CBSD) and Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) in Eastern and Southern Africa
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Food Security https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-018-0779-2 ORIGINAL PAPER Exchanging and managing in-vitro elite germplasm to combat Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) and Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) in Eastern and Southern Africa Silver Tumwegamire1 & Edward Kanju1 & James Legg1 & Rudolph Shirima1 & Salehe Kombo1 & Geoffrey Mkamilo2 & Kiddo Mtunda2 & Karoline Sichalwe2 & Heneriko Kulembeka2 & Innocent Ndyetabura2 & Haji Saleh3 & Robert Kawuki4 & Titus Alicai4 & Gerald Adiga4 & Ibrahim Benesi5 & Albert Mhone5 & Anabela Zacarias6 & Sofrimento Fenias Matsimbe6 & Theresia Munga7 & Elijah Ateka8 & Lynet Navangi 7 & Midatharahally Narasegowda Maruthi9 & Francis Mwatuni10 & George Ngundo10 & Maureen Mwangangi10 & Edward Mbugua11 & Joseph Ndunguru12 & Cyprian Rajabu12 & Deogratius Mark12 Received: 13 April 2017 /Accepted: 19 February 2018 # The Author(s) 2018 Abstract Cassava varieties resistant to cassava mosaic disease (CMD) and cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) are needed for the food and income security of the rural poor in eastern and southern Africa (ESA). The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture led five national cassava breeding programs (Malawi, Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) in virus-cleaning and exchanging elite cassava germplasm resistant to both diseases. This paper documents the experiences and lessons learned from the process. Thirty-one clones (25 elite, two standard and four national) were submitted by the five breeding programs to the Natural Resources Institute and Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services for virus cleaning and indexing. Subsequently, ca 75 in- vitro virus-indexed plantlets per clone were sent to Genetic Technologies International Limited (GTIL), a private tissue culture (TC) lab in Kenya, and micro-propagated to produce ≥1500 plantlets. After fulfilling all the formal procedures of germplasm exchange between countries ≥300 plantlets per clone were sent to each partner country. National check clones susceptible to CMD/CBSD were sent only to their countries of origin. In each country, the in-vitro plantlets were acclimatized under screen house conditions and transferred to clean isolated sites for field multiplication. All the clones were cleaned of the viruses, except Tomo. The cleaning process was slow for F19-NL, NASE1, and Kibandameno and TC micro-propagation at GTIL was less efficient for Pwani, Tajirika, NASE1, and Okhumelela than for the other clones. Difficulties in cleaning recalcitrant clones affected the timeline for establishing the multi-site evaluation trials in target countries. The initiative is the one of the kind to successfully clean and exchange elite germplasm as a joint action to combat CBSD in ESA. Adequate preparation in terms of infrastructure and personnel are critical to successfully receiving and adapting the indexed in-vitro plants as new germplasm. * Silver Tumwegamire 6 Instituto de Investigacao Agraria de Mocambique, PO Box 3658, [email protected] Maputo, Mozambique 7 Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization, PO Box – 1 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), PO Box 34441, 57811 00200, Nairobi, Kenya Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 8 Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, PO Box 62,000 – 00200, Nairobi, Kenya 2 Department of Agricultural Research and Development, PO Box 9 2066, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Chatham Maritime, Kent, UK 3 Zanzibar Agricultural Research Institute, PO Box 159, 10 Kenya Plant Inspectorate Services, Plant Quarantine and Biosecurity Zanzibar, Tanzania Station, Muguga, PO Box 49592 – 00100, Nairobi, Kenya 4 National Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 295, 11 Genetic Technologies International Limited, PO Box 47430 – 00100, Entebbe, Uganda Nairobi, Kenya 5 Department for Agricultural Research Services, Chitedze Research 12 Mikocheni Agricultural Research Institute, PO Box 6226, Station, PO Box 158, Lilongwe, Malawi Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Tumwegamire S. et al. Keywords Exchange . In-vitro . Germplasm . CBSD and CMD Abbreviations family Potyviridae, genus Ipomovirus (Mbanzibwa et al. BecA Biosciences Eastern and Central Africa 2009). Here, we refer to these collectively as cassava brown CBSD Cassava Brown Streak Disease streak ipomoviruses (CBSIs). In addition to the two species CBSV Cassava Brown Streak Virus groupings, several strains of each species have been reported CMD Cassava Mosaic Disease (Mbanzibwa et al. 2009;Mohammedetal.2012; Ogwok et al. CMB Cassava Mosaic Begomovirus 2015). These interact with the host differently (Mohammed DARS Department of Agricultural Research Services et al. 2012; Kaweesi