News on Phytophthora

Harry van de Vijver, Germicopa, Quimper (F): 'Give us yellow-fleshed French-fry varieties with broad nematode resistance.'

Jan-Eric Geersing, Caithness Potatoes Nederland, Emmeloord: 'New French-fry varieties must excel in at least one characteristic, but in fact have two good ones.

Researchers in the WARF Accelerator program are using advanced imaging technology to detect late blight in potatoes, which famously led to the Irish potato famine in the mid-nineteenth century.

Late blight has been confirmed in a potato field in central Wisconsin.

Recent research at the James Hutton Institute suggests that limited genetic differences in potato lineages has left British and American spuds vulnerable to late blight, the disease that caused the Irish potato famine.

In an effort to combat diseases which have been hampering potato yields for the past two years in Dedza, International Potato Centre (CIP) recently handed over disease resistant Irish potato seeds to ten farmers in the district.

Plant breeders and geneticists of Cornell University have released more than 50 potato varieties since 1908. Now they are expanding their efforts to make more wild potato seeds available to potato breeders around the world.

EuroBlight is continuously examining the ongoing evolution of the European population of the potato late blight pathogen and now reports on the 2018 results. Approximately 1000 samples were genotyped from 22 countries.

The potato breeding company Solynta in The Netherlands has successfully produced a hybrid breeding program for potatoes which will allow the rapid selection and turnover of favourable traits, traits which could help feed millions of people worldwide.

During the annual potato variety show at Agrico the topic of discussion was not limited to unique varieties on display. The impact of the excessive heat and drought this season on the seed potato market was also a hot topic.

As part of the potato variety presentations in the Netherlands later this week, Agrico highlights its late blight resistant varieties in a Ukraine themed show.

In Mexico, researchers of the National Forestry, Agriculture, and Livestock Research Institute (INIFAP), part of the Mexican Ministry of agriculture (SAGARPA), have developed a new potato variety, Citlali, with improved tolerance to diseases.

Wageningen University & Research uses computer models to develop sustainable management strategies in the control of potato late blight, caused by Phytophthora infestans.

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in Albany, California, have found a way to streamline the process that scientists use to insert multiple genes into a crop plant. Simplot is planning to use it to introduce multiple genes into potatoes to make them resistant to late blight

Idaho potato fields looked good as of early July as plants closed in over rows, signaling the tubers are preparing to grow strongly amid the hot-day, cool-night march toward harvest.

Victoria - a popular local potato variety in Uganda - is extremely susceptible to potato Late Blight disease, but a resistant GM version of this variety has been developed.
With testing almost complete, it is up to the government biosafety regulatory authorities in Uganda.

Tubers were the talk of the town in Cusco, Peru during the week of May 27, when the 10th World Potato Congress (WPC) and the 28th Congress of the Latin American Potato Association (ALAP) were held together for the first time.

Jean Ristaino, a professor at North Carolina State University with emphasis in research on Phytophthora infestans, reported on a late blight look-alike from tomato and potato in North Carolina.