Pigeonpea gene family holds clues to fighting a crop-killing virus
Crop Improvement
Pigeonpea is a staple protein source across South Asia and East Africa, and sterility mosaic disease can cut yields by up to 95%, so finding natural resistance genes could protect food security for millions of small farmers.
Pigeonpea is a bean-like crop millions of people depend on for protein, but a virus-like disease called sterility mosaic can devastate entire harvests. Researchers looked across many different pigeonpea varieties at a family of genes called eIFs, which viruses often exploit to copy themselves inside plant cells, and found specific versions of these genes that seem to help some plants resist infection. This gives breeders a genetic roadmap for developing hardier pigeonpea varieties without needing to use pesticides.
Key Findings
Pangenome-wide analysis identified and characterized eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) gene family members across multiple pigeonpea genomes
Specific eIF gene variants were associated with susceptibility or resistance to sterility mosaic disease, a major yield-limiting disease in pigeonpea
The identified eIF genes represent candidate targets for breeding or gene-editing programs aimed at engineering disease resistance
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists scanned the full genetic diversity of pigeonpea to catalog genes that viruses hijack to replicate, pinpointing specific gene variants linked to resistance against a devastating disease that can wipe out entire fields.
Species Mentioned
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The pigeon pea is a perennial legume from the family Fabaceae native to the Eastern Hemisphere. The pigeon pea is widely cultivated in tropical and semitropical regions around the world, being commonly consumed in the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.