PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
Contact: Amanda Aranowski
American Phytopathological Society
Phone: +1.651.454.7250
Web: www.apsnet.org
E-mail: aaranowski@scisoc.org
POTATO FAMINE FUNGUS STRIKES AGAIN
SAYS JUNE BIOSCIENCE JOURNAL
ST. PAUL, MN (May 21, 1997)--This crop year, there is good and
bad news for potato growers and the industry.
First the bad. "Migrations of virulent and fungicide-resistant
strains of the potato famine fungus have worsened a disease that
was effectively managed for decades," according to research
presented in the June issue of BioScience journal.
The research article is co-authored by Dr. William Fry, immediate
past president of The American Phytopathological Society (APS)
and professor of plant pathology at Cornell University, and Dr.
Stephen B. Goodwin, USDA/ARS Research Plant Pathologist and adjunct
assistant professor of plant pathology at Purdue University.
One hundred fifty years ago, one million Irish died and another
one and a half million fled from the ravages of the potato blight.
One hundred fifty years later, after decades of technology and
innovation, the blight continues to baffle plant doctors, plague
growers and transform leafy green potato fields into rotted wastelands.
"Late blight can be a remarkably rapid and destructive disease,"
Dr. Fry said. There is some good news. Thanks to the efforts of
plant doctors like Drs. Fry and Goodwin, growers have several
options for managing potato blight. DNA fingerprinting and a simplified
enzyme assay developed by Dr. Goodwin in Dr. Fry's lab at Cornell
enabled scientists to monitor the spread of new strains throughout
the world.
Advance knowledge of strains present within fields
allows growers to refine disease management strategies before
serious problems develop, and save money on ineffective fungicide
sprays.
"The short-term goal has been to keep potato and tomato growers
in business until more effective management strategies can be
devised," Dr. Goodwin said. BioScience is a refereed,
interdisciplinary journal published monthly by the American Institute
of Biological Sciences. It is received by over 5,000 individuals
and more than 6,000 libraries and institutions.
Drs. Fry and Goodwin are members of The American Phytopathological
Society, a professional scientific organization dedicated to the
study of plant diseases and their control. APS promotes knowledge
about this specialized science and today is the premier organization
advancing modern concepts in plant health management in agricultural,
urban and forest settings. For more information, visit the Society's
web site at http://www.apsnet.org.
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