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Background:
Currently,
the control of fungal diseases in all major crops is based on
fungicides that possess biocidal activity against the target organism(s).
A reduction in the use of such biocidal plant protectants can
be achieved in two ways:
1)
an improvement of plant resistance by plant breeders;
2)
interference with specific fungal pathogenicity factor(s), which
are responsible for fungal aggressiveness and infection.
The
second strategy requires a comprehensive and detailed knowledge
of the infection mechanism. We have located severe gaps in the
science of plant pathology and plant protection concerning the
'attack weapons' of the very important necrotrophic pathogens.
Necrotrophs need to kill the plant tissue before invading and
colonising it. The process of killing (necrotisation) is a crucial
step in that it determines the success of infection. For several
economically important pathogens such as the grey mould fungus
or Botrytis cinerea, the necrotising factors are not known. B.
cinerea causes severe losses in a wide range of crops such as
rapeseed, sunflower, beans, cabbage, onions, lettuce, strawberries,
ornamentals and grapevine. It also represents a post-harvest problem
for many fruits. The threat imposed by this fungus requires the
intense and constant use of fungicides in many of these crops.
Objectives:
This
research collaboration aims at creating a knowledgeable basis
for a significant innovation in the protection of plants from
fungal diseases. The immediate objectives which can be achieved
within this research project are:
1)
characterising the oxidative events during infection;
2)
identifying sources and induction pathways of active oxygen species;
3)
establishing the role of the fungus and the plant in oxidative
burst events;
4)
pin-pointing sites for a potential disruption of the infection
process.
Long-term
objectives, which can be achieved as a result of the 3-year work
programme, are transferring the described principles of necrotrophy
to other necrotrophic pathogens; developing novel strategies of
non-biocidal disease control based on inactivated pathogenicity;
collaborating with industrial partners to exploit the knowledge
for novel disease control strategies; and developing non-biocidal
technologies for protecting plants against necrotrophic pathogens.
This research proposal describes a highly innovative approach
to create the basis for a durable and smooth way of protecting
cultivated plants from necrotrophic pathogens. The results from
this research will stimulate the producers of plant protectants
to design new strategies of control which will meet even tighter
environmental requirements than those existing today. Additionally,
plant breeders may benefit from this research in their efforts
to discover and utilise sources and markers of resistance.
Description:
This
research proposal builds on the recent discovery that oxidative
forces are involved when B. cinerea infects the plant. We demonstrated
that aggressive infections trigger an early 'oxidative burst'
in the infected plant cells, which leads to rapid host cell death
and thus enables infection. As opposed to biotrophic pathogens,
which are hindered by this so-called 'hypersensitive response'
(HR), infection by necrotrophs appears to benefit from this plant
reaction. We have shown that aggressive 'active oxygen species'(AOS),
such as superoxide, hydrogen peroxide and hydroxyl radicals are
generated in the early phases of infection but the sources and
pathways of their production are completely unknown. The processes
underlying this oxidative attack are highly complex and their
elucidation requires experts from the different disciplines of
plant science, such as plant pathology, fungal and plant genetics,
biophysics and biochemistry. We have gathered a group of eminent
scientists from Europe and Israel covering these areas, who are
dedicated to combining their expertise and make a significant
contribution to our understanding of oxidative processes in plant
diseases.
Coordinator
Andreas
VON TIEDEMANN
University
of Rostock
Universitätsplatz
1
D-18051
Rostock
Tel.:
+49 381 498 22 00
Fax:
+49 381 498 21 99
E-mail:
avt@agrarfak.uni-rostock.de
Partners
- Brian
WILLIAMSON
Scottish Crop Research Institute Co. Ltd.
Invergowrie
UK-DD2 Dundee
Tel.: +44 1382 56 27 31
Fax: +44 1382 56 24 26
E-mail: b.williamson@scri.sari.ac.uk
- Yigal
ELAD
The Volcani Center Agricultural Research Organisation
Department of Plant Pathology
P.O. Box 6
IL-50250 Bet Dagan
Tel.: +972 39 68 35 80
Fax: +972 39 68 35 43
E-mail: vpelady@volcani.agri.gov.il
- Alfred
M. MAYER
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Givat Ram
IL-91904 Jerusalem
Tel.: +972 26 58 52 32
Fax: +972 26 58 44 25
E-mail: eitanamm@vms.huji.ac.il
- Isidro
GONZALEZ COLLADO
Universidad de Cadiz
Ancha 16
E-11001 Cadiz
Tel.: +34 95 683 02 17
Fax: 34 95 683 49 24
E-mail: isidro.gonzalez@uca.es
- Alex
LEVINE
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Givat Ram
IL-91904 Jerusalem
Tel.: +972 26 58 65 43
Fax: +972 26 58 44 25
E-mail: alex@leonardo.is.huji.ac.il
- Paul
TUDZYNSKI
Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster
Schlossplatz 2
D-48149 Münster
Tel.: +49 251 832 49 98
Fax: +49 251 832 38 23
E-mail: tudzyns@uni-muenster.de
- Paul
M. WOOD
University of Bristol
Senate House, Tyndall Avenue
UK-BS8 1TH Bristol
Tel.: +44 1179 28 85 94
Fax: +44 1179 28 82 74
E-mail: p.wood@bris.ac.uk
- Jan
VAN KAN
Wageningen Agricultural University
Costerweg 50
NL-6701 BH Wageningen
Tel.: +31 317 48 31 26
Fax: +31 317 48 34 12
E-mail: jan.vankan@medew.fyto.wau.nl
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