Abstract
Plant breeding for disease resistance is crucial to sustain global crop production. For decades, plant breeders and researchers have extensively used host plant resistance genes (R-genes) to develop disease resistant cultivars. However, the general instability of R-genes in crop cultivars when challenged with diverse pathogen populations emphasizes the need for more stable means of resistance. Alternatively, non-host resistance is recognized as the most durable, broad-spectrum form of resistance against the majority of potential pathogens in plants and has gained great attention as an alternative target for managing resistance. While transgenic approaches have been utilized to transfer non-host resistance to host species, conventional breeding applications have been more elusive. Nevertheless, avenues for discovery and deployment of genetic loci for non-host resistance via hybridization are increasingly abundant, particularly when transferring genes among closely related species. In this mini review, we discuss current and developing applications of non-host resistance for crop improvement with a focus on the overlap between host and non-host mechanisms and the potential impacts of new technology.
Highlights
Plant diseases pose a significant threat to global food security
A recent study demonstrated that a cultivar pyramided with the R gene Xa23 and the Rxo1 gene from maize showed a high level of resistance to both bacterial diseases in rice. The pyramiding involved both a host gene transferred through conventional hybridization and a non-host gene transferred by transgenic means
Genetic systems that involve the recognition of the most essential chemical components of plant pathogens should provide the greatest durability of resistance
Summary
Plant breeding for disease resistance is crucial to sustain global crop production. Plant breeders and researchers have extensively used host plant resistance genes (R-genes) to develop disease resistant cultivars. While transgenic approaches have been utilized to transfer non-host resistance to host species, conventional breeding applications have been more elusive. Avenues for discovery and deployment of genetic loci for non-host resistance via hybridization are increasingly abundant, when transferring genes among closely related species. In this mini review, we discuss current and developing applications of non-host resistance for crop improvement with a focus on the overlap between host and non-host mechanisms and the potential impacts of new technology
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