JIRCAS hosts blast research network workshop

The direction of research on rice blast in Asia, Africa, and Japan was taken up during the eighth workshop of the Blast Research Network for stable rice production, held at the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS) in Tsukuba.

This year’s meeting, held on 25-27 September 2013, has widened the participation of scientists, with some of them coming from temperate rice areas as well as from West Africa, through collaboration between IRRI and AfricaRice.

Forty scientists from 12 countries in Asia and Africa presented research results on blast disease pathotyping and host-plant resistance by using monogenic differential lines developed jointly by JIRCAS and IRRI. A breeding line having new blast resistance gene, Pi40 developed by IRRI Plant Breeder, Dr. Kshirod K. Jena was highlighted as a potential broad-spectrum resistance gene for blast disease control in Asia and Africa. Pi40 is a potential broad-spectrum resistance gene for blast disease control in Asia and Africa.

IRRI was represented by KK Jena, senior plant breeder, and Bo Zhou, pathologist.

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