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First report of banana bunchy top disease caused by Banana bunchy top virus in Uganda
(Wiley, 2021) Ocimati, W.; Tazuba, A.F.; Tushemereirwe, W.K.; Tugume, J.; Omondi, B.A.; Kubiriba, J.; Erima, R.; Okurut, A.W.; Kutunga, D.; Blomme, G.
Pleurotus ostreatus is a potential biological control agent of rootknot nematodes in eggplant (Solanum melongena)
(Frontiers, 2024) Nyangwire, Betty; Ocimati ,Walter; Tazuba, Anthony Fredrick; Blomme, Guy; Alumai, Alfred; Onyilo, Francis
Introduction: The management of root-knot nematodes has predominantly been based on use of chemicals, which are detrimental to the environmentand human health. Biological control provides alternative management. This study evaluated the potential of using Pleurotus ostreatus, an edible mushroom species to control Meloidogyne spp. in eggplants. Methods: In vitro, the mortality of juveniles (J2) of Meloidogyne spp. were assessed i) P. ostreatus - water suspension with actively growing mycelia, and ii) different dilutions of P. ostreatus PDB broth culture filtrates. In the screen house nematicidal potential of P. ostreatus was tested on eggplants using artificially inoculated soils in a screen house. To attain this, juveniles (J2) of Meloidogyne spp. were inoculated at the base of plants in pots containing P. ostreatus colonizedmillet grainsmixed in 3 kg of soil. The galling index (GI) (scale of 0 to 5), root growth and nematode populations in the different treatments were assessed. Results and discussion: Mortality of nematodes in the P. ostreatus – water suspension significantly increased with time, reaching over 88% at 48 h and 95% at 72 h. Mortality in undiluted filtrate was consistently significantly higher than the diluted filtrates and control without P. ostreatus. Mortality in the undiluted filtrate increased to 95% at 48 h. When 50 g of P. ostreatus-millet culture was mixed with 3 kg autoclaved pot soil, a GI of 0.95 was observed, dropping to 0.70 when the inoculum was doubled to 100 g. For the treatment without P. ostreatus, a high GI of 2.4 was scored. A significant difference ineggplant root growth and nematode population at (p = 0.02) was found across the treatments. The findings from this study for both in-vitro and pot assay suggest that P. ostreatus and its substrate are potential biological control agents for plant parasitic nematodes in eggplants.
Challenges and innovations in achieving zero hunger and environmental sustainability through the lens of sub-Saharan Africa
(Sage, 2020) Okello, Moses; Lamo, Jimmy; Ochwo-Ssemakula, Mildred; Onyilo, Francis
Achieving zero hunger by 2030 often raises the issue of environmental protection or sustainable social development among policy makers due to the environmental footprint of intensifying agricultural production across the continent. Sub- Saharan Africa (SSA) has one of the fastgrowing populations with more than half of the global growth between now and 2050. The challenge now lies in feeding the ever-growing population that is exerting pressure on the limited available resources. Doubling the agricultural productivity of small-scale farmers by 2030 (SDG 2.3) remains a daunting task for researcher and policy makers to address on the continent that now relies much on imports of food. Exploitation of the untapped massive land resources for agricultural production poses threats to sustainability. However, the challenges of global warming cannot be left out of this discussion since it has direct impact on future productivity on the continent. Climate change that has been projected to mostly affect the poorer countries also present trials to the food system through increased diseases and weather extremes of floods and droughts. Questions are yet to be answered on which tradeoffs and synergies if any need to be made to achieve zero hunger in Africa by 2030. This synopsis critically breaks down the conflicts, tradeoffs and synergies of how a continent with such massive agricultural production potential can navigate sustainably to achieve zero hunger, self-sufficiency and exports prospects while conserving the environment and natural resources. Evident deployment of new and improved technologies especially advanced biotechnology tools will be critical in achieving zero hunger by 2030. The adaptation needs of the continent are broad including institutional, social, physical and infrastructural needs, ecosystem services and environmental needs, and financial and capacity uncertain impacts.
Agrobacterium tumefaciens-Mediated Transformation of Pseudocercospora fijiensis to Determine the Role of PfHog1 in Osmotic Stress Regulation and Virulence Modulation
(Frontiers, 2017) Onyilo, Francis; Tusiime, Geoffrey; Chen, Li-Hung; Falk, Bryce; Stergiopoulos, Ioannis; Tripathi, Jaindra N.; Tushemereirwe, Wilberforce; Kubiriba, Jerome; Changa, Charles; Tripathi, Leena
Black Sigatoka disease, caused by Pseudocercospora fijiensis is a serious constraint to banana production worldwide. The disease continues to spread in new ecological niches and there is an urgent need to develop strategies for its control. The high osmolarity glycerol (HOG) pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is well known to respond to changes in external osmolarity. HOG pathway activation leads to phosphorylation, activation and nuclear transduction of the HOG1 mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). The activated HOG1 triggers several responses to osmotic stress, including up or down regulation of different genes, regulation of protein translation, adjustments to cell cycle progression and synthesis of osmolyte glycerol. This study investigated the role of the MAPK-encoding PfHog1 gene on osmotic stress adaptation and virulence of P. fijiensis. RNA interference-mediated gene silencing of PfHog1 significantly suppressed growth of P. fijiensis on potato dextrose agar media supplemented with 1 M NaCl, indicating that PfHog1 regulates osmotic stress. In addition, virulence of the PfHog1-silenced mutants of P. fijiensis on banana was significantly reduced, as observed from the low rates of necrosis and disease development on the infected leaves. Staining with lacto phenol cotton blue further confirmed the impaired mycelial growth of the PfHog1 in the infected leaf tissues, which was further confirmed with quantification of the fungal biomass using absolutequantitative PCR. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that PfHog1 plays a critical role in osmotic stress regulation and virulence of P. fijiensis on its host banana. Thus, PfHog1 could be an interesting target for the control of black Sigatoka disease in banana.
Agricultural Cooperative Marketing and Credit Policy Reform in Uganda: An Opportunity for Poverty Reduction
(African scholarly science trust, 2019) Onyilo, Francis; Adong, Annet
Academics and development practitioners increasingly view cooperatives as the cornerstone for agricultural transformation and poverty reduction in sub-Saharan Africa. Cooperatives play a crucial role in promoting bulk storage and sale by smallholder farmers, which can play a major role in poverty reduction for farmers otherwise unable to commercialize. Despite the significant role of cooperatives, the reforms associated with economic liberalisation have caused many cooperatives in the region to fail. While efforts were made in Uganda to ameliorate this situation through the passing of the National Co-operative Policy (NCP), this has done little to enhance the survival of these cooperatives. In this opinion paper, we identify challenges faced by cooperatives that negatively impact performance and survival, such political interference, lack of administrative support, human resource constraints, inadequate knowledge of the operations by members and poor governance. This paper recommends stronger linkages between the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives and the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF). Integrating cooperatives into the decentralisation framework and formalising existing village savings and loan association groups into formal cooperatives. Most importantly, the government needs to take on a more proactive approach toward cooperative development, as seen in some countries such as South Africa and Rwanda.