Expected selection efficiency for resistance to cacao pod rot (Phytophthora palmivora) comparing leaf disc inoculations with field observations

Summary A genetic analysis of resistance of cacao to Phytophthora palmivora was carried out in a 5 × 5 diallel and in a 4 × 2 NC II factorial design, involving cross-progenies and parental clones planted in the nursery and field, respectively. Resistance was scored in the laboratory by inoculation of leaf discs with P. palmivora spores with four replicates and, for the factorial design, results were compared with the percentage of rotten pods in the field assessed over a seven-year period. Significant differences between genotypes were observed for both laboratory and field evaluation methods. For the laboratory test, no reciprocal effect was observed and plant effects within seedling progenies were more significant than plant effects within clones. General combining ability was the main source of variation but specific combining ability was also significant for the leaf disc test applied to the diallel. Heritabilities increased with the number of replicates, reaching values of 0.34 and 0.67 for narrow sense heritability, and 0.60 and 0.67 for broad sense heritability, for the diallel and the factorial design, respectively. These values were higher than observed for the percentage of rotten pods in the field in the factorial design (0.42 and 0.47, respectively). For the leaf test, the expected genetic gains were around 30% with a selection intensity of 5%. The existence of significant genetic (0.71) and phenotypic (0.39) coefficients of correlation between resistance on leaves and percentage of rotten pods in the field in the factorial design confirms the feasibility of using the leaf disc test for early selection of resistance to Phytophthora pod rot of cacao.     

An application of the mixed linear model and the dirichlet process prior in veterinary medicine research

This article applies Bayesian nonparametric techniques of analysis to the mixed linear model. The distribution of the random effects is specific as a nonparametric prior. A Dirichlet process prior is specified on the space of prior distributions. A modified Dirichlet process is described and applied using a Gibbs sampler. The approach is demonstrated in an investigation of the changes over time of packed cell volume in two breeds of cattle.     

Usefulness of the Detached Pod Test for Assessment of Cacao Resistance to Phytophthora Pod Rot

The detached pod test by spray method (DPT-SM) was developed to facilitate the screening of cacao genotypes for resistance to Phytophthora pod rot (PPR) caused by Phytophthora palmivora. The test has been adopted in many cacao research institutes, and it is imperative that its validity be assessed. In this study, 40 genotypes from various cacao groups were selected and screened for resistance to PPR by DPT-SM and field observations. Significant variation was observed in the reactions of the selected accessions based on the disease rating scale for DPT-SM and the percentage pod rot from field observations. A correlation coefficient of 0.68 (P<0.001) was observed between the results of year-1 and year-2 field observations. However, relatively lower correlation values were obtained between year-3 and year-1 (r=0.32; P=0.041) and year-3 and year-2 (r=0.35; P=0.025) field observations. A higher level of susceptibility was observed in the third year of field observations (63%) than in the first (15%) and second (25%) years. This suggests that the predisposing factors for PPR were unstable between the years of field observations. Data obtained from the Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Services showed that the rainfall in November of the third year was higher than the amounts of rainfall in November of the first 2 years of field observations. This month marks the beginning of the main pod harvest season (November–February) and the high rainfall in November of the third year, and the presence of large number of mature pods may account in part for the increase in PPR in the third year of field observations than in the first 2 years. This shows that absolute reliance could not be placed on a single year of field observations in determining clonal resistance to PPR. A correlation coefficient of 0.59 (P<0.001) was obtained between the result of year-2 field observations and DPT-SM. Relatively lower correlation values were observed between DPT-SM and year-1 (r=0.55; P<0.001) and year-3 (r=0.44; P=0.005) field observations. The result of DPT-SM, however, shows a higher correlation (r=0.66; P<0.001) with the average of years 1–3 field observations. This suggests that a stronger association may exist between the result of DPT-SM and the cumulative data on field observations for a period longer than 3 years. The correlation (r=0.66; P<0.001) observed in this study confirms the usefulness of DPT-SM as an effective method of assessing clonal resistance to PPR and predicting field reaction in the long term. Since field observations are labour intensive and expensive to conduct on a yearly basis, the DPT-SM offers a cheaper and effective means of assessing clonal resistance to PPR. Being a non-destructive inoculation method, the DPT-SM provides a suitable option for cacao collections in genebanks to be assessed. It is also a cost-effective method for use in cacao breeding programmes. Based on its reliability, the DPT-SM has been adopted in the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI cocoa project ‘Cocoa Germplasm Utilization and Conservation: A Global Approach’ for the assessment of cacao resistance to PPR in several cocoa producing countries.     

