Resistance genes from wild relatives of crops offer opportunities for more sustainable agriculture worldwide

Friday, September 4, 2015 - 07:00 in Biology & Nature

Growing crops with stacks of two or more resistance genes from closely related species, introduced into the crop via for instance genetic engineering, combined with the simultaneous introduction of resistance management, can ensure the long-term resistance of these plants to economically significant and aggressive diseases. The combination offers opportunities to make agriculture more sustainable worldwide, for instance as part of an integrated pest management that only involves chemical means in exceptional situations and in low doses. These were the findings of an international scientific conference held in Wageningen on 3 September on the conclusion of a study into more durable resistance against Phytophthora through the use of resistance genes from related wild potato species (DuRPh), which was funded by the Dutch government for ten years.

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