Researchers have a new understanding of the genetic makeup of a fungus that causes the disease Wheat Stripe Rust, one of the most destructive wheat diseases globally costing $1 billion annually.
Research that could transform global rice production by increasing yields from the world’s number one food crop has been boosted by five more years of funding.
Some clever detective work by an international team of scientists has uncovered how a deadly fungus - a stem rust called Ug99 - came about through some unusual breeding habits. The discovery will help protect wheat crops around the world from devastating fungal diseases.
Researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have shown how Australian wheat crops would cope if a destructive disease that’s yet to hit our shores ever made it into the country.
Fungal phytopathogens secrete a litany of molecules during their infection of a plant host, including virulence factors like effector proteins. Secreted virulence factors function in the apoplast of host tissues or are trafficked into host cells.
With half a million species and representing a billion years of evolution, a better understanding of the green plant tree of life is crucial for the survival of humankind.
Phloem is the vascular tissue in plants - responsible for transporting sugars from source to sink. It is well established that osmotic currents drive the flow of sap through phloem vessels.