Molecular Breeding Approaches for Disease Resistance in Sugarcane

Abstract

Currently, the cultivated sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) is one of the major commercial cash crop grown in tropics and subtropics worldwide. It is cultivated nowadays for sugar, jaggery, ethanol, juices, livestock fodder, and biofuels globally. During the last few decades, multiple countries have witnessed multiple disease epidemics. The total damage during epidemics depends upon the disease severity, disease incidence, climate conditions, and cultivated variety genotype. Furthermore, vegetative reproduction in sugarcane favors the spread of diseases. In the past, the classical breeders have developed many such disease-resistant varieties; however, these varieties were ineffective due to sudden breakdown of resistance to a new virulent strain or pathovars. As a result, there are many diseases widespread including rust, wilt, red rot, pokkah boeng, and smut which seriously affect the sugarcane production, yield, and profitability. As result, multiple diseases-resistant varieties are high in demand by the sugarcane farmers as the cultivation of such elite varieties increases both direct and indirect profits. In order to enhance the disease resistance, the sugarcane breeding programs have shifted the focus toward techniques like marker-assisted breeding, genetic engineering, etc. This book chapter summarizes about the sugarcane productivity, diseases, and various approaches employed for enhancing disease resistance.