Objectives

The overall objective of the project is to prevent severe epidemics of yellow rust on wheat and triticale, caused by Puccinia striiformis, in order to secure a steady cereal supply for food and feed in Denmark and elsewhere. Recent exotic incursions of aggressive strains of P. striiformis have caused devastating rust epidemics on wheat world-wide and on triticale in northern Europe, including Denmark and Sweden. The disease has had a high impact on Danish organic farming, where fungicides cannot be used. The escalating epidemics have emphasized the importance of research, rapid implementation of the results, and of networking at both national and international scales to ensure efficient and long-lasting (durable) disease control. The scientific objectives are

• to produce the necessary insights into the mechanisms underlying shifts in aggressiveness and virulence of the fungus,
• to facilitate rapid and efficient early-warning systems to prevent epidemic situations,
• to identify resistance gene-recognized effectors that will facilitate selection and implementation of resistance genes conferring durable disease control in wheat, and
• to make international wheat rust surveillance data available nationally as well as globally via web-based information and communication technology (ICT) platforms.

Information in Danish