In this issue:
Norman Ernest Borlaug
Norman Borlaug, Nobel Laureate and agricultural scientist, died on 12
September 2009 at the age of 95. Many obituaries and tributes have been,
and are being, published all around the world and it seems inappropriate
for the ISPP Newsletter to select any one of them or to add more words,
except to recall three things.
Plant pathology was a part of the beginning through his post-graduate
Master's and PhD degrees at the University of Minnesota and then through
his early work on rust resistance in wheat. So much was built more
widely after this in agricultural science and technology and in
international society resulting in revolutions in food production in
parts of the world and the award of his
Nobel Peace Prize in 1970.
Plant pathology was also a part of his much later work designed to
counter recent and new threats posed by the rust fungi on wheat through
the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative
(BGRI).
Norman Borlaug also played an important role in the founding of the
new journal "Food Security" by the International Society for
Plant Pathology (ISPP) and Springer, through his support and statements
first at ICPP1998 in Edinburgh and then in
2008 for the launch of the journal.
Below are two photographs sent by Wafa Khoury, a Vice-President of
ISPP. She has been in an FAO group working with the Borlaug Rust
Initiative. The first shows Norman Borlaug at work in the field in Kenya
in 2005. The second was taken earlier this year at his 95th birthday
celebration in Mexico, showing him sitting next to Wafa.
Genome of Phytophthora infestans
According to a CropBiotech Update at http://www.isaaa.org/kc
, an international research team under the leadership of Chad Nusbaum at
the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, USA, has published a letter in
Nature 461, 393-398 (17 September 2009 and online 9 September 2009) at http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature08358
entitled "Genome sequence and analysis of the Irish potato famine
pathogen Phytophthora infestans".
The genome provides insight into how this pathogen adapts rapidly to
overcome the defence of host plants. The genome is several times the
size of that in related organisms. Transposons that can jump around the
genome account for three-quarters of this bulk. Carrying this excess of
repetitive DNA is considered to provide advantages for the pathogen in
its ability to gain and lose genes and thus outwit host plants.
APS Officers for 2009-2010
A new team of officers started on August 5 2009 following the
American Phytopathological Society (APS 2009 Annual Meeting in Portland,
Oregon).
The new President is Barbara J Christ, who is senior associate dean
of the College of Agricultural Sciences and professor in the Plant
Pathology Department at Pennsylvania State University. Her research is
on breeding potatoes for commercial use and disease resistance and on
the genetic variability of potato pathogen populations.
She succeeds James Moyer, professor and head of the Plant Pathology
Department at North Carolina State University, who will now serve as
Immediate-Past-President.
The President-Elect is John Sherwood, University of Georgia. The
Vice-President is Carol Ishimaru, University of Minnesota. The Secretary
continues to be Danise T Beadle, Bayer CropScience, and the Treasurer
continues to be Randall C Rowe, Ohio State University.
See: http://www.apsnet.org/directories/council.cfm.
Developments from The Netherlands
KNPV (the Royal Netherlands Society of Plant Pathology) has been
highly active in promoting plant pathology both inside the country and
much more widely.
Vital interactions between KNPV and the Foundation Willie Commelin
Scholten for Phytopathology enabled the past formation of plant
pathology research groups at Utrecht University, the University of
Amsterdam, and Wageningen University, and the establishment of the
renowned Central Bureau of Fungal Cultures (Centraalbureau voor
Schimmelcultures) and the Dutch Plant Protection Service. KNPV and the
Foundation recently have sponsored programs to attract students to plant
pathology, including a website www.plantpathology.nl
aimed at MSc students wanting to do a thesis or internship in the
country, and e-learning modules for international students.
Now KNPV has decided to start an internationalization process, and
particularly with the American Phytopathological Society (APS) by first
joining the Plant Management Network (PMN) as mentioned in the ISPP
Newsletter of March 2009. Furthermore, KNPV and APS will join with the
European Foundation for Plant Pathology (EFPP) to organize the First
Conference on Climate Change and Pest Control in Agriculture in November
2010 (see "Coming Events"). This
international meeting will take place in Portugal and bring top climate
change scientists together with experts in plant pathology. A changing
climate is likely to favour the introduction of new plant pathogens in
agricultural crops and to have a huge impact on the population structure
of existing plant pathogens.
