Introductory description

The challenges of medicine in tackling microbial diseases are matched in agriculture if humankind is to provide sustainable food production. To date, global food production has grown with the global population, but this is not sustainable without improvements in crop protection. Plant diseases currently account for 16% lost productivity annually, but local losses can be catastrophic. With the world’s population growing towards 9Bn we need more food, fewer losses, more security and ways to achieve all this without irreparable damage to the planet. In this module on plant pathology you will discover a range of pathogens, how they spread, methods for diagnosis and control and will look forward to disease control strategies as we move towards the post-pesticide era.

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

1. General introduction: history of plant pathology; The prevalence of disease in crops; Social and economic impact of plant diseases, crop losses, food insecurity; Case studies.
2. Fungi and oomycetes as plant pathogens: Structure & morphology; Lifecycles; biology; Infection strategies.
3. Bacteria as plant pathogens: Structure & morphology; Lifecycles and biology; infection strategies.
4. Viruses as plant pathogens: Structure & morphology; Lifecycles and biology; Infection strategies.
5. Molecular biology of how pathogens infect plants: Effectors; Plant-pathogen interactions; The plant microbiome; Plant immunity mechanisms, ETI and PTI; Toxins.
6. Diagnosis and identification of plant diseases: From field walking to molecular tools and AI.
7. Plant resistances: Sources of resistance; Quantitative resistance; R genes and PRRs; Gene editing of S genes – synthetic receptors.
8. Epidemiology and modelling: Plant pathogens and their interaction with abiotic factors; spatial analysis and mapping spread; disease forecasting / prediction.
9. Disease control: Mapping the transition from chemistry to biologicals and IPM: Agrochemical industries and the attraction of chemical controls; Biological control; Cultural control; challenges for IPM.
10. Future challenges: climate change and global trade in food, plants and people; Effects on plant disease dispersal; Abiotic factors on plants and pathogens; Quarantine, inspection and surveillance.
11. Future challenges: Agritech - new technologies for combating plant diseases; Volatile detection; Microbiome engineering; Imaging technologies, drones and robotics.
12. Pests and vectors of disease:
13. Pest control strategies:

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• explain the mechanistic basis of a number of key plant diseases and the consequences on the host
• explain how host resistance strategies work
• evaluate control options for plant diseases
• understand the need for crop protection methodologies and their role in global food security

Indicative reading list

Fundamentals of Plant Pathology. Eds Roberts DA. Boothroyd CW. CABI
Plant pathology and plant diseases. Eds Anne Marte Tronsmo, David B. Collinge, Annika Djurle, Lisa Munk, Jonathan Yuen, Arne Tronsmo. CABI

Subject specific skills

• A critical appreciation of a plant pathology and its role in producing food.
• A high level of understanding of plant resistance mechanisms, and the ability to evaluate their potential for manipulation using biotechnology.
• A high level of understanding of plant pathogens and their vectors, diagnosis and monitoring.
• The ability to identify and apply relevant principles, concepts, and theoretical frameworks to link plant pathology to environmental conditions.
• The ability to research given topics in the primary and peer-reviewed literature and consolidate relevant information and to present a well-structured scientific presentation.
• To develop and deliver an oral presentation where the content accuracy and the delivery style will be appropriate to the topic and audience

Transferable skills

• Critical thinking
• Digital literacy
• Information literacy
• Professionalism
• Problem solving
• Communication