There has arisen an unfortunate medical situation in my family which will require my absence for the immediate future. I am not certain as to how long I will be away from this blog. Be assured though, that I will try to keep this program going and will reengage as soon as is practically possible. Thank you for your understanding and please watch for further notices through our Twitter PATHOGENIX and Facebook accounts.
Jim Mau
Human-driven changes in the earth’s atmospheric composition are likely to alter plant diseases of the future. Researchers predict carbon dioxide will reach levels double those of the preindustrial era by the year 2050, complicating agriculture’s need to produce enough food for a rapidly growing population.
Septoria brown spot
University of Illinois researchers are studying the impact of elevated carbon dioxide, elevated ozone and higher atmospheric temperatures on plant diseases that could challenge crops in these changing conditions.
Darin Eastburn, U of I associate professor of crop sciences, evaluated the effects of elevated carbon dioxide and ozone on three economically important soybean diseases under natural field conditions at the soybean-free air-concentrating enrichment (SoyFACE) facility in Urbana.
The diseases downy mildew, Septoria brown spot, and sudden death syndrome were observed from 2005 to 2007 using visual surveys and digital image analysis. While changes in atmospheric composition altered disease expression, the responses of the three pathosystems varied considerably, Eastburn said.
Elevated carbon dioxide levels are more likely to have a direct effect on plant diseases through changes to the plant hosts rather than the plant pathogens.
Dr. Darin Eastburn
“In some cases, changes of only a few degrees have allowed plant diseases to become established earlier in the season, resulting in more severe disease epidemics,” Eastburn said. “The ranges of some diseases are expanding as rising temperatures are allowing pathogens to overwinter in regions that were previously too cold for them.”
“Information derived from climate change studies will help us prepare for the changes ahead by knowing which diseases are most likely to become more problematic,” he said. “Now is the time for plant pathologists, plant breeders, agronomists and horticulturalists to adapt disease management strategies to the changing environment.”
Eastburn will share his latest research on global climate change and the implications for future plant disease epidemics at the 2010 U of I Agronomy Day on Thursday, Aug. 19. For more information on Agronomy Day, go to http://agronomyday.cropsci.illinois.edu/.
This very interesting article on the adaptation of plant host vs. plant disease can been read here: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-06/uoic-ccc062410.php
Public release date: 24-Jun-2010
Contact: Jennifer Shike
217-244-0888
University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences
Source: EurekaAlert!
Photo credits: University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences
Deforestation and Malaria in Mâncio Lima County, Brazil
Sarah H. Olson, Ronald Gangnon, Guilherme Abbad Silveira, and Jonathan A. Patz
Abstract: Malaria is the most prevalent vector-borne disease in the Amazon. The authors used malaria reports for health districts collected in 2006 by the Programa Nacional de Controle da Malária to determine whether deforestation is associated with malaria incidence in the county (município) of Mâncio Lima, Acre State, Brazil. Cumulative percent deforestation was calculated for the spatial catchment area of each health district by using 60 × 60–meter, resolution-classified imagery. Statistical associations were identified with univariate and multivariate general additive negative binomial models adjusted for spatial effects. The cross-sectional study shows malaria incidence across health districts in 2006 is positively associated with greater changes in percentage of cumulative deforestation within respective health districts. After adjusting for access to care, health district size, and spatial trends, the authors show that a 4.3%, or 1 SD, change in deforestation from August 1997 through August 2000 is associated with a 48% increase of malaria incidence.
Deforestation and Malaria in Mâncio Lima County, Brazil
Sarah H. Olson, Ronald Gangnon, Guilherme Abbad Silveira, and Jonathan A. Patz
Published ahead of print in CDC/Emerging Infection Diseases, July 2010
http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/16/7/pdfs/09-1785.pdf
Photo credit: Public Health Image Library
Related topic: Growth in Amazon Cropland May Impact Climate and Deforestation Patterns – 09.19.2006
Photo Credit: NASA LBA-ECO Project
Mutating and migrating stem rust pathogen could soon spread across the world. Two new forms of a devastating wheat fungus, known as Ug99 stem rust, have shown up in South Africa, a study has found.
Close-up of stem rust fungus Ug99 on wheat.
The two South African forms are able to overcome the effects of two resistance genes in wheat that normally prevent stem rust from taking hold. The genes cause plant cells around the infection site to die, stopping the fungus from further infecting the plant. The discovery of the new forms marks the first time that the stem rust fungus with virulence against key genetic resistance has moved south of its origins in Uganda, east Africa, the research says.
The presence of new forms of Ug99 in South Africa makes wheat crops in areas including the Middle East and south Asia vulnerable as the fungus can now migrate using different wind trajectories, says Zacharias Pretorius, a wheat pathologist at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa, and one of the authors of the study.
“It’s mutating and migrating,” says Pretorius. “The concern is that other wheat-growing countries will become vulnerable to infection.”
“Eventually it will reach North America and Europe,” says Ronnie Coffman, a plant-breeding scientist at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. He warns that in the next few years, farmers across the world will need to replace up to 90% of the current wheat varieties with new, resistant varieties to ensure crops are protected against the fungus.
The full text on this topic can be read here:
Published online 26 May 2010 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2010.265
Natasha Gilbert
Photo credit: Cereal Disease Lab / USDA
Questions:
What has been the role of shifting climate patterns in the evolution and emergence of this plant pathogen?
What will be the role of sifting climate patterns, especially in regards to upper level winds, in the potential global spread of this wheat rust a plant disease in such an important global food crop?
The 2010 International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases brings together public health professionals to encourage the exchange of scientific and public health information on global emerging infectious disease issues.
2010 International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases
The 2010 ICEID Conference will be held July 11-14, at The Hyatt Regency Atlanta in Atlanta, Georgia. Program and Registration Information can be found on the website at: http://www.iceid.org/
About the Conference
The International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases was first convened in 1998; ICEID 2010 marks its seventh occurrence. The conference brings together public health professionals to encourage the exchange of scientific and public health information on global emerging infectious disease issues. The program will include plenary and panel sessions with invited speakers as well as oral and poster presentations on emerging infections. Major topics to be included are current work on surveillance, epidemiology, research, communication and training, bioterrorism, and preventions and control of emerging infectious diseases, both in the United States and abroad.
Major subjects to be covered include:
* Antimicrobial Resistance
* Bioterrorism and Preparedness
* Foodborne and Waterborne Illnesses
* Global Health
* Molecular Diagnostics and Epidemiology
* Nosocomial Infections
* Socio-economic and Political Factors
* Vectorborne Diseases
* Zoonotic Diseases
Opening Session – Sunday, July 11, 2010
Opening Keynote Speaker:
Dr. Thomas R. Frieden
Welcome from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Dr. Thomas R. Frieden
Director – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Featured Speakers:
Dr. Anthony S. Fauci
Emerging Infectious Diseases: A Perpetual Challenge
Dr. Anthony S. Fauci
Director – National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Dr. Keiji Fukuda
A Pandemic in the 21st Century: What Can We Learn?
Dr. Keiji Fukuda
Special Advisor to the Director-General on Pandemic Influenza
World Health Organization
Schedule: http://www.iceid.org/images/stories/iceid-schedule.pdf
Contact information: iceid@asmusa.org
