Dar es Salaam (IITA) – The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and its partners the Agricultural Research Institute (ARI), Tanzania, and the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), Ug anda, have received a US$2.4 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to identify and use molecular markers for faster and more accurate breeding of cassava varieties resistant to Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD).
The disease, which is caused by the Cassava Brown Streak Virus (CBSV) and results in a dry rot in the tuberous roots rendering them inedible, is one of greatest threats to food security in sub-Saharan Africa.
Cassava is an important staple food from which over 200 million people derive over 50% of their carbohydrate intake. It is a hardy crop that does well during times of drought and in poor soils. It requires little inputs such as fertilizer and the whole plant is useful from the leaves to the roots.
IITA and ARI have identified a few varieties with some level of resistance to the disease. The four-year project aims to identify the DNA markers associated with the resistance genes in these varieties and integrate marker-assisted selection into cassava breeding programs.
Marker-assisted breeding will enable the breeders to determine whether or not the desired genes of CBSD resistance have been successfully transferred from the parents to the offspring at the seedling stage using DNA testing. This will dramatically reduce the size of the working populations and the time taken to develop improved varieties.
According to Dr. Morag Ferguson, IITA Plant Molecular Geneticist and team project leader, breeding for disease-resistant cassava is the most cost-effective and sustainable way to control the devastating effects of the virus. However, conventional breeding takes 8 to 12 years to produce improved varieties.
“The use of molecular markers can reduce this time by allowing selection earlier on in the breeding cycle and by increasing the accuracy of selection. It is like using a magnet in a game of ‘find the needle in the haystack’!” she said.
“This project will enable one of the first applications of marker-assisted selection for cassava breeding by the National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) in Tanzania and Ug anda. The markers identified will also be applicable to all countries either struggling with the disease, or concerned with pre-breeding in anticipation of the spread of the virus” she added.
“Diseases like Cassava Brown Streak have devastating impacts on small farmers in the developing world who rely on staple crops for food and income,” said Lawrence Kent, a senior program officer in the Agricultural Development initiative at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “By leveraging recently discovered scientific information, this project will enable African crop breeders to create enhanced varieties of cassava that are resilient to local diseases.”
This grant is part of the foundation’s Agricultural Development Initiative, which is working with a wide range of partners in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia to provide millions of small farmers in the developing world with tools and opportunities to boost their yields, increase their incomes, and build better lives for themselves and their families. The foundation is working to strengthen the entire agricultural value chain-from seeds and soil to farm management and market access-so that progress against hunger and poverty is sustainable over the long term.
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Pour plus d'informations, veuillez contacter :
Dr Morag Ferguson, m.ferguson@cgiar.org
Plant Molecular Geneticist
IITA-Kenya
Catherine Njuguna, c.njuguna@cgiar.org
Chargé(e) de la communication d'entreprise (Afrique orientale et australe)
IITA – Regional Hub for East and Southern Africa
Dar es Salaam, Tanzanie
Jeffrey T. Oliver, o.jeffrey@cgiar.org
Chargé de communication d'entreprise (international)
Bureau de la communication
IITA – Siège
Ibadan, Nigéria
URL : www.iita.org
À propos de l'IITA
L'Afrique fait face à des problèmes complexes qui pèsent lourdement sur l'agriculture et la vie des populations. Nous développons des solutions agricoles avec nos partenaires pour lutter contre la faim et la pauvreté. Nos recherches pour le développement (R4D), maintes fois récompensées, reposent sur une réflexion ciblée et autorisée, ancrée dans les besoins de développement de l'Afrique subsaharienne. Nous travaillons avec des partenaires en Afrique et au-delà pour réduire les risques pour les producteurs et les consommateurs, améliorer la qualité et la productivité des cultures, et générer de la richesse grâce à l'agriculture. L'IITA est une organisation internationale R4D à but non lucratif fondée en 1967, dirigée par un Conseil d'administration et soutenue principalement par le CGIAR.
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