Breeding aflatoxin-resistant maize lines using recent advances in technologies - a review.
Robert L Brown1, Abebe Menkir, Zhi-Yuan Chen
1Southern Regional Research Center, ARS, USDA, New Orleans, LA , USA.
Summary
Aflatoxin contamination in corn poses a significant threat. Research is exploring corn
Area of Science:
- Agricultural Science
- Plant Pathology
- Food Safety
Background:
- Aflatoxin contamination from Aspergillus flavus infection poses a significant threat to corn safety and marketability.
- This contamination results in substantial economic losses for producers and poses risks to human and animal health.
- Corn is a globally vital crop, serving as a primary food source, animal feed, and biofuel feedstock.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review strategies for eliminating aflatoxin contamination in corn.
- To highlight corn's natural heritable resistance to aflatoxin as a model for other crops.
- To discuss the economic and food safety significance driving research into corn's aflatoxin resistance.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on aflatoxin contamination and control in corn.
- Examination of traditional plant breeding and varietal selection methods for disease resistance.
- Exploration of modern genomic and proteomic tools for identifying resistance mechanisms.
Main Results:
- Traditional breeding has identified some corn lines with resistance to Aspergillus flavus invasion, but no commercial lines are available.
- Genomic and proteomic approaches offer new possibilities for identifying resistance mechanisms and selecting resistant varieties.
- Understanding these mechanisms is crucial for developing resistant corn cultivars.
Conclusions:
- Developing aflatoxin-resistant corn is critical for food safety and economic stability.
- Leveraging corn's natural resistance and advanced molecular tools can lead to effective resistance strategies.
- Further research is needed to translate findings into commercially viable, resistant corn varieties.
More Related Videos
07:09A Rapid and Efficient Method for Assessing Pathogenicity of Ustilago maydis on Maize and Teosinte Lines
Published on: January 3, 2014
09:44RNAi-mediated Control of Aflatoxins in Peanut: Method to Analyze Mycotoxin Production and Transgene Expression in the Peanut/Aspergillus Pathosystem
Published on: December 21, 2015
Related Concept Videos
01:59Plant Breeding and Biotechnology
Crop cultivation has a long history in human civilization, with records showing the cultivation of cereal plants beginning at around 8000 BC. This early plant breeding was developed primarily to provide a steady supply of food.
02:50Transgenic Plants
Recombinant DNA technology called transgenesis is often used to add a foreign gene or remove a detrimental gene from an organism. Such genetically modified organisms are called transgenic organisms.
The first-ever transgenic plant was a tobacco plant developed in 1983 that showed resistance against the tobacco mosaic virus. Since then, many transgenic plants have been developed and commercialized for improving the agricultural, ornamental, and horticultural value of a crop plant. Transgenic...
The first-ever transgenic plant was a tobacco plant developed in 1983 that showed resistance against the tobacco mosaic virus. Since then, many transgenic plants have been developed and commercialized for improving the agricultural, ornamental, and horticultural value of a crop plant. Transgenic...
01:22Bioreactor Controls-III
Strain improvement is a foundational strategy in industrial microbiology aimed at maximizing microbial productivity, particularly because natural isolates typically yield commercially valuable products in very low concentrations. Although optimizing the culture medium and environmental conditions can improve yields, these adjustments are inherently limited by the organism’s genetic potential. As a result, the focus shifts toward genetic modifications to enhance biosynthetic capacity. The...