Project Number: 6625-22000-009-00
Project Type: Appropriated

Start Date: Apr 25, 2007
End Date: Apr 24, 2012

Objective:
1. Screen sugarcane clones in the breeding pipeline and germplasm for resistance to ratoon stunt, leaf scald, mosaic, smut, eye spot and yellow leaf using proven techniques. 2. Improve assessment of brown rust resistance. a. Characterize pathogenic variation of brown rust in Florida. b. Evaluate seedlings screening methodology to identify rust resistant families. c. Determine the rust reaction of clones using improved natural infection and artificial inoculation methodologies. 3. Develop and associate molecular markers with disease resistance genes for use in marker-assisted selection.

Approach:
1. Sugarcane clones in the cultivar development program will be screened for their disease reaction to the major diseases (ratoon stunt, leaf scald, mosaic, smut and eye spot) using established artificial inoculation tests. 2. a. Pathogenic variation to rust will be determined by inoculating cultivars that have known reactions with rust collected in locations in Florida to determine differences in reaction patterns. b. Sugarcane seedlings inoculation procedures will be evaluated using various rust spore concentrations and rating the reaction of individuals. c. The rust reaction of clones will be evaluated based on natural infection by produced by rust infected susceptible plants grown adjacent to them and also by artificially inoculating the plants either by whorl or spray inoculations. 3. Previously selected polymorphic SSR¿s, developed RGA primers and AFLPs will be used to identify markers by bulk segregation analysis that are associated to brown rust, yellow leaf and ratoon stunt resistance using characterized populations of sugarcane.