Elucidating β-1,3-Glucanase and Peroxidase Physicochemical Properties of Wheat Cell Wall Defense Mechanism against Diuraphis noxia Infestation.

Wheat plants infested by Russian wheat aphids (RWA) induce a cascade of defense responses, including the hypersensitive responses (HR) and induction of pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins, such as β-1,3-glucanase and peroxidase (POD). This study aims to characterize the physicochemical properties of cell wall-associated POD and β-1,3-glucanase and determine their synergism on the cell wall modification during RWASA2-wheat interaction. The susceptible Tugela, moderately resistant Tugela-Dn1, and resistant Tugela-Dn5 cultivars were pregerminated and planted under greenhouse conditions, fertilized 14 days after planting, and irrigated every 3 days.

Proteome Mapping of South African Cassava Mosaic Virus-Infected Susceptible and Tolerant Landraces of Cassava.

The production of cassava is threatened by the geminivirus South African cassava mosaic virus (SACMV), which causes cassava mosaic disease. Cassava landrace TME3 shows tolerance to SACMV, while T200 is highly susceptible. This study aimed to identify the leaf proteome involved in anti-viral defence.

Identifying differentially expressed proteins in sorghum cell cultures exposed to osmotic stress.

Drought stress triggers remarkable physiological changes and growth impediments, which significantly diminish plant biomass and crop yield. However, certain plant species show notable resilience, maintaining nearly normal yields under severe water deficits. For example, sorghum is a naturally drought-tolerant crop, which is ideal for studying plant adaptive responses to drought.

Importance of bovine mastitis in Africa.

Bovine mastitis is an important animal production disease that affects the dairy industry globally. Studies have estimated the prevalence of this disease in approximately 30% of African countries, with the highest prevalence found in Ethiopia. This is despite the wide cattle distribution in Africa, and the largest number of dairy farms and herds in countries such as South Africa, Kenya and Uganda.

Characterization of tabanid flies (Diptera: Tabanidae) in South Africa and Zambia and detection of protozoan parasites they are harbouring.

Tabanids are haematophagous flies feeding on livestock and wildlife. In the absence of information on the relationship of tabanid flies and protozoan parasites in South Africa and Zambia, the current study was aimed at characterizing tabanid flies collected in these two countries as well as detecting protozoan parasites they are harbouring. A total of 527 tabanid flies were collected whereby 70·2% were from South Africa and 29·8% were from Zambia.

Genome-wide functional analysis in Candida albicans.

Candida albicans is an important etiological agent of superficial and life-threatening infections in individuals with compromised immune systems. To date, we know of several overlapping genetic networks that govern virulence attributes in this fungal pathogen. Classical use of deletion mutants has led to the discovery of numerous virulence factors over the years, and genome-wide functional analysis has propelled gene discovery at an even faster pace.

Genome-wide association analysis of agronomic traits in wheat under drought-stressed and non-stressed conditions.

This study determined the population structure and genome-wide marker-trait association of agronomic traits of wheat for drought-tolerance breeding. Ninety-three diverse bread wheat genotypes were genotyped using the Diversity Arrays Technology sequencing (DArTseq) protocol. The number of days-to-heading (DTH), number of days-to-maturity (DTM), plant height (PHT), spike length (SPL), number of kernels per spike (KPS), thousand kernel weight (TKW) and grain yield (GYLD), assessed under drought-stressed and non-stressed conditions, were considered for the study.

Large-scale molecular genetic analysis in plant-pathogenic fungi: a decade of genome-wide functional analysis.

Plant-pathogenic fungi cause diseases to all major crop plants world-wide and threaten global food security. Underpinning fungal diseases are virulence genes facilitating plant host colonization that often marks pathogenesis and crop failures, as well as an increase in staple food prices. Fungal molecular genetics is therefore the cornerstone to the sustainable prevention of disease outbreaks.

Nested Association Mapping of Stem Rust Resistance in Wheat Using Genotyping by Sequencing.

We combined the recently developed genotyping by sequencing (GBS) method with joint mapping (also known as nested association mapping) to dissect and understand the genetic architecture controlling stem rust resistance in wheat (Triticum aestivum). Ten stem rust resistant wheat varieties were crossed to the susceptible line LMPG-6 to generate F6 recombinant inbred lines. The recombinant inbred line populations were phenotyped in Kenya, South Africa, and St.

Resistance to biotic and abiotic stress in the Triticeae.

Poverty, hunger and malnutrition occur in many parts of the world despite the enormous progress that has taken place in agriculture and food production in the last century. It is estimated for wheat, that by 2020 the world will require a 60% increase in production to meet the projected requirement. Resistance to both biotic and abiotic stresses will be critical in reaching this goal.