| Grant number: | 08/56146-5 |
| Support Opportunities: | Program for Research on Bioenergy (BIOEN) - Thematic Grants |
| Start date: | June 01, 2009 |
| End date: | May 31, 2014 |
| Field of knowledge: | Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Crop Science |
| Agreement: | CNPq - Pronex |
| Principal Investigator: | Marcos Guimarães de Andrade Landell |
| Grantee: | Marcos Guimarães de Andrade Landell |
| Host Institution: | Instituto Agronômico (IAC). Agência Paulista de Tecnologia dos Agronegócios (APTA). Secretaria de Agricultura e Abastecimento (São Paulo - Estado). Campinas , SP, Brazil |
| Associated scholarship(s): | 09/16848-3 - Characterization of Sugarcane mosaic virus isolates, and screening for virus resistance in sugarcane clones and varieties, BP.IC |
Abstract
The sugarcane breeding program of the ‘Instituto Agronômico de Campinas’ has developed cultivars adapted for various edaphoclimatic conditions of the Brazilian producing regions. With the changing context for sugarcane production, with an increasing demand for high potential to produce primary energy, a new sugarcane biotype is emerging based on cultivars with increased sugars and total fiber production. Further, the large-scale adoption of mechanical harvesting system in Brazil may promote changes in the pathosystems, with emergence of known and new diseases, a condition that must be considered by breeding programs. Disease resistance is the method of choice to control most pathogens, and it is considered a fundamental aspect in the varietal development, but it has been treated superficially in most breeding programs in Brazil. This proposal suggests a re-orientation of the current sugarcane breeