Genetic variation and host-parasite specificity ofStrigaresistance and tolerance in rice: the need for predictive breeding

What is it about?

Parasitic plants can infect other plants by the roots, causing great harm. If they appear in food crops, we refer to them as parasitic weeds. Striga species are important parasitic weeds in non-flooded rice. We show that certain cultivars of rice are resistant against different species of Striga or different populations, while other cultivars are only resistant against one species or population or completely lack resistance. We also show for the first time that certain rice cultivars can withstand parasite infection better than other cultivars. This is called tolerance. We show that both resistance and tolerance are independent traits and that both traits are primarily controlled by host plant genes.

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