Template:NYMU-2015project-background

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Project

background

Potato plant all over the world are in danger and this is not the first time in history. In the late 1840s, potato late blight epidemics caused the Great Famine in Ireland, when one million people starved to death. This catastrophic disease is caused by plant pathogenic oomycetes, P.infestans. Even 150 years later, when potato is widly grown in 135 countries and consumed by 1 billion people, late blight is still causing serious problems, including food insecurity, economic losses, and environmental damage.

Potato late blight costs $6.7 billion every year. Although late blight can have little impact on the food supply in some areas, crop loss can still force farmers out of business. To control late blight, fungicide is frequently used, up to once every 3 days. These fungicides have enormous costs financially, at $200 per acre of farmland. Moreover, these chemicals often seep underground or escape to nearby streams to contaminate water sources. Water samples from around the U.S. shows that 75% of surface waters and 58% of groundwater wells contain at least one of 33 potato fungicides.

In modern agricultural, the use of fungicide and genetically modified potatoes is inefficient in fighting against potato late blight. Most p.infestans have formed resistance against fungicides used nowadays. P.infestans secretes some enzymes and form high turgor insdie its cell to penerate and colonize in potato cells. P.infestans infect potato leaves and tubers and eventually the plant will die. The 2015 NYMU IGEM team aims to prevent potatoes from being infected by this devastating disease and ensure global food security