Location: Foreign Disease-Weed Science Research
Project Number: 8044-22000-051-038-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jul 30, 2025
End Date: Jun 15, 2026
Objective:
Coniothyrium glycines is the causal agent of the disease, soybean red leaf blotch, which can cause yield loss in excess of 50%. While the pathogen is thus far restricted to Africa, it is one of two fungal pathogens regulated as a Select Agent by the United States Department of Agriculture-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service—a status reflective of its potential to be highly destructive to the soybean industry if introduced to the United States. Even given its regulatory importance, though, very few contemporary resources exist for studying C. glycines or accurately diagnosing the disease it causes. One such resource is contemporary cultures from the full distribution of this pathogen. Therefore, the objective of this agreement is for the Cooperator to collect soybean leaves infected with C. glycines from African countries that are undersampled or unsampled for C. glycines, in order to have a more representative culture collection of C. glycines diversity.
Approach:
Sampling approach is as follows. The Cooperator will choose appropriate sampling locations. Deference to the Cooperator to choose sampling locations will be given, as ARS is relying on their local connections and expertise to accomplish this sampling, as well as taking consideration of safety concerns. Priority will be given to sampling locations in: 1) southern Africa, where there is greater C. glycines genetic diversity than is captured by the current collection; 2) western Africa, where there is little representation of C. glycines isolates; and 3) any country where no C. glycines isolates currently exist. Funds exist for a total of five trips. Longer or more involved trips may change this total number.