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Project: NEMATODEFENCE: a novel HTP marker platform to obtain broad spectrum nematode resistance in potato
Potato is one of the world’s most important food crops and seriously threatened by major pests like cyst and root-knot nematodes, microscopic roundworms that feed on the roots.
Nematode control highly depends on resistant varieties due to the recent ban on nematicides. However, resistance-breaking nematode populations are an emerging problem in potato growing areas. So, there is an urgent demand for new sources of nematode resistance. Only a limited number of nematode resistance traits is known, which are often based on multiple genes. The aim of the public-private collaborative project NEMATODEFENCE is to develop a high-throughput (HTP) platform for marker assisted selection (MAS) of complex resistance loci using Next Generation Sequencing technology to breed for new potato varieties with broad-spectrum nematode resistance.