Resistance to mosaic disease explained

Cassava mosaic disease

The plant on the left is infected by DNA Gemini viruses that cause cassava mosaic disease, while the plant on the right is healthy. (Photograph: Wilhelm Gruissem / ETH Zurich)

Researchers from ETH Zurich, the United States and Uganda have identified the gene responsible for resistance in certain cassava cultivars against the devastating cassava mosaic disease. This is an important step for breeding virus-resistant cassava varieties.

The research was carried out by Prof. em. Willi Gruissem and his team at the ETH Zurich together with colleagues. He is a member of the Swiss Society of Plant Biology. Take a look at Willi Gruissem's portfolio on the Swiss Plant Science Web.

Publication
Lim YW, Mansfeld BN, Schläpfer P et al.
Mutations in DNA polymerase δ subunit 1 co-segregate with CMD2-type resistance to Cassava Mosaic Geminiviruses.
Nat Commun 13, 3933 (2022). Doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-31414-0

Source
ETH Zurich News (available in English and in German)