Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat

Introduction to the project July 29, 2008 Rick Ward, Project Coordinator, Cornell University Farmer in Narok, Kenya, whose field was wiped out by stem rust. The greener part at the forefront of the photo is a field that was sprayed with fungicide. Photo: Ruth Wanyera, KARI

Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat Basics: Led by Cornell University with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (Rick Ward, Coordinator) Two year project (Phase I, ) with potential for six more years (Phase II, ) Charitable purpose: To reduce the world’s vulnerability to rust diseases of wheat through an international collaboration of unprecedented scale and scope Wheat field in Molo, Kenya, devastated by stem rust (2006) Photo: Samuel Kilonzo, KARI Stem rust

Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat

Objectives 1.Planning for the Threat of Emerging Wheat Rust Variants 2.Advocating and Coordinating Global Awareness and Cooperation 3.Tracking Wheat Rust Pathogens 4.Supporting Critical Rust Screening Facilities in East Africa 5.Breeding (Conventional and Molecular) to Produce Rust Resistant Varieties 6.Developing and Optimizing Markers for Rust Resistance 7.Reducing Linkage Drag Associated with Rust Resistance Genes 8.Discovering New Sources of Rust Resistance in Wild Wheat and Wild Barley 9.Exploring Rice Immunity to Rust Budget = US $8.9 million per year

Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat Timeline: 2005 – Global Rust Initiative GRI) formed to reduce the world’s vulnerability to stem, yellow, and leaf rusts of wheat and advocate for a sustainable international system to contain the threat of wheat rusts 2005 – Sounding the Alarm on Global Stem Rust published by CIMMYT, ICARDA, KARI, EARO, and Cornell Univ 2006 – GRI hold technical workshop in Alexandria, Egypt, with 30 wheat- producing countries participating 2007 – N.E. Borlaug convened a meeting to consider the feasibility of exploiting recent advanced in genomics to render wheat a non-host to stem rust. Participants at this meeting also recognized need for immediate impacts, esp. with rise of Ug – Global Rust Initiative titled formally changed to Borlaug Global Rust Initiative (BGRI) 2008 – DRRW proposal accepted by the BMGF

Countries participating in GRI Meeting in Alexandria, October 2006 Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat

Why is a global collaborative effort needed? Seed Training training training ! Lack of experienced rust pathologists is alarming Few labs worldwide have conventional expertise and resources combined with molecular support Rust movement - costs of quarantine related activities Shortage of biosecurity protocols- need for better containment facilities Long term storage and collection of rust isolates is lacking – e.g., none for yellow rust since IPO closed in mid 90’s Promotion of new cultivars – Regional representation (??) Insufficient funding – e.g., investments in maintenance breeding for rust resistance alone make up around 50% of investments at CIMMYT in wheat improvement Need for increased focus on stem rust

Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat Pathology

Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat Ug99 and its variants Formally designated TTKS Defeats more of the 50+ known major resistance genes First seen in Uganda in 1999 and has since spread throughout the highlands of East Africa In January 2007, Ug99 was confirmed in Yemen and the Arabian peninsula. In March 2007, FAO announced presence in Iran In 2006, a variant of Ug99 was discovered that defeats all of the major genes that Ug99 does as well as the widely used stem rust gene Sr24

Countries reporting Ug99 Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat

Potential impact on the poor Wheat = 30% of world’s grain production 598 m tons will be harvested in 2008 on 220 m hectares of land, nearly half that in developing countries Losses could reach US $3 billion per year The already rising cost of food would be compounded by a stem rust epidemic. Photo: WFP

Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat Advocacy and coordination Advocate for more funds for rust research Help global actors collaborate and implement new rust projects Develop online tools to support this effort: Who’s Who of Rust: global inventories of research institutions and their personnel working on rust, donors who are or would like to support rust research, and professional societies/networks of interest to rust workers Rustopedia: one-stop shop for all things wheat rust. Provides useful syntheses of rust data and research progress, and houses key scientific information and links to other resources. All rust workers can contribute/edit content. Rust communities: Web tools that any rust worker may access to conduct collaborative work, start interest groups, or develop proposals.