The International Programs office works with several scientists at the Danforth Center to obtain funding and coordinate other activities, such as field trials. Two such projects are:

Mycotoxin-Free Maize

Maize (Zea mays L.) is the primary staple food in sub-Saharan Africa.  In addition to reducing grain yield and quality, infection of maize plants and grain by fungal pathogens of Fusarium spp. results in production of fumonisins.  Fumonisins can cause mycotoxicosis and death of humans and domestic animals.  The objective of the mycotoxin-free maize (MFM) project is to develop transgenic maize with resistance to Fusarium ear rot, which will yield high quality fumonisin-free seed during normal as well as disease-favoring growing seasons.  

Previous work in potato has shown that the overexpression of an antifungal defensin (MsDef1) gene from alfalfa (Medicago sativa) confers robust resistance to the “early die” fungal disease in the field.  More recently, the laboratory of Dr. Dilip Shah at DDPSC has identified a family of at least 18 defensin genes from the model legume M. truncatula.  We have determined that the growth of F. graminearum and F. verticillioides is strongly inhibited by MsDef1 and MtDef4 defensins at micro-molar concentrations.  Genes encoding these defensins are under investigation for use in developing maize with reduced levels of fumonisins.

gene regulation of rice tungro disease

Research in Roger Beachy's Laboratory addresses gene expression of a plant virus called rice tungro bacilliform badnavirus (RTBV) that causes significant crop loss in Asia.