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Characterization of
plant pathogens responsible for economically important diseases
in cotton, tomato and pulses
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Identification of
disease resistant or tolerant germplasm in cotton, tomato and
pulses for use in breeding programme to develop varieties or
hybrids with resistance or tolerance to multiple diseases
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Evaluation of
advanced lines and mutants of cotton, tomato, chickpea, lentil,
mungbean and blackgram for resistance or tolerance to major
diseases before their release
Ongoing Research
Activities
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Morphological and
molecular characterization of fungal pathogens causing wilt/root
rot complex in chickpea, lentil, mungbean and mashbean
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Testing of advanced
and candidate cotton lines for resistance or tolerance to cotton
leaf curl disease under field conditions and by bottle shoot
grafting in the glasshouse
-
Evaluation of
advanced and candidate chickpea mutants and lines for resistance
to wilt and root rot disease complex in a sick field
-
Screening of
advanced and candidate chickpea mutants and lines for resistance
to Ascochyta blight disease following artificial inoculation
-
Screening of
advanced and candidate lentil mutants and lines for resistance
to Fusarium wilt disease in a sick field
-
Evaluation of
tomato hybrids and lines for resistance to early blight disease
-
Evaluation of
tomato hybrids and lines for resistance to leaf curl disease
using chip grafting assay
-
Screening of
advanced and candidate mungbean lines for resistance to yellow
mosaic, leaf crinkle and root rot disease complex
-
Evaluation of
blackgram genotypes for resistance to yellow mosaic and leaf
crinkle disease
Research Achievements
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Developed a chip
grafting assay to screen tomato germplasm for resistance to
Tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus and tomato big bud disease
caused by phytoplasma
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Developed a low
tunnel assay to evaluate tomato germplasm for resistance to late
blight disease
-
Improved the bottle
shoot grafting method for screening cotton germplasm against
CLCuD and mungbean germplasm against MYMD
-
Established a sick
filed to screen chickpea germplasm for resistance to wilt and
root rot disease complex
-
Established a sick
filed to screen lentil germplasm for resistance to Fusarium wilt
disease
-
For the first time
in Pakistan, phytoplasma was identified in mungbean, chickpea,
tomato, sesame, flax and Convolvulus arvensis using Nested PCR
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For the first time
in Pakistan, the Leafhopper Orosius albicinctus was confirmed as
the vector of phytoplasma in pulses, and chlorotic dwarf virus
in chickpea
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Two fungi, Gibbago
trianthemae and Nimbya alternantherae, having the potential as
myco-herbicide were identified for the first time in Pakistan
from Itsit & alligator weed, respectively
-
Morpho-molecular
characterization of fungal pathogens such as Fusarium spp.,
Rhizoctonia solani, Macrophomina spp., Alternaria solani,
Ascochyta rabiei, Aspergillus flavus and Colletotrichum spp.
from economically important crops
-
Contributed to the
development and release of 13 disease resistant/tolerant high
yielding varieties/hybrids of cotton, mungbean, chickpea and
tomato
Future Directions
The group will study
the virulence mechanisms of important prevalent and emerging plant
pathogens using advanced techniques to gain a better understanding
of plant immunity, with the aim of enhancing disease control
Funded Projects
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IFS Project No.
1-3-C-6308-1 entitled “Exploring the etiology of Urdbean leaf
crinkle disease of mungbean and identification of its insect
vector(s) in Pakistan” 2019-2021 (12000 USD)
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PAEC R&D Project
entitled “Development of bio-products and sustainable management
of insect pests and diseases” 2025-2028 (PKR 10 Million)
Collaborations
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University of
Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF)
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Punjab Agricultural
Research Board (PARB)
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Ayub Agricultural
Research Institute (AARI)
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National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE)
Click on
following link for detailed Brochure;
Chickpea Viral and
Phytoplasma Diseases
Tomato Viral Diseases |
