Cereals have natural resistance to pathogenic fungi, but powdery mildew, for example, can overcome this resistance.
Cereals have natural resistance to pathogenic fungi, but powdery mildew, for example, can overcome this resistance. A team at the University of Zurich has now discovered a new mechanism that enables powdery mildew to outsmart the immune system of wheat. This opens the door to targeted development of resistant varieties with a reduced risk of resistance breakthrough.
Cereals are among the most important staple foods. Wheat alone provides around 20 percent of the supply of protein and calories to people around the globe. However, its production is threatened by plant diseases such as the wheat powdery mildew fungus. One sustainable alternative to using fungicides is to grow varieties of wheat that are genetically resistant to this pathogen. However, in many cases this is not effective in the long term because powdery mildew quickly evolves and is able to overcome any resistance.
Read more at: University of Zurich
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