Rajarshi Kumar Gaur
Mody University of Science and Technology, India
Title: Begomovirus diversity and their management
Biography
Biography: Rajarshi Kumar Gaur
Abstract
The major constrain to economically important crops are the diseases caused by genus Begomoviruses, which are transmitted by the whitefly vector Bemisia tabaci. Viruses of this genus are widely distributed in the non-cultivated plants and serve as progenitors of crop-infecting viruses. The begomovirus has the high capacity for recombination, mutation and acquisition of new DNA components and satellites. Identification of plant viruses, monitoring for new viral diseases, understanding the vectors that transmit viruses, and determining viral and vector impacts on the growth and development of crop cultivars and lines is vital to managing and controlling these diseases. In addition to damaging crops and causing yield losses, plant viruses interact with vectors and other diseases to increase the damage from the diseases/pests. The crops and weeds growing close to the crop fields are potential reservoirs of begomoviruses, but it is not known whether the same viruses infect several host species or coinfect any of the hosts. This increases the difficulty of controlling both the plant virus and the interacting pathogen or vector. Significant interaction between plant viruses and other diseases vital to agriculture is a major goal. Expression of various full length or truncated or defective proteins of the virus has been effective in accomplishing pathogen-derived resistance. Antisense RNA and RNAi technology have also been used with some success