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Biswal, A. K., Alakonya, A., Mottaleb, K. A., Hearne, S., Sonder, K., Molnar, T., Jones, A. M., Pixley, K., & Prasanna, B. M. (2022). Maize Lethal Necrosis disease: review of molecular and genetic resistance mechanisms, socio-economic impacts, and mitigation strategies in sub-Saharan Africa. BMC Plant Biology, 22(1), 542. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-022-03932-y

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Background: Maize lethal necrosis (MLN) disease is a significant constraint for maize producers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The disease decimates the maize crop, in some cases, causing total crop failure with far-reaching impacts on regional food security. Results: In this review, we analyze the impacts of MLN in Africa, finding that resource-poor farmers and consumers are the most vulnerable populations. We examine the molecular mechanism of MLN virus transmission, role of vectors and host plant resistance identifying a range of potential opportunities for genetic and phytosanitary interventions to control MLN. We discuss the likely exacerbating effects of climate change on the MLN menace and describe a sobering example of negative genetic association between tolerance to heat/drought and susceptibility to viral infection. We also review role of microRNAs in host plant response to MLN causing viruses as well as heat/drought stress that can be carefully engineered to develop resistant varieties using novel molecular techniques. Conclusions: With the dual drivers of increased crop loss due to MLN and increased demand of maize for food, the development and deployment of simple and safe technologies, like resistant cultivars developed through accelerated breeding or emerging gene editing technologies, will have substantial positive impact on livelihoods in the region. We have summarized the available genetic resources and identified a few large-effect QTLs that can be further exploited to accelerate conversion of existing farmer-preferred varieties into resistant cultivars.
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Journal
BMC Plant Biology
Journal volume
22
Journal issue
1
Article number
542
Place of Publication
London (United Kingdom)
Publisher
BioMed Central
Related Datasets

CGIAR Initiatives

Initiative
Accelerated Breeding
Impact Area
Nutrition, health & food security
Action Area
Genetic Innovation
Donor or Funder
CGIAR Research Program on Maize
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF)