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ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #99392
Title: CERCOSPORA BETICOLA INTERACTIONS WITH AXENIC SUGAR BEET CULTURES

Author
item Kuykendall, Larry
item Smigocki, Anna

Submitted to: American Society of Sugarbeet Technologists
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/15/1999
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Sugar beet yield and quality reductions of 20 to 30% occur when Cercospora leafspot disease breaks out. Our goal is to make transgenic plants that effectively resist this disease. In this study, attempts were made to develop a convenient in vitro assay for examining tissue cultures of transgenic sugar beets for their ability to inhibit the pathogenic fungus. The paper discusses pitfalls encountered and finally concludes that intact plants grown in the greenhouse will be needed to perform these assays. Scientists working on leafspot disease will find these results useful.

Technical Abstract: Sugar beet leafspot disease caused by Cercospora beticola often has a significant impact on both sugar beet yield and quality in some areas of the United States including the Red River Valley and Michigan. Our lab had previously produced some transgenic sugar beets possessing novel pathogen-defense genes specifying antimicrobial proteins. This study was conducted to examine the ability of these new genotypes to inhibit the growth of Cercospora. However, axenic sugar beet leaflets evidently supply the fungal pathogen with required growth factors not found in chemically defined media and thus are an excellent substrate for the in vitro growth of Cercospora. These growth factors are being determined.