Location: Peanut and Small Grains Research Unit
Project Number: 3070-21220-009-007-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Apr 1, 2021
End Date: Aug 30, 2025
Objective:
The objective of this project is to develop and evaluate an X-ray system to efficiently screen peanut pods for infection by the fungal pathogen Thecaphora frezzii, the causal agent of peanut smut.
Approach:
The ARS PI will provide healthy and faux-infected peanut pods representing peanut market types. The Cooperator will construct the X-ray system and take images of the pods to validate the system. The Cooperator will also work on developing machine learning algorithms for automatic classification of the pods. The completed system will be used in Argentina to screen germplasm for resistance to peanut smut.
