The Mission of Plant Pathology and the Phytopathological Society of Japan

Abstract

The agricultural industry is the developmental base for human life and society. It is also essential for food security and the conservation of national land. Plants with their photosynthetic ability are the starting point of agricultural industry and are vital for providing food and energy and for preserving environmental resources. Therefore, to harmoniously coexist with Earth, mankind must raise and protect them. Our country occupies only 2% of the world population, yet imports about 10% of the world market’s agricultural products. Our country’s current food self-sufficiency rate is *40%, based on caloric supply. Furthermore, world population is expected to increase dramatically in the near future; therefore, the guarantee of a stable food supply will become more and more important. Also, from a global environmental preservation view, the importance of green plants is increasing for carbon dioxide absorption and for bio-fuel. However, plants are continuously attacked by various pathogens and insects, and compete against weeds for survival. Protection against these external agents is indispensable for plants to achieve their full potential for food production. Plant pathology is a science to elucidate the principles involved in plant diseases and to develop efficient methods for disease control. It provides the basis of plant protection in conjunction with applied entomology, weed science, and pesticide science. According to the Japan Plant Pathology Dictionary (1995, Yokendo) edited by the Phytopathological Society of Japan (PSJ), the mission of plant pathology is (1) to develop methods for plant disease control as an applied science and (2) to contribute to plant protection as a basic science through the elucidation of the principles underlying the expression of pathogenicity of microbes and resistance of host plants. This dictionary with more than 1,200-page was written and edited by a team of 220 society members, under the supervision of Chairman Kunihei Kishi, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of PSJ. I would like to pay my sincere respect to the efforts of our predecessors for publishing such a monumental book. Research in plant pathology requires broad knowledge that spans the disciplines of biology and chemistry of both pathogens and host plants. In other words, it encompasses a great diversity of scientific fields. Needless to say, pathogens themselves are very diverse. Therefore, plant pathologists must be experts in mycology, bacteriology, virology, nematology, and the etiology of other pathogens such as phytoplasmas and viroids. In addition, it is indispensable that they understand the science underlying applied fields such as plant breeding, agronomy, horticulture, pesticides, soils and plant nutrition and basic fields such as genetics, cytology, molecular biology, organic chemistry, and biochemistry. Plant pathology can be considered an integrated science composed of diverse fields. Plant pathology as a modern science started and developed with the identification of pathogens. In 1743, Needham first described a wheat disease caused by a nematode. In 1861, Anton deBary found a fungal species to be the causal agent of potato late blight, which triggered the rapid progress in the etiology of plant diseases in the following 100 years, such as the discovery of bacterial diseases (fire blight of pear and apple) (Burrill 1878), This article is an abstract of the Presidential Address presented at the 2007 Annual Meeting of the Phytopathological Society of Japan in Utsunomiya.