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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Mayaguez, Puerto Rico » Tropical Crops and Germplasm Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #175063
Title: VARIATION FOR ANTHRACNOSE RESISTANCE WITHIN THE SORGHUM GERMPLASM COLLECTION FROM MOZAMBIQUE, AFRICA

Author
item Erpelding, John
item Prom, Louis

Submitted to: Journal of Plant Pathology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/5/2005
Publication Date: 1/30/2006
Citation: Erpelding, J.E., Prom, L.K. 2006. Variation for anthracnose resistance within the sorghum germplasm collection from Mozambique, Africa. Plant Pathology Journal 5(1)28-34.

Interpretive Summary: The sorghum seed collection maintained by the US National Plant Germplasm System is an important source of genetic diversity for sorghum improvement. Plant diseases can substantially reduce crop productivity; therefore, new genes for host plant resistance are needed for the development of disease resistant cultivars. Anthracnose is an important fungal disease of sorghum. To identify new sources of resistance to anthracnose, the collection of seed samples from Mozambique, Africa was evaluated in Puerto Rico during the dry and wet growing seasons in 2004. Twelve of the 22 sorghum germplasm lines from Mozambique were found to be resistant in both seasons when infected with the disease. These 12 lines provide stable sources of resistance to anthracnose and will be an important source of genes for disease resistance to enhance sorghum improvement.

Technical Abstract: Plant germplasm collections have been established to preserve genetic variation for utilization in crop improvement programs. Breeding for host plant resistant provides an economical approach to controlling diseases and stabilizing crop production, but pathogen populations are variable and evolving; therefore, the identification of new sources of resistance are essential. The Mozambique sorghum collection maintained by the US National Plant Germplasm System in Griffin, Georgia was inoculated with Colletotrichum sublineolum and evaluated for anthracnose resistance in 2004 during the dry and wet growing seasons in Puerto Rico. Twelve of the 22 sorghum accessions showed a resistant response in both seasons. Four resistant accessions were evaluated in an anthracnose disease nursery in Georgia and found to be resistant, suggesting possible host plant resistance to different pathotypes of the disease. A susceptible disease response was observed for four accessions during both seasons. Six accessions varied in disease response within and between experiments suggesting environmental conditions influenced infection response. The anthracnose resistant germplasm identified from the Mozambique germplasm collection could be a valuable source of disease resistance for sorghum improvement programs.