On November 27-28, 2024, the International Surveillance of Corn Rusts project supported by the Alliance of National and International Science Organizations for the Belt and Road Regions (ANSO), held a progress meeting at the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS). Ten representatives from four participating countries attended the meeting. The project leader, CAI Lei chaired the meeting. Prof. BI Guozhi introduced the latest progress on the mechanisms of interaction between southern corn rust pathogen, P. polysora and maize; Prof. Jintana Unartngam and Prof. Wirulda Pootakham reported on the distribution of corn rusts in Thailand and the phenotypes of P. polysora on a series of inbreeding lines; Benjamine William Cordez reported on the genetic diversity and virulence variation of corn rust pathogens in the Philippines; Prof. Yusufjon Gafforov shared the progress of corn rusts surveys and the diversity of maize pathogenic fungi in Uzbekistan. Associate professor LIANG Junmin from IMCAS summarized the overall progress of the project. Over the past two-year of operation, the project has successfully assembled the nuclear-phased genomes of two rust pathogens, of which 1.7 Gb for P. polysora and 320 Mb for P. sorghi. Through international cooperation, 192 valid disease samples were obtained, confirming the feasibility of field RNA sequencing technology based on population transcriptome. Based on available data, the landscape of pan-effectorome of P. polysora has been depicted and the transmission routes of the pathogens among the investigated countries were deduced, laying the foundation for the subsequent construction of a database on the pathogenicity of corn rusts as well as the integrated disease control and early warning. Subsequently, the project members had a comprehensive discussion on rust diversity, genome evolution of plant pathogenic fungi, and plant resistance breeding, and deployed the future work plan and potential collaborative programs. On the following day, the international delegates visited the Asia’s biggest mycological herbarium (HMAS) and China General Microbiological Culture Collection Center (CGMCC), and expressed a strong interest in the future sharing of mycological specimens and microbial resources.
The project team has deepened the relationship between China and international teams from Thailand, the Philippines, and Uzbekistan through international cooperation in joint research, and formed a highly unified cooperation network in major crop diseases of common regional concern. In the future, under the framework of ANSO international cooperation, we will strive to attract institutions from beltway countries such as South Africa and Vietnam to join the project cooperation network, so as to realize the open sharing of research resources and technologies.
Project Information:
Rust disease, caused by obligate biotrophic fungal group (Pucciniales), is characterized by long-distance airborne dispersal, rapid virulence mutation and outbreak epidemics. In maize production, it is dominated by southern corn rust and common corn rust, which are ranked among the top ten maize diseases in the world. In March 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People's Republic of China (MOARA) listed southern corn rust as the top priority disease in China.
Under the support of ANSO , Cai Lei, Professor of the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS) undertook a joint research project entitled "Surveillance of dispersal and pathogenicity divergence of corn rusts". In collaboration with Thailand National Omics Center, National Science and Technology Development Agency (BIOTEC), Kasetsart University (Thailand), Institute of Botany, Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, and University of Philippines Los Baños, the project aims to establish a regional monitoring network of corn rusts through joint surveys, data sharing, and technical training.
Contributor: LIANG Junmin, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Tel: 86-10-84097121
Email: anso-public@anso.org.cn
Location：No.16 Lincui Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, China
