Skip to main content
ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Maricopa, Arizona » U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center » Plant Physiology and Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #359167
Research Project: Enhancing Abiotic Stress Tolerance of Cotton, Oilseeds, and Other Industrial and Biofuel Crops Using High Throughput Phenotyping and Other Genetic Approaches

Location: Plant Physiology and Genetics Research

Title: Genetic improvement of Guayule (Parthenium argentatum A. Gray): An alternative rubber crop

Author
item Abdel-Haleem, Hussein
item Luo, Zinan
item RAY, DENNIS - University Of Arizona

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/5/2019
Publication Date: 10/15/2019
Citation: Abdel-Haleem, H., Luo, Z., Ray, D. 2019. Genetic improvement of Guayule (Parthenium argentatum A. Gray): An alternative rubber crop. In: Al-Khayri, J., Jain, S., Johnson, D., editors. Advances in Plant Breeding Strategies: Industrial and Food Crops. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. p. 151-178. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23265-8_6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23265-8_6

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Among the more than 2000 plant species known to synthesize rubber, guayule, Hevea and Taraxacum kok-saghyz produce commercial grade rubber and latex. Guayule (Parthenium argentatum A. Gray), originates from the Southern Texas and Northern Mexico deserts, and is receiving wide attention as a natural rubber crop that could successfully grow in arid and semiarid regions. Continued improvement of guayule for higher biomass, rubber production and resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses, as well as maximizing agronomic practices are necessary to meet the increasing demand of the guayule rubber industry. Early domestication and commercialization efforts have all centered on using natural guayule stands and unimproved germplasm as a source of natural rubber. However, limited and sporadic breeding efforts have slowed down guayule’s genetic gains compared to other crops. This chapter summarizes the most recent breeding progress, biotechnological advancements, and agronomic practices to increase guayule rubber and other industrial byproducts. This provides plant breeders an insight into the status of guayule improvement and possible directions to speed up the breeding progress.