Biotech Updates

Scab Forum Focuses on Genetic Resistance, Alerting Growers

December 23, 2010

The US Wheat and Barley Scab Initiative's (USWBSI) annual conference was concluded recently. The meeting was attended by scientists and stakeholders who discussed current research and strategies to reduce the threat of Fusarium head blight.

Among the strategies are the development and use of resistant varieties which National Association of Wheat Growers Director of Government Affairs for Research and Technology Jane De Marchi discussed during a session on gene discovery and genetic resistance. She told researchers that the wheat industry's work would pave the way for the eventual introduction of biotechnology into wheat crop. The participants also learned about an outreach tool launched in 2010 that will aid wheat growers in identifying scab risk critical points in the growing season.

For more on this article, see http://www.wheatworld.org/2010/12/scab-forum-focuses-on-genetic-resistance-alerting-growers/.