Overcoming constraints to meeting increased demand for Babesia bigemina vaccine in Australia

Demand for live trivalent tick fever vaccine containing Babesia bovis, Babesia bigemina and Anaplasma centrale produced by the Department of Primary Industries, Queensland, has increased from less than 10,000 doses in 1988 to 500,000 doses in 2001. This paper describes a series of trials aimed at overcoming certain constraints to obtain B. bigemina parasitised erythrocytes (PEs) on a large enough scale from infected splenectomised calves to meet the demand. Passage through a series of splenectomised calves failed to increase the yield per calf but we showed that the dose rate of infected cells could be reduced from the long-time standard of 1x10(7) to 2.5x10(6) without affecting immunogenicity and still leaving a safety margin of at least 50-fold for infectivity. This change quadrupled the potential yield of doses per calf and allowed the DPI to meet the increased demand for B bigemina in vaccine. Due to the high cost and limited availability of suitable, health tested donors, calves previously infected with B. bovis or A. centrale were used to provide B. bigemina organisms but the practice resulted in red cell agglutination in some batches of prepared vaccine. A trial is described where B. bigemina-infected red cells were washed by centrifugation to remove agglutinating antibodies. Washing had no effect on parasite viability and this method is now in routine use in the production of trivalent vaccine.     

The effect of leaf age on incomplete resistance of coffee to Hemileia vastatrix

The influence of leaf age on incomplete resistance to race II of coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix), which is the most common race in Brazil, was tested in the greenhouse and in the field. Three stages of leaf age were distinguished: young leaves which had just fully expanded and still had a shiny appearance on the day of inoculation, adult leaves of 1 to 4 months old, and old leaves of 6 to 12 months old which were formed in the foregoing growing season.The effect of leaf age varied with the coffee genotype. With the susceptibleCoffea arabica cvs Mundo Novo and Catuai no important effect of leaf age on latency period and reaction type was observed. Lesion density, depending on inoculation method, was affected to some extent, older leaves showing lower values. With genotypes of theC. canephora cv. Kouillou, which varied in level of incomplete resistance, adult leaves appeared to be more resistant than young and old leaves. This adult leaf resistance was expressed mainly by a lower lesion density, but also by a longer latency period and a lower reaction type.Within the hybrid populations Icatu and Catimor, genotypes with race-specific incomplete resistance were tested and others of unknown specificity. Resistance was expressed mainly by a low reaction type. Generally, resistance decreased with increasing leaf age, which was occasionally associated with a complete change in reaction type. Contrary to cv. Kouillou, in Icatu and Catimor no higher susceptibility of young leaves than of adult leaves was observed.The incomplete resistance to race I of the differential CIFC H152/3, heterozygous for S_H4, was also better expressed in young leaves, older ones becoming gradually more susceptible.It is concluded that for screening incomplete resistance to coffee leaf rust leaves of different ages should be tested.Samenvatting Het effect van bladleeftijd op incomplete resistentie van koffie tegen fysio II van koffieroest (Hemileia vastatrix), het algemeen voorkomende fysio in Brazilië, werd getoetst in de kas en in het veld. Drie stadia in de bladleeftijd werden onderscheiden: jong blad dat net volgroeid was en nog glansde op de dag van inoculatie, volwassen blad van 1 tot 4 maanden oud en oud blad van 6 tot 12 maanden oud dat gevormd was in het voorafgaande groeiseizoen.Het effect van bladleeftijd varieërde met het koffiegenotype. Bij de vatbareCoffea arabica rassen Mundo Novo en Catuai werd geen belangrijke invloed waargenomen van bladleeftijd op latentieperiode en reactietype. Lesiedichtheid werd, afhankelijk van de inoculatiemethode, wel enigszins beïnvloed. Bij vijf genotypen van hetC. canephora ras Kouillou, die varieerden in niveau van incomplete resistentie, bleek volwassen blad veelal resistenter dan jong en oud blad. Deze resistentie uitte zich voornamelijk door een lagere lesiedichtheid maar ook door een langere latente periode en een lager reactietype.Van de hybride populaties Icatu en Catimor werden enkele genotypen met fysiospecifieke incomplete resistentie getoets alsmede genotypen waarvan de specificiteit van de resistentie onbekend was. Verschillen in resistentie uitten zich voornamelijk door verschillen in reactietype. Over het algemeen nam de resistentie af bij toenemende bladouderdom. Anders dan bij de cv. Kouillou werd bij Icatu en Catimor geen grotere vatbaarheid van jong ten opzichte van volwassen blad waargenomen. Bij sommige genotypen kwam resistantie zelfs alleen maar tot uiting in het jonge blad, terwijl het volwassen blad normaal vatbaar was. Een soortgelijk effect van bladleeftijd werd waargenomen bij inoculatie van de koffiedifferentieel CIFC H153/3, die heterozygoot is voor het resistentiegen S_H4, met het incompatibele fysio I.Er wordt geconcludeerd dat voor het bepalen van incomplete resistentie tegen koffieroest bladeren van verschillende ouderdom getoetst dienen te worden.     

