When soybean rust first appeared in the United States in late 2004, many producers feared devastating yield losses similar to losses experienced in other parts of the world. In response to this threat, researchers have been evaluating USDA soybean germplasm accessions for resistance to this fungus, and a recent report in Crop Science identifies some of these resistant sources.
"Our goal was to determine which of the soybean germplasm accessions were resistant in the United States and whether they were resistant throughout the southern United States," explained David Walker, USDA-ARS scientist and assistant professor in the U of I Department of Crop Sciences. "Early on, we didn't know anything about the uniformity of the fungus populations in the mid-southern and southeastern states. It's tricky because the threat of this fungus is very dependent on weather conditions."
For example, Walker said this fungus reproduces more rapidly when temperatures are moderate and where there's abundant rainfall and heavy dew, causing spores to germinate and infect plants. The spores can move by wind and travel hundreds of miles to start a new infection, making it hard to contain.
This concern prompted field evaluations of 576 accessions from the USDA Soybean Germplasm Collection for resistance to soybean rust at seven locations in the southern United States between 2006 and 2010. Accessions were rated for disease severity in all year-location environments, and for disease incidence, fungal sporulation, lesion type, and/or uredinia density in certain environments. The Crop Science article reports the results of the 2006-2008 tests.
"While none of the accessions were immune in all environments, 64 were resistant in two or more locations each year that they were tested," Walker said. "In addition, some appeared to be more resistant in certain environments than in others."
Walker's team also included Randy Nelson and G
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| Contact: Jennifer Shike jshike@illinois.edu 217-244-0888 University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Source:Eurekalert |
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