KNPV has agreed with APS to collaborate on image libraries, student
projects and e-learning and outreach materials that are currently being
developed. KNPV is also providing fellowships to international students
from developing countries that will substantially benefit from the
collaboration between APS and KNPV.
As plant pathogens do not respect borders, APS and KNPV have decided
to slash all potential limitations in exchange and will continue to
further explore options for multilateral collaboration.
More can be seen in the article by Gert Kema, President of KNPV, and
published in the Society's national journal "Gewasbescherming"
at http://edepot.wur.nl/7268.
September issue of "Food Security"
The third issue of "Food Security" went on-line in
September 2009 as Volume 1 (3 233-386).
It consists of an increased number of articles, 14 compared with 12
and 10 in issues one and two, respectively. During its production the G8
summit of 2009 released the "L'Aquila" Joint Statement on Food
Security, and this is reproduced in full. Another article is an
editorial by R N Strange about the coverage of the whole issue.
The other papers in this issue may be considered to belong to three
categories: the experience of hunger and malnutrition (3 papers);
current and future threats to food security (4 papers); and the means of
overcoming the many factors which prevent the access of over 1 billion
of the world's population to a healthy and nutritious diet (5 papers).
See: http://www.springerlink.com/content/121319.
World Forest Pathologists (and Entomologists) -
Photo Album
The idea to establish a photo album of forest pathologists emerged at
the Forest Pathology field trip associated with the 2008 Centenary
meeting of the American Phytopathological Society in Minnesota, USA.
During the ISPP Forest Pathology Subject Matter meeting in Torino,
Italy in August 2008, this was discussed again. Mike Wingfield from
South Africa took the lead at this meeting and volunteered to establish
an internet based photo album. With the help of James Mehl, an MSc
student in tree pathology at the University of Pretoria in South Africa,
an initial set of photographs has been assembled using the application
JAlbum.
See: http://www.fabinet.up.ac.za/fpepg.
The current photos include those of Joe O'Brian, Mike Wingfield,
Thomas Kirisits (Austria) and Bernard Slippers (South Africa). These
photos can be viewed at the URL given above and anyone is welcome to
contribute photos, and to correct and update information given in the
album. Additional information on the history and aims of the photo
album, as well as the procedure to follow to add photos, can be found on
the website.
Jolanda Roux, Chair, ISPP Forest Pathology Committee, http://www.isppweb.org/about_subject.asp?SMC=Forest%20Pathology.
Links with Colombian Oil Palm Growers
Professor David Guest of the University of Sydney, Australia, was
recently invited to participate in an international workshop by the
research institute of the Colombian Palm Oil Growers Association (Cenipalma),
as a leader in the management of diseases of perennial tropical crops
such as the oil palm. The workshop was on 'pudricion de cogollo' - a bud
rot disease in oil palm plantations.
In Colombia, oil palm is a sustainable alternative to coca and beef,
and is popular with farmers. Oil palm produces edible oils and biofuels
but is threatened by the bud rot disease caused by Phytophthora
palmivora.
Since the workshop representatives from Cenipalma visited Sydney to
develop an agreement to cover future collaborations. This research
agreement includes PhD training and further research partnerships
between Cenipalma and The University of Sydney.
David and his team are also working in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia,
Vietnam, China and the Philippines. Their aim is to develop practical
integrated crop management strategies for smallholder farmers. Crops
such as oilpalm, cocoa, coconuts, durian and jackfruit are all high
value crops grown by smallholder farmers that are severely affected by
Phytophthora diseases.
See: http://www.usyd.edu.au/.
Global Conferences on Agricultural Research for
Development
Jacky Ganry Jacky.Ganry@fao.org
in Rome, Italy, is the facilitator of the Global Conferences on
Agricultural Research for Development (GCARDs). These will be held every
two years. They will be an open and inclusive process for consultation
and change to reshape agricultural research and innovation, to improve
resources for research and to increase its impact on development. There
will be a GCARD Conference in Montpellier, France, in March 2010.
The conference is being preceded by already underway electronic and
face-to-face consultations conducted at regional and global levels to
capture the contributions and perspectives of all stakeholders. These
will reshape the global agricultural research for development agenda and
centre it on the needs of the poor in developing countries.
See: http://www.egfar.org/egfar/website/gcard/.
