Bremia lactucae, the causal organism of downy mildew in lettuce, is a major threat to lettuce production. Farmers often need to use both fungicides and resistance genes to prevent heavy losses. Reliable information about resistances in relation to the local strains of Bremia is essential for a successful and durable disease control strategy.
A Joint Initiative
The International Bremia Evaluation Board (IBEB) is a joint initiative of lettuce breeding companies in USA, France and the Netherlands, University of California-Davis, the Dutch inspection service (Naktuinbouw) and the French National Seed Station (GEVES).
IBEB’s mission is to identify new races of Bremia lactucae that pose a significant threat to the American and European lettuce industry and promote the use of standardized race names in communications with growers. To this end IBEB utilizes a well-defined and internationally agreed system of race denomination.
Companies in IBEB provide information on the genetic background of lettuce varieties while UC-Davis, Naktuinbouw and GEVES serve as independent testing facilities to facilitate the process of identifying new races of Bremia lactucae.
Information about the evolution of the pathogen in response to resistance in lettuce varieties is updated regularly. Because there is little movement of Bremia between the USA and Europe, race nomination specific to each continent is done by regional IBEB committees: IBEB-US for the USA, and IBEB-EU for Europe. A global coordinating body (IBEB-G) coordinates the use of a common set of host differentials, common test protocols, and communications on Bremia races. IBEB-G also advises on scientific denomination of new Bremia resistance genes.
Source: ISF