The use of leaf disk inoculations in assessing resistance to coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix)

The suitability of inoculations of leaf disks of 1.8 cm diameter in determining resistance of coffee toHemileia vastatrix, the causal agent of coffee leaf rust, was studied. Results obtained by this method were similar to those obtained by greenhouse tests with respect to reaction types of coffee plants with complete and/or major gene resistance. The efficacy of the method in assessing incomplete resistance was tested on 19 plants ofCoffea canephora cv. Kouillou, which varied in level of disease in the field. Four series of inoculation were carried out in four different months of the year, and six components of resistance were assessed. The analysis of multiple correlation, applied to the average data of the four series, indicated that 79% of the variation in disease in the field could be explained by the observations in the leaf disk test. For the individual series this percentage varied from 58 to 70. The coefficients of correlation between the six components were significant and high. The percentage of leaf disks with sporulating lesions was found to be the most suitable component for assessing incomplete resistance.The number of lesions per leaf disk was affected substantially by the hour of the day of leaf collection and by light intensity in the field. No effect was observed of the size of the disks (1 to 2 cm in diameter) and of the leaf wetness period after inoculation (24 and 48h). Results were more consistent when the inoculum was applied in droplets of 0.025 ml than when the inoculum was sprayed onto the disks. No genotype x treatment interactions were observed for the hour of leaf collection, for the size of the leaf disk, for the inoculation method or for the leaf wetness period.It is concluded that the leaf disk method, if adequately standardized, can be a very useful tool in breeding for coffee leaf rust resistance and also in basic research on the coffee —H. vastatrix relationship.Samenvatting De geschiktheid van inoculaties van bladschijven van 1.8 cm diameter voor de bepaling van resistantie van koffie tegenHemileia vastatrix, de veroorzaker van koffieroest, werd nagegaan. Voor het bepalen van het reactietype van koffieplanten, met complete en/of monogene resistentie, bleek de bladschijfmethode resultaten op te leveren die vergelijkbaar waren met die van kasproeven. De geschiktheid van de methode voor het bepalen van onvolledige resistentie werd beproefd bij 19 planten, behorende tot het ras Kouillou vanCoffea canephora, die varieerden in veldaantasting. Vier inoculatie series werden uitgevoerd in vier verschillende maanden van het jaar, waarbij zes resistentie-componenten werden bepaald. Multipele correlatie voor de gemiddelden van de vier series toonde aan dat 79% van de variatie in veldaantasting te verklaren was door de waargenomen componenten in de bladschijftoets. Voor de individuele series varieerde dit percentage tussen de 58 en 70. De zes componenten vertoonden onderling een sterke mate van correlatie. Het percentage bladschijven met sporulatie bleek de meest geschikte component te zijn voor het schatten van onvolledige resistentie.Het aantal lesies per bladschijf werd duidelijk beïnvloed door het uur van de dag waarop de bladeren werden geplukt en de hoeveelheid licht waaraan de bladeren waren blootgesteld in het veld. De grootte van de bladschijven (1 à 2 cm in diameter) en de bladnatperiode na inoculatie (24 en 48 uur) bleken hierop geen effect te hebben. De inoculatiemethode, waarbij druppels van 0,025 ml werden gebruikt, bleek meer consistente resultaten te geven dan de methode waarbij het inoculum op de bladschijven werd gespoten. Er werd geen genotype x behandeling interactie waargenomen voor het uur van de dag waarop de bladeren werden geplukt, de grootte van de bladschijven, in inoculatiemethode en de duur van de bladnatperiode.Geconcludeerd wordt dat de bladschijfmethode, mits toegepast in gestandaardiseerde vorm, een zeer bruikbaar hulpmiddel kan zijn bij de veredeling van koffie op roestresistantie en bij het onderzoek naar de relatie tussen koffie enH. vastatrix.     

