Together with their colleagues from the United States, the Uzbek scientists have bred a wilt-resistant cotton variety, the Yangi Uzbekiston website reports, citing the Ministry of Innovative Development of Uzbekistan.
Various plant diseases that cause wilting and drying out are commonly referred to as wilt. The causative agent of wilt in cotton is most often a fungus of the genus Verticillium dahliae, which causes yellowing and drooping of leaves.
Like in the United States, cotton in Uzbekistan is one of the most important crops, and scientists from the two countries are making significant efforts to combat cotton diseases and increase crop yields.
The scientists developed the germplasm of new cotton lines by crossing the fungus-resistant Uzbek and American cotton varieties. The PSSJ-FRP01, PSSJ-FRP02 and PSSJ-FRP03 lines showed high wilt resistance. These varieties will be used as genetic material to breed new disease-resistant cotton varieties.
The scientists from the Centre for Genomics and Bioinformatics of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan and the U.S. Department of Agriculture were engaged to breed a new cotton variety.
