces May Hold Promise Against Rust

A new stem rust strain, Ug99, is on a worldwide march and the spores of the deadly fungal disease could reach the United States sooner or later. That is why scientists from the US Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are pushing a hot pursuit of wheat varieties that harbor genes for resistance to stem rust. The possible source of resistance genes: traditional varieties grown by village farmers on the other side of the world, known to scientists as landraces.

 Landraces are not as well studied as commonly cultivated wheat varieties. These varieties may contain genes not only for rust resistance, but also for improved agronomic traits like tolerance to salt and metal stress and drought. Initial evaluation of landraces housed at the ARS Small Grains and Potato Germplasm Research Unit showed promising results. Notable resistance in wheats from, among other places, Chile, Ethiopia, Turkey, and Bosnia and Herzegovina where observed. The scientists are now conducting field tests of selected specimens in Kenya and Ethiopia, the heart of the rust epidemic.

 For more information, vists http://www.ars.usda.gov/News/docs.htm?docid=1261