Identification of radical scavengers in sweet grass (Hierochloe odorata)

Extracts from aerial parts of sweet grass (Hierochloe odorata) were active DPPH free radical scavengers. The active compounds were detected in extract fractions using HPLC with on-line radical scavenging detection. After multistep fractionation of the extract, two new natural products possessing radical scavenging activity were isolated, and their structures were elucidated by NMR and MS. They were identified as 5,8-dihydroxybenzopyranone and 5-hydroxy-8-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-benzopyranone. Activities of the compounds isolated were tested by DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging assays, and compared with the known natural antioxidant rosmarinic acid and Trolox.     

Reciprocal recurrent selection applied to Coffea canephora Pierre

Summary Genetic parameters were estimated in trials planted in connection with a reciprocal recurrent selection programme applied to Coffea canephora in Côte d'Ivoire. Narrow sense heritability values, estimated from a breakdown of the analysis of variance, were high for architectural characters (0.22 to 0.78) and medium for tree vigour (0.13 to 0.40) and for bean weight (0.15 to 0.28). Calculated heritability values for the first two harvests were high (h²>0.7), but much lower for the following harvests (less than 0.2). Heritability estimates by parent-offspring regressions gave variable results, though they were often similar to those obtained by variance analysis, especially for bean weight. Phenotypic and genetic correlations between tree vigour traits and productivity were high. Bean weight was not correlated with vigour or production. Canopy diameter of 4 year-old trees was closely correlated with cumulated productivity from 2 to 5 years in the absence of development competition between trees, but the correlation was low if trees were in competition with each other. The consequences of the results for the choice of characters to be selected among intergroup hybrids or the parents of both populations are discussed.     

Effect of genotype of cocoa (Theobroma cacao) on attractiveness to the mirid Sahlbergella singularis (Hemiptera: Miridae) in the laboratory

BACKGROUND: Mirids are a major constraint to cocoa growing in Africa. Cocoa breeding for tolerance/resistance could be effective in an integrated pest management system. Attractiveness is one aspect of tolerance/resistance, and decreasing the attractiveness of cocoa trees should be a good way of reducing damage. RESULTS: Small-scale laboratory tests were carried out in Cameroon to assess differences in the attractiveness to mirids of eleven cocoa genotypes. The genotypes were ranked according to their attractiveness score and a distance from a mean value. An analysis of variance was performed and revealed significant differences between cocoa genotypes (F=3.15, P<0.001). The cocoa genotype groupings revealed three major categories, with BE10 and SNK413 proving to be the most attractive. In contrast, five genotypes, IMC60, the Catongo Trinitario genotypes, Playa Alta2 (from Venezuela), SIC5 and SNK614, proved to be less attractive than the mean. Four genotypes (PA107, SNK619, UPA134 and T60/887) displayed similar attractiveness to the mean. CONCLUSION: The circular microtest offered the advantage of not needing a reference cocoa genotype. The least attractive clones, such as IMC60, were also the most tolerant in the field. Comparisons with the results of other studies are proposed.     

Expression and mode of inheritance of resistance in coffee to leaf miner Perileucoptera coffeella

The coffee leaf miner (Perileucoptera coffeella, Guérin-Méneville), is the most serious pest on coffee in Brazil. Coffee varieties with resistance to this pest have been developed in Brazil using genes from the Coffea racemosa Lour. species. Resistance to P. coffeella was studied in C. racemosa and in advanced breeding populations derived from BC3 and BC4 generations through artificial infestation of coffee leaves (laboratory) and natural infestation (greenhouse). Based on an analysis of variance carried out with notes attributed to lesions, two weeks after egg hatching, C. racemosa plants and BC4 progenies were classified in 3 groups according to their degree of resistance to the insect. The age of the leaves seemed to play a role in the expression of resistance of C. racemosa and of BC4 progenies to P. coffeella. The data seemed to show that resistance to P. coffeella derived from C. racemosa can be best explained by two complementary dominant genes. Segregations for resistance assessed in families obtained by selfing or open pollination or by back-crossing with a susceptible variety were similar to the expected segregation of 9 resistant: 7 susceptible or 1 resistant: 3 susceptible, respectively. The symbols Lm1, lm1, Lm2 and lm2 are proposed for the alleles. Consequences for breeding coffee varieties with resistance are discussed.