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Biosecurity research – protecting our future
Rob Magarey
Sugar Research Australia
Strategy
Endemic pests and diseases
–
Long history of BSES / SRA research
•
Identifying threats and developing management
options
Ongoing and largely successful
Exotic threats
–
Constant presence
•
Whenever a mill area grows 60% + area
to one variety
–
An epidemic usually occurs
–
Some of these are exotics
Strategy
SRA has taken a proactive
stance
•
•
Don’t wait for the ‘horse to bolt
before shutting the gate’
Do the research off-shore
–
Collaborate with overseas
scientists
» Draw on their expertise
» Work together to undertake
needed research
Strategy
Since the 1980s
•
BSES (SRA) worked with the PNG
sugarcane industry / other countries
•
Major consultancy agreements with
PNG from the early 1980s
•
More recent times, collaborated with
Indonesia
– ACIAR-funded projects
Strategy
Aims
•
Detection / identification
•
Management strategies
•
Resistance of our varieties
•
Experience in working with threats
Recent Indonesian research
–
ACIAR-funded
Focus
•
Stem-borers
–
•
IPM strategies (parasitoids)
Sugarcane streak mosaic virus
(SCSMV)
–
Epidemiology (transmission / spread)
–
Identification
Main threats to Australia
Mosaic
–
Photos of mosaic
•
SCSMV
ACIAR project - Indonesia
– 5 year project: 2008-2012
Trichogramma – egg
parasitoid
Staff
• 4 ‘Australian’ entomologists
• 1 extension / business officer
• 1 publications person
• 2 pathologists
Indonesian scientists
• Pathologists / entomologists / extension
– Total budget: $530,200 – Federal Government funding
ACIAR project - Indonesia
Main targets
Moth borers:
» Chilo sacchariphagus
» Chilo auricilius
» Scirpophaga excerptalis
Sugarcane streak mosaic virus
Indonesia research
Main outcomes
Moth borers:
– Defined their distribution across Java
•
(931 crops surveyed)
– Showed that the current IPM strategy
is ineffective
•
But would be effective if Increased the dose of
Trichogramma
– Learnt more about life cycle / yield
loss
– Developed extension materials
1.5 cm
Trichogramma on borer egg mass
Indonesia research
Main outcomes
SCSMV:
– Important in Indonesia
•
perhaps our greatest threat
– Possibly spread by cane knives
– Rapid spread
– Not eliminated by HWT
Indonesian pest and disease field guide
Conclusions
Main outputs
• SRA staff gained experience with
exotic pests and diseases
• Most important exotic threats
identified
• Control measures researched / refined
• Extension materials produced
New Indonesian ACIAR
project
• Sugarcane streak mosaic virus
– project 2
– Worth close to $1 m
– 2015-2019
Sugarcane streak mosaic virus
In SE Asia
• Different strains and viruses
cause mosaic
– Some have greater yield
effects
• and have different transmission
properties
• Emerging disease: sugarcane
streak mosaic virus
Main aims
• Distribution of SCSMV around Indonesia
• SCSMV epidemiology – speed of spread /
build up
• Resistance testing
• Methods
• Australian variety ratings
• Define yield losses
• Rapid cheap detection method
• Effective IDM strategy
Sugarcane streak mosaic virus
• Institutions involved
– Indonesian Sugar Research Institute
– Bogor Agricultural University
– Indonesian Sweetener and Fibre Crop Research Institute
– Sugar Research Australia
• First project meeting in April
Project 3: PNG research
•
Long history under BSES / Ramu consultancy
– 1982 to now
•
In 2009, collaborative research
– funded by SRDC / SRA
•
Institutions
– Sugar Research Australia
– Ramu Agri-Industries
•
Important threats in PNG
– Stem borers
– Downy mildew (DM)
– Ramu stunt
Project objectives
•
Resistance tests
•
Sesamia grisescens,
•
downy mildew, and
•
Ramu stunt
•
•
particularly rapid testing
Diagnostic tests
•
downy mildew and Ramu stunt
•
Pathogen variation with the diseases
•
Update incursion management plans
(2009-2015)
Field trial resistance research
Sesamia grisescens
(Nader Sallam)
• Indication of the ‘resistance’ of Australian
commercial varieties gathered
• ‘Resistance’ to Chilo terrenellus
• Rapid shade-house testingc
DM
(Rob Magarey)
• Focus is rapid resistance screening
• Field trials with the latest Australian
commercial varieties
Ramu stunt
(Rob Magarey
• Field trial planted in 2014 with latest
varieties
Downy mildew pathogen research
DM pathogen variation
(Nicole Thompson)
• Surveys suggest 3 taxa of Peronosclerospora are
causing DM
•
taxa more closely aligned with P. sacchari and P.
miscanthi rather than P. philippinensis
• Further work to confirm these variants
• Pathogen variation vs resistance?
Ramu stunt research
•
(Kathy Braithwaite)
Pathogen is a Tenuivirus
•
•
Pathogen variation seen around PNG in
survey samples
•
Researched where to sample plants
Future
•
Current project finishes 1 May 2015
•
New project submitted to SRA
•
Complete rapid DM test development
•
Sequence Tenuivirus
•
Completion of DM pathogen variation / assay
work
•
Resistance screen 2 other borers
•
•
Scirpophaga excerptalis / Chilo terrenellus
2-year project finishing 30 June 2017