Striga is a flowering parasitic plant that can infect a broad range of crops including sorghum, maize and rice. The life cycle of Striga is intricately linked to its host, using host derived signals to initiate germination and attach to its host. Host susceptibility to Striga is thus directly correlated to the production and exudation of these signals. In this chapter we discuss the strigolactones, the most important class of Striga germination stimulants. We review the structural diversity of the strigolactones, their transport and biological relevance in plant and rhizosphere, and their importance for host specificity. In addition, we describe methods to analyse germination stimulant production by a Striga host: how to, reproducibly, collect the root exudate of a host, how to process these exudates, partially purify them and analyse them using analytical chemistry or a high-throughput image analysis-based germination bioassay.
Thiombiano, B., Floková, K., Walmsley, A., Bouwmeester, H.J. (2024). Striga Germination Stimulant Analysis. In: Ghanim, A.M.A., Sivasankar, S., Rich, P.J. (eds) Mutation Breeding and Efficiency Enhancing Technologies for Resistance to Striga in Cereals. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-68181-7_8
This is a Chapter in the open access book “Mutation Breeding and Efficiency Enhancing Technologies for Resistance to Striga in Cereals”, a compilation of protocols developed through a Coordinated Research Project of the Joint FAO/IAEA Center of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture, specifically focused on mutation breeding for resistance to Striga. The book consists of three sections; (i) a general introduction on Striga biology and impact and mutagenesis in cereal crops; (ii) protocol chapters focusing on field, screenhouse and laboratory screening and diagnostic for resistance to Striga asiatica and S. hermonthica in sorghum, upland rice and maize, and; (iii) efficiency enhancing technologies such as rapid crop cycling, doubled haploid production and genomics for mutation discovery and marker development. These chapters were written by well recognized experts in Striga biology and physiology, and cereal breeders. The book is intended to serve as a unique reference and guide for plant breeders and geneticists engaged in breeding for resistance to Striga in cereals.
Mutation Breeding and Efficiency Enhancing Technologies for Resistance to Striga in Cereals (Eds Abdelbagi M. A. Ghanim, Shoba Sivasankar, Patrick J. Rich), 2024. Springer Berlin, Heidelberg. DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-68181-7