Why is this research important for Alberta ag?
Aphanomyces euteiches is a tremendous threat to pea and lentil production in the Canadian prairies with economic losses over $20M annually. The extended rotation away from these crops is the best disease management strategy so far, but it impacts the goal of Alberta Pulse Growers and negatively affects target sustainability metrics of Canadian agriculture. Innovative disease management strategies are thus urgently needed. One such innovation is to target weaknesses in the pathogen's life cycle.
A. euteiches has two key aspects of its life cycle, the triggers of oospore germination and zoospore homing, that can potentially be exploited for disease management, but knowledge on the mechanism is first required. It is hypothesized that oospores only break dormancy in the presence of a suitable host via sensing yet-unknown chemical signals, and this is partly responsible for host specificity.
This project will identify the host signals that trigger oospore germination and zoospore chemotaxis. The nature of the chemical signal will be identified and behaviour and viability of the pathogen in response to the host signals will be examined in detail. Furthermore, the role of extracellular vesicles to defend against pathogen will be evaluated.
This ultimate goal of this research is to exploit host signals that trigger oospores and attract zoospores for the development of novel and innovative disease management strategies for aphanomyces root rot of pea and lentils.
What benefits can producers expect from this research?
This research aims to solve the decades-old question of what host signals are eliciting pathogen activation and how they are communicated between host and pathogen.
The ability to answer these fundamental questions on pathogen biology and pathogen/host interactions have many downstream applications from the development of novel disease management strategies to new screening tools for breeding.
How will these research findings reach producers on-farm?
Results will be shared regularly to stakeholders at extension meetings such as the Alberta Agronomy Update annual meetings, Pulse Growers meeting, field days, media articles, and scientific conferences.