The consultations will also contribute to the new research strategy
and programs of CGIAR (the Consultative Group on International
Agricultural Research). They will provide perspectives from intended
partners, end users and beneficiaries on possible strategic themes and
their operational implications. CGIAR is currently examining key
priority areas for international research.
Chris Lamb
The sad news of the death aged 59 of Professor Chris Lamb in the UK has
been reported. He was a biochemist and well-known for research on
defence mechanisms of plants. He was Director of the John Innes Centre
in Norwich, UK, and had been Regius Professor of Plant Science at
Edinburgh University, UK, and Director of the Plant Biology Laboratory
at the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, USA.
Plant Disease on youtube
ISPP Secretary-General Greg Johnson draws readers' attention to the
APS "Plant Disease" on youtube at http://www.youtube.com/user/plantdisease.
The genus Xanthomonas
Two web-sites have come to the attention of ISPP.
A Xanthomonas resource is at http://www.xanthomonas.org/.
A July 2009 Xanthomonas Genomics Conference at Pingree Park, Colorado
State University, USA, and a future one at Angers, France, in 2012 are
reported at http://www.plantpath.iastate.edu/xgc2009/.
Coming Events
Agriculture: Africa's "Engine for Growth - Plant Science &
Biotechnology hold the Key" at Rothamsted Research, Harpenden,
Herts, UK. 12-14 October 2009. See: www.aab.org.uk/contentok.php?id=83&basket=wwsshowconfdets.
The 13th World Forestry Congress (Forests in development - a vital
balance) in Buenos Aires, Argentina. 18-25 October 2009. See http://www.wfc2009.org/index_1024.html.
E-mail: info@wfc2009.org.
CABI Global Summit-food security in a climate of change-in London,
UK. 19-21 October, 2009. See: http://www.cabi.org/foodsecurity.
5th International Plant Protection Symposium (IPPS) at Debrecen
University, Hungary. 20-22 October 2009. Contact: G J Kovics, Secretary
of Symposium, kovics@agr.unideb.hu.
9th International Congress on Plant Molecular Biology in St Louis,
Missouri, USA. 25-30 October 2009. Contact: ipmb2009@missouri.edu.
See: www.ipmb2009.org.
The 10th Arab Congress of Plant Protection in Beirut, Lebanon. 26-30
October 2009. See also flyer linked from an item in the May 2009
Newsletter. Contact: aspp@terra.net.lb
or acpp2009@cnrs.edu.lb.
"First International Conference of Mycops" in the Institute
of Mycology and Plant Pathology, University of Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
9-11 November 2009. Contact: Professor Dr Rukshana Bajwa director@mpp.pu.edu.pk
or the Conference Secretary Dr Sarwar Alam drssalam@yahoo.com.
British Crop Production Council, BCPC Congress 2009, at the Scottish
Exhibition & Conference Centre, Glasgow, United Kingdom. 9-11
November 2009. See: www.bcpccongress.com.
The 2009 International Conference on Horticulture in Bangalore,
Karnataka, India. 9-12 November 2009. See: http://www.pnasf.org/ich2009.htm.
5th International Conference on Plant Pathology, with the theme
"Plant pathology in the globalized era", at the Indian
Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India. 10-13 November 2009.
Contact: ipsdis@indiatimes.com
or ipsdis@yahoo.com.
2009 National Fusarium Head Blight Forum in Orlando, Florida, USA.
7-9 December 2009. See: http://www.scabusa.org/forum09.html.
For more information, contact: scabusa@scabusa.org.
National Soybean Rust Symposium in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. 9-11
December 2009. Contact: dorrance.1@osu.edu.
Advances in Nematology in London, UK. 15 December 2009. See: http://www.aab.org.uk/.
Plant Microbial Interactions: positive and negative interactions in
relation to agricultural and natural ecosystem function in Grantham, UK.
15-16 December 2009. See: http://www.aab.org.uk/.
International Advances in Pesticide Application in Cambridge, UK. 5-7
January 2010. See: http://www.aab.org.uk/.
7th International Workshop on Grapevine Trunk Diseases in Santa Cruz,
Chile. 17-21 January 2010. See: http://www.icgtd.org/7IWGTD.html.
Global Biosecurity 2010, Safeguarding Agriculture and the
Environment, at the Brisbane Convention Center, Queensland, Australia.
