Fusarium verticillioides (Sacc.) Nirenberg (teleomorph Gibberella moniliformis Wineland) is one of the key pathogens of maize stalk rot disease. However, a clear understanding of stalk rot pathogenesis is still lacking. Previously, we identified the F. verticillioides FSR1 gene, which plays a key role in fungal virulence and sexual mating. The predicted Fsr1 protein contains multiple protein-bi...

We determined that ribosomes of seedling roots of maize (Zea mays L.) contain the acidic phosphoproteins (P-proteins) known to form a flexible lateral stalk structure of the 60S subunit of eukaryotic ribosomes. The P-protein stalk, composed of P0, P1, and P2, interacts with elongation factors, mRNA, and tRNA during translation. Acidic proteins of 13 to 15.5 kD were released as a complex from ri...

Laser microdissection (LM) offers a potential means for deep sampling of a fungal plant-pathogen transcriptome during the infection process using whole-genome DNA microarrays. The use of a fluorescent protein-expressing fungus can greatly facilitate the identification of fungal structures for LM sampling. However, fixation methods that preserve both tissue histology and protein fluorescence, an...

Haplotype variation not only involves SNPs but also insertions and deletions, in particular gene copy number variations. However, comparisons of individual genomes have been difficult because traditional sequencing methods give too short reads to unambiguously reconstruct chromosomal regions containing repetitive DNA sequences. An example of such a case is the protein gene family in maize that ...

Maize is one of the major food crops in China. Traditionally, field operations are done by manual labor, where the farmers are threatened by the harsh environment and pesticides. On the other hand, it is difficult for large machinery to maneuver in the field due to limited space, particularly in the middle and late growth stage of maize. Unmanned, compact agricultural machines, therefore, are i...

Fusarium verticillioides is the most common fungal pathogen associated with maize ear rot in Tanzania. In a two-year trial, we investigated the efficacy of crop protection (insecticide and/or fungicide) and fertilizer (nitrogen and/or phosphorus) treatments in reducing the occurrence of F. verticillioides and its mycotoxins in maize grown in Tanzania. Seasonal differences were seen to have a su...

Maize (Zea mays L.) is truly a remarkable crop species, having been adapted from its tropical origins to a wide diversity of environments and end uses. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAOSTAT webpage, 792 million metric tons of maize were produced worldwide in 2007, making it the world’s highest yielding grain crop (http://faostat.fao.org/site/339/defaul...

The evolution of genetically modified crops took a major step in the mid-1990s with the approval and commercial release of insect-resistant maize hybrids with transgenes derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt maize). The release of Bt maize was met with great enthusiasm by many researchers and crop managers because of its ability to very effectively control European corn borers a...

Strigolactones (SLs) control lateral branching in diverse species by regulating transcription factors orthologous to Teosinte branched1 (Tb1). In maize (Zea mays), however, selection for a strong central stalk during domestication is attributed primarily to the Tb1 locus, leaving the architectural roles of SLs unclear. To determine how this signaling network is altered in maize, we first examin...

creased by 22.5% over five cycles of selection for high RPR in MoSCSSS. The correlation between RPR and The rind penetrometer is an effective tool for measuring stalk EH is of interest in terms of direct vs. indirect selection strength in an effort to improve maize (Zea mays L.) germplasm for stalk lodging resistance. However, previous studies have indicated a for stalk strength. That is, to wh...