Objective
MUTANTS ARISING FROM THE ABOVE RESEARCH WILL BE USEFUL TOOLS BOTH FOR THE PRACTICAL PURPOSE OF PRODUCING NEW DISEASE-RESISTANT CROPS AND FOR THE DISSECTION OF FACTORS INVOLVED IN PATHOGENESIS.
In vitro tissue culture procedures have been shown to increase genetic variability for responses to plant pathogens. The use of such variability, linked with appropriate in vitro selection procedures, has been proposed as a means of obtaining novel plants carrying valuable new resistance to disease. For this purpose, efficient in vitro selection methods have to be devised, based upon knowledge of the mechanisms of interaction between hosts and pathogens.
Studies with brassica, carnation, potato and tomato plus appropriate pathogens showed the following:
somaclonal mutations and haploid culture induced mutagenesis are potentially useful sources of novel resistance;
pathogen propagules may be detected in vitro, but this may not be correlated with disease resistance in regenerants;
from experiments with pathogens and elicitors, sometimes with negative selection agents, expression of specific metabolic pathways may be good in vitro indicator of resistance, and enabled of specific metabolic pathways may be good in vitro indicator of resistance, and enabled isolation of cell lines with altered resistance in vitro;
cellular hormone ratios significantly influence the expression of resistance.
METHODS WILL BE DEVELOPED FOR SELECTION IN VITRO OF NOVEL DISEASE RESISTANCE FACTORS PREVIOUSLY GENERATED BY IN VITRO CELL MANIPULATION (MUTAGENESIS, SOMACLONAL VARIATION,...).
MUTANTS ALTERED IN THE HOST-PATHOGEN INTERACTION PROCESSES WILL BE ISOLATED USING DIFFERENT STRATEGIES, NAMELY :
- SELECTION WITH CULTURE FILTRATES,
- SELECTION WITH PATHOTOXINS,
- SELECTION WITH PATHOGEN PROGACULES;
- SELECTION FOR BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS CORRELATED WITH EXPRESSION OF RESISTANCE.
THE TWO RESEARCH GROUPS INVOLVED ARE COMPLEMENTARY IN THE FOLLOWING WAY :
- THE LABORATORY IN CAMBRIDGE HAS EXPERTISE IN PLANT PATHOLOGY AND WILL CONCENTRATE ON BRASSICAS AND THEIR PATHOGENS;
- THE LABORATORY IN FLORENCE HAS EXPERTISE IN PLANT GENETICS AND WILL WORK ON TOMATO, DIANTHUS AND THEIR PATHOGENS.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
Topic(s)
Data not availableCall for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
CSC - Cost-sharing contractsCoordinator
CB2 3EA Cambridge
United Kingdom