Wheat blast disease - An overview

Abstract

Wheat is synonym to global food security and nutrition to a major part of population in developing countries. With intensive cultivation practices, varied genotypes and climatic changes, various biotic and abiotic constraints have emerged. Rusts and blight have been a constant threat to wheat cultivation and constant efforts to contain these are going on globally. However, in 1985, a pathogen which was a major fungal foe of rice called blast was identified in Parana state of Brazil on wheat. As name indicates blast causes enormous loss to wheat production. Wheat blast has also been reported from Uruguay, Paraguay, some parts of Argentina. Slowly it has spread to other South American countries. The biggest shock for wheat cultivation was occurrence of blast on wheat in Bangladesh during February 2016. It is a caution and warning for wheat cultivation in tropical and sub-tropical areas in the world. Till now wheat blast has not been
reported from any part of India. A summarized account of the disease caused by Magnaporthe oryzae pathotype in Triticum, epidemiology and other aspects are reviewed in this publication.