23 February-3 March 2010. See: www.globalbiosecurity2010.com.
Phytophthora Diseases in Forest Trees and Natural Ecosystems - 5th
Meeting of the IUFRO Working Group in Rotorua, New Zealand. 7-12 March
2010. Queries to Pam Taylor, phone: +64-7-3435727, Fax: +64-7-3480952.
Email: pam.taylor@scionresearch.com.
14th International Congress on Infectious Diseases in Miami, Florida,
USA. (about medical matters 9-12 March 2010. See: http://www.isid.org/14th_icid/.
Plasmodesmata 2010, 7th International Conference, Sydney, Australia.
21-26 March 2010. See: http://www.bio.usyd.edu.au/pd2010/.
Contact: pd2010@bio.usyd.edu.au.
IX International Mango Symposium in Sanya, Hainan Island, China. 8-12
April 2010. See: http://www.mango2010.cn.
The 12th International Conference on Plant Pathogenic Bacteria 2010
at Saint-Denis, Ile de La Reunion. 7-11 June 2010. See: http://labourd-travail.cirad.fr/index.php/icppb2010/.
13th Congress of the Mediterranean Phytopathological Union in Rome,
Italy. 13-18 June 2010. See: www.mpunion.com.
Contact: laura.mugnai@unifi.it.
International Plant Virus Epidemiology Symposium in Cornell, New
York, USA. 20-24 June 2010. See: http://www.isppweb.org/ICPVE/.
Contact: Professor Alberto Fereres at afereres@ccma.csic.es.
12th IUPAC International Congress of Pesticide Chemistry in
Melbourne, Australia. 4-8 July 2010. See: http://www.iupacicpc2010.org/.
XVII Congress of the Federation of European Societies of Plant
Biology (FESPB in Valencia, Spain. 4-9 July 2010. See: http://www.geyseco.es/fespb/principal.php?seccion=general.
Contact: fespb2010@geyseco.es.
34th International Carrot Conference in Kennewick, Washington State,
USA. 26-28 July 2010. See: http://www.pnva.org/carrotconf/.
Contact: Lindsey DuToit dutoit@wsu.edu.
9th International Mycological Congress (IMC9 "The Biology of
Fungi" in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. 1-6 August 2010. See: http://www.imc9.info/.
19th World Congress of Soil Science in Brisbane, Queensland,
Australia. 1-6 August 2010. See: http://www.19wcss.org.au/.
APS Annual Meeting 2010 at Opryland, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 7-11
August 2010. See: http://www.apsnet.org.
6th Australasian Soilborne Diseases Symposium at Twin Waters,
Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. 9-11 August 2010. See: http://www.asds6.org/.
XXVIII International Horticultural Congress (IHC2010 in Lisbon,
Portugal. 22-27 August 2010. Contact: info@ihc2010.org.
See: http://www.ihc2010.org.
The 8th International Conference on Pseudomonas syringae and Related
Pathogens in Oxford, UK. 31 August-3 September 2010. See: www.reading.ac.uk/Psyringae2010.
Contact: syringae2010@plants.ox.ac.uk.
3rd AAB Symposium on Potato Cyst Nematodes in Newport, UK. 14-15
September 2010. See: http://www.aab.org.uk/.
Climate Change and Plant Disease Management Meeting in Évora,
Portugal. 10-12 November 2010. A collaborative effort by KNPV, APS and
EFPP.
International Meeting on Emerging Diseases and Surveillance in
Vienna, Austria. (medical matters 4-7 February 2011. See: http://imed.isid.org/.
18th Biennial Australasian Plant Pathology Meeting and 4th Asian
Conference for Plant Pathology at the Darwin Convention Centre, Darwin,
Northern Territory, Australia. 27-29 April 2011. Watch: http://www.australasianplantpathologysociety.org.au/.
XVIII International Botanical Congress - 2011 in Melbourne,
Australia. 24-30 July 2011. See: http://www.ibc2011.com/.
Joint Meeting of APS and IAPPS in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. 6-10 August
2011. See: http://www.apsnet.org.
10th International Congress of Plant Pathology 2013 (ICPP2013
"Bio-security, Food Safety and Plant Pathology: The Role of Plant
Pathology in a Globalized Economy" in Beijing, China. 25-31 August
2013. Watch: http://www.isppweb.org/congress.asp.
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