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Mechanisms of disease resistance

Within the department of Disease and Stress Biology work is ongoing that focuses on unravelling the genetics and biology of resistance against both pests and pathogens. This includes work on insects, fungi, bacteria and viruses that infect the crop species wheat, barley, rice and pea, and the model plant species Arabidopsis.

A major emphasis of the department of Disease and Stress Biology is the translation of the knowledge gained from studies of disease resistance in model plant systems into crops, leading in the long term to practical applications for the agricultural industry.

The economically important diseases of cereals, particularly of wheat, include Septoria tritici, the rust diseases, Fusarium Head Blight, eyespot and powdery mildew. Characterisation of the genetic control and mechanisms of resistance in cereals to all these diseases is ongoing in the department. Work on Fusarium Head Blight also addresses resistance to the deadly mycotoxins produced by this fungal disease. Recently emerging diseases of wheat under study include the rice blast fungus, Magnaporthe prevalent on wheat crops in Brazil. In the legumes, studies in pea include the structural analysis of the interaction between the potyvirus protein, VPg and the plant translation factor eIF4E that confers resistance to these viruses.

These studies on disease resistance provide the knowledge and tools required by plant breeders and farmers to grow disease free crops without the need for agrochemicals, leading to the development of economically productive and sustainable farming systems.

Detailed dissection of the basal mechanisms underlying resistance to disease in plants is being done in the model plant systems, primarily Arabidopsis. Studies have identified a suite of genes required for basal resistance, host resistance, non-host resistance and Systemic Acquired Resistance (SAR). The mechanisms of SAR, uncovered in Arabidopsis, are being studied in barley to determine why a strong SAR response is not observed in cereal crops and whether SAR is associated with low yields. The question of a yield cost associated more generally with resistance is also being studied in Arabidopsis and cereal-pathogen systems.

Emerging work on plant-insect interactions covers plant mechanisms involved in resistance to sap-feeding insects such as aphids, leafhoppers, and planthoppers. These insects do not only cause feeding damage but transmit plant viral and bacterial pathogens. Studies are focussed on the basal plant defense responses leading to broad-range resistance towards insects.

A major emphasis of the department is the translation of the knowledge gained from studies of disease resistance in model plant systems into crops, leading in the long term to practical applications for the agricultural industry.