Generation Challenge Program Cgiar EmploymentBuilding a comprehensive response » CGIAR Research Program on MAIZE1. Aug. 20. 15. In September 2. Southern Rift Valley of Kenya. The symptoms were described as mottling of the leaves, small cobs with few grains, and necrosis of young leaves leading to . It was common for affected fields to show 1. By October 2. 01. CIMMYT and the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) confirmed the disease to be maize lethal necrosis (MLN). MLN is a disease caused by the synergistic combination of Maize Chlorotic Mottle Virus (MCMV) and any from the potyvirus family, in this case Sugarcane Mosaic Virus (SCMV). SCMV is found worldwide, but this was the first report of either MCMV or maize lethal necrosis in Africa. By then, for reasons that remain unclear, the disease was spreading quickly to other districts of Kenya, and at higher altitudes than thought possible. Between 2. 01. 2 and 2. Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and then Ethiopia. The USDA reports that at this rate, the disease will spread and intensify across Africa by 2. An upcoming publication from the CIMMYT Socioeconomics team indicates that 2. Kenya. How can the tide of this disease be turned in Africa, and similar devastation prevented elsewhere? In search of resistance. In the Biosafety Laboratory at CIMMYT headquarters, El Bat. Passing through two further sets of safety doors, she arrives at the greenhouse where several hundred young maize plants await inoculation. The plants are dusted with a fine grey powder to cause surface damage, allowing the disease- causing viruses to enter when Mezzalama brushes the youngest leaf of each plant with the solution of infected plant matter.
View from the field: Challenges in international agriculture Asia today faces a tremendous food security challenge to feed its 4.3 billion people. Many Asian countries are also some of Manihot is a New World genus, and it was not established elsewhere until after Europeans transported cassava to Africa early in the 16th century, and later to. Initiative for the characterization of genebank collections via the application of state-of-the-art genomic, phenomic and molecular technologies, and the release of the subsequent data via an online, open-access portal. The Africa Research in Sustainable Intensification for the Next Generation (Africa RISING) program comprises three research for development projects supported by the United States Agency for International Development as part. Concept Note - Challenge Program on High Value Crops - Fruits and Vegetables 3 also the ideal juncture for a Challenge Program to provide leadership and coordination of the CGIAR's activities with its partners in high value crops. The CGIAR Research Program on WHEAT (WHEAT) is led by CIMMYT and operated in partnership with ICARDA and other partners. WHEAT aims at increasing the productivity of wheat farming systems in order to serve the 2.5 billion poor. GCP’s mission is using genetic diversity and advanced plant science to improve crops by adding value to breeding for drought-prone and harsh environments. This is achieved through a network of more than 200 partners drawn. This is the beginning of a systematic process to find sources of MLN resistance from samples in the Genebank at CIMMYT. As Terry Molnar, maize breeder at CIMMYT explains: . After the first round of testing, several of these accessions remained healthy after inoculation, and will be tested further to confirm their resistance. This facility now widely used by the public and private sector. After a mass screening of 2. The second generation will come from the inbred lines that we are developing. Generation Challenge Program Cgiar LogoPrasanna, director of the CIMMYT Global Maize Program and now also MAIZE CRP. But in the long run we need to develop diverse sources of material with greater resistance to MLN. The targeted search for sources of MCMV resistance in the genebank aims to ensure a diverse supply of fully MLN- resistant hybrids for the future. Beyond seed. In the meantime, it is essential to complement the response from plant breeders with a greater understanding of how the disease emerged, and therefore how it can be controlled. At a conferenceheld in Nairobi from 1. May 2. 01. 5, it became clear just how quickly this understanding is evolving. Earlier, studies had found that seed transmission did not play a role in the spread of MCMV in the US, but the experience in Kenya suggests otherwise. This poses a big challenge to seed processors, and phytosanitary services in the region. In May, CIMMYT produced a set of recommendations on . In the affected area of Kenya, maize is grown continuously throughout the year, meaning that insect vectors can carry the viruses from crop to crop, season to season. Planting non- host crops will help reduce the inoculum reservoir. CGI funds have also been granted to the Federal University of Nigeria to help prevent the spread of MLN elsewhere in Africa, with support from the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA). Plans are afoot to set up an MLN quarantine facility at Harare, Zimbabwe. MLN poses an existential threat to maize food systems but, with the right resources, plant pathologists and breeders are well- equipped to face such challenges. The next phase will build capacities in sub- Saharan Africa by creating a transnational.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
December 2016
Categories |