Template:NYMU-2015project-overview

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Project overview

Background

Potatoes 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 and one million people were starved to death. This devastating disease is caused by the plant pathogenic oomycetes, Phytophthora infestans. Even now, when potatoes are widely grown in 135 countries and consumed by 1 billion people, late blight is still causing serious problems, including food insecurity, economic losses, and environmental damages.

Fig 1. Worldwide distribution of potato late blight caused by P.infestans

Potato late blight costs an annual loss of 6.7 billion USD. Although late blight have only little impact on the food supply in some areas, crop loss can still force farmers out of business. To control late blight, fungicides are 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 and contaminate water sources. Water samples from over the U.S. show that 75% of surface waters and 58% of groundwater wells contain at least one of the 33 potato fungicides.

In modern agriculture, the use of fungicides and genetically modified potatoes are inefficient in fighting against potato late blight. Most strains of P. infestans have developed resistance against fungicides used nowadays. P. infestans secretes some enzymes and form high turgor pressure inside its cell to penetrate and colonize in potato cells. P. infestans infect potato leaves and tubers; eventually the entire plant rots and dies. The 2015 NYMU-Taipei iGEM team aims to prevent potatoes from being infected by this devastating disease and ensure global food security.