et al. 2014;Leggetal.2015) and produce DRD Department of Research and Development symptoms of varying severity that complicate the evaluation ESA Eastern and Southern Africa and selection processes in developing resistant varieties. A fur- GTIL Genetic Technologies International, Limited ther important factor in the epidemiology of these viruses, caus- IIAM Instituto de Investigacao Agraria de Mocambique ing CBSD and CMD, is the relative abundance of the whitefly KALRO Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research vector, Bemisia tabaci (Maruthi et al. 2005). Whiteflies occur in Organisation greatly varying abundance in the regions where both diseases KEPHIS Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services occur (Jeremiah et al. 2015),andthisinturnresultsinsignifi- MARI Mikocheni Agricultural Research Institute cantly different levels of inoculum pressure for the two dis- NaCRRI National Crop Resources Research Institute eases. Consequently, it is essential to evaluate cassava germ- NARO National Agricultural Research Organization, plasm that is potentially resistant to both CBSD and CMD in a Uganda wide range of agro-ecologies. NRI Natural Resources Institute Collaborative efforts with different national cassava breed- TC Tissue Culture ing programs have identified germplasm resistant or tolerant PCR Polymerase Chain Reaction to CBSD/CMD. However, these have been evaluated so far NARS National Agricultural Research Systems under a narrow range of conditions of environment, virus CBS Crop Bioscience Solutions species/strains, and vector abundance (Legg et al. 2011). The exchange of germplasm between countries enhances the diversity of germplasm available to partner countries. It pro- 1 Introduction vides breeders with fresh opportunities to evaluate and release new varieties as well as to use them as parents in efforts to Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is one of the most impor- breed new genotypes resistant to CBSD and CMD. tant food staples in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), ranked as the Past experiences of CMD pandemic management have number one root crop followed by yam and sweetpotato underlined the significance of identifying and deploying (FAOSTAT 2017). With over 140 MT of annual root produc- host resistance as well as the importance of joint action tion (FAOSTAT 2017), cassava is the major source of carbo- among partners in the affected countries through elite hydrates in the diet of millions of people in SSA and is grown germplasm exchange (Ntawuruhunga et al. 2013). Open as a famine reserve crop owing to its tolerance of harsh envi- quarantine was used effectively in efforts to manage the ronmental conditions (Jarvis et al. 2012; Nassar and Ortiz CMD pandemic (Mohamed 2002), but this is appropriate 2007). Moreover, the crop has enormous potential to graduate only under emergency conditions and where introduced into an important economic driver within the agriculture sec- germplasm is carried just a short distance over the border tor in different SSA countries where entrepreneurs have into the receiving country. The approach has risks of intro- started to exploit its industrial business potential to produce ducing other diseases/pests into new unaffected areas high quality flour, starch, beverages and animal feeds. (Ntawuruhunga and Legg 2007). Sharing of botanical However,thecropisthreatenedbytwoviraldiseases:cas- seeds is less risky, but the high level of genetic variability sava brown streak disease (CBSD) and cassava mosaic disease among individual seeds means that more time and funds (CMD), and these are currently the principal biotic factors af- are required at national level to develop promising varieties fecting production in East and Southern Africa (ESA) (Alicai (Ntawuruhunga et al. 2013). Virus-indexed tissue culture et al. 2007;Leggetal.2011). While CMD is of economic (TC) plants are the form recognised by quarantine regula- importance across SSA, CBSD remains localized in ESA, al- tors for the exchange of elite germplasm among countries though there is a high risk of the disease spreading to West (Frison 1994;Lebot2009; Ntawuruhunga et al. 2013). Africa unless contained (Legg et al. 2011). CBSD is caused Their use also ensures that fair comparisons can be made by two virus species, Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) among clones that are planted in evaluation trials without and Ugandan cassava brown streak virus (UCBSV) in the propagule-borne virus infection. Exchanging in-vitro elite cassava germplasm to combat CBSD Breeding for dual resistance is currently being pursued as the 2.2 Main steps for the exchange and management most cost-effective and sustainable way to manage the devas- of elite cassava germplasm tating effects of the viral diseases in ESA. Although high resis- tance for CMD has been found, only limited success has been Four main steps (Fig. 2) were undertaken in the process of documented for