Timeline
Year 1
- Sequence pathogen genome and genome alignment with the rice pathogen.
- Commercial cultivars will be screened for resistance to blast.
- Develop plant biosecurity short course and “Securing Global Trade of Plants and Plant Products” workshop.
- Begin training graduate students in biosecurity and research within a biocontainment environment. Develop wheat blast web resources and initiate webinar series.
Year 2
- Markers specific for the wheat isolates of M. oryzae will be identified.
- Field experiment will be established in Brazil with 50 US wheat cultivars.
- Exotic germplasm (at least 100 entries) will be tested in the containment facilities during this year.
- Deliver plant biosecurity short course. Develop second workshop “Plant Biosecurity: Education and Outreach”.
- Launch wheat blast web portal and outreach educational materials.
Year 3
- Protocols for diagnosis of infected leaf tissue and wheat heads will be developed using markers specific to the wheat isolates. Markers and protocols will be made publicly available.
- Field experiment will be established in Brazil to determine the blast phenotype of 50 additional US cultivars.
- F1, F2, and F2-derived F3 families will be tested in the containment facilities.
- Deliver second plant biosecurity short course.
- Develop and deliver third workshop “Plant Biosecurity Research and Wheat Blast Preparedness”.
