Authors:

Lane Bell

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About Paper:

This research is a crucial component of a comprehensive global initiative aimed at mapping the distribution of understudied rusts: pathogenic fungi that greatly influence environmental diversity while wreaking havoc on global agricultural productivity, costing tens of billions of dollars annually. Despite their profound impact on agriculture, rusts remain significantly understudied in terms of diversity, distribution, and management. This is largely due to the substantial challenges involved in working with unculturable obligate parasites and the tendency for research to prioritize agricultural environments over native. To address this gap in knowledge, this study focuses on cataloging and collecting rust-infected hosts from local environments in Indiana, particularly near aquatic habitats, to better understand rust behavior within native populations and the environmental conditions conducive to their growth. An initial diversity study has been conducted statewide, involving the collection and pressing of host plants. Subsequently, rust lesion samples from five host species were selected to 1) examine mycobiome differences between normal and infected host tissues, and 2) isolate co-occurring fungi within the rust lesions. This ongoing effort has so far yielded 80 pure cultures. Additionally, samples from five different rust species (lesions and healthy tissue) have been submitted for NGS analysis. These methods are aimed at identifying co-occurring saprobes/mycoparasites and evaluating changes between healthy and host tissues. This research is important as it could uncover novel biocontrol agents to aid agricultural efforts and provide information about how rust infection alters host mycobiomes. Keywords: Mycoparasites; Endophytes; Mycobiome; Plant Pathology

Source:

Purdue University / 2024

Topics:

No topics listed

Co-authors:

Lane Bell