The Evolution of Insect Resistance to Bt Crops
A group of scientists at the University of Arizona have this week published a paper in Nature Biotechnology on the evolution of resistance in insect pests populations to insecticidal proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that are produced by transgenic crops. Resistance is defined as the phenotype of an individual that gives the individual the ability to…
Cassava Brown Streak Disease threatens the “Rambo root” further north in Africa
by MaryLucy Oronje and Willis Ndeda Ochilo Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) is threatening gains made in the intensification of cassava production in Africa. Since my colleague, Abigail Rumsey, reported on the resurgence of this disease in East Africa, and spread to Central and Western Africa, there are now reports of it spreading to northern…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (12 Jun 13)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this fortnight include the conservation biology challenge of European ash dieback, the first report of Nigrospora oryzae causing stem blight on Brassica juncea in India and a new Brazilian Passiflora leafminer: Spinivalva gaucha, the…
Update: Plant Health News (05 Jun 13)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including cassava’s huge potential as a 21st century crop in Africa, the discovery of nematode resistant wheat and Brazil to launch biofungicide against witch’s broom. Click on the link to read more of the latest plant health news!
Plantwise Photo Of The Month – June
Photo Of The Month for June shows a plant clinic during market day at a village near Machakos, 50 kilometers outside Kenya’s capital city Nairobi. The photo shows a farmer showing a crop sample to a plant doctor, who is using his knowledge and reference material on the table to diagnose what is wrong with…
Keeping an eye on banana disease
Dr. Fen Beed is an experienced plant pathologist based at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He leads research for development activities to mitigate the impact of diseases of maize, soybean, cowpea, cassava, banana and vegetables and promotes plant diseases on problematic weeds. The first and critical step to manage…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (29 May 13)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this fortnight include the first report of pineapple heart rot caused by Phytophthora nicotianae in China’s Hainan Province, a new species of Aeolothrips from mango crops in Mexico and details of Cylas puncticollis, a new pest…
Update: Plant Health News (22 May 13)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including farmers abandoning rice crops due to poor returns, crops in Bangladesh destroyed by a cyclone and trading conflict for coffee in Democratic Republic of Congo. Click on the link to read more of the latest plant health news!
Rotterdam Convention members agree prior consent required for azinphos-methyl trade
Contributed by Melanie Bateman, CABI Switzerland It is estimated that 2 million chemical preparations are for sale around the world[1]. Many of these chemicals have hazards associated with them. An estimated 200,000 people die each year of pesticide poisoning[2]. And yet, it is very difficult for any one country acting on its own to track all of…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (15 May 13)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this fortnight include recent multiple introductions of the gall-forming aphid Pemphigus bursarius into Japanese islands, the distribution and characterization of Streptomyces species causing potato common scab in Germany and the first report of Endoclita signifer as…