Abstract Detail

Biological Control of diseases and weeds (CFBC)

Saville, Barry [1].

Biological control and genomics: discussion points for integrating technologies.

Genomics as a field has expanded dramatically in recent years with the continued improvement of technologies and an ever expanding array of genomic applications. In plant pathology the traditional focus of concentrating on understanding host plant responses is no longer sufficient, goals now include genomic investigations of plant hosts and fungal pathogens and how they change gene expression in response to their interaction. Much of this work is facilitated by advances in short read genomic technologies but future research will incorporate the long reads and ability to detect DNA methylation as afforded by third generation sequencers. These studies will enable the combined application of genomics, transcriptomics and epigenomics to investigating plant / pathogen interactions. While these investigations are cutting edge, researchers investigating biological control are faced with the further complexity of trying to understand how biocontrol agents interact with the host plants and the pathogens and how to manage these multiple interactions to improve crop yield. In this talk I will provide an overview of some of the advances in understanding fungal and Oomycete pathogens enabled by genomics technologies including some recent work on epigenetic changes and how these types of changes may be important in understanding differences in interactions among organisms. With this background I will propose ways in which this technology could be utilized to address the complexities of plant-pathogen-biocontrol agent interactions. These could include complex and involved experimentation using changes in metagenomic responses as a means of monitoring interaction outcomes or using genomic technologies to continually monitor pathogen presence through air samples. This last application could be implemented in a manner that enables changes in fungal and oomycete pathogen populations to be monitored during the growing season such that the timing and extent of biocontrol agent application could be tuned to provide the most effective mitigation.

Related Links:
The Saville Laboratory

1 - Trent University, Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Program; Forensic Science Program, DNA Building, 2140 East Bank Dr, Peterborough, ON, K9J 7B8, Canada

Keywords:
biological control
genomics
Technology integration.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Topics
Session: 75
Location: Salon 2/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Wednesday, July 29th, 2015
Time: 3:45 PM
Number: 75001
Abstract ID:1312
Candidate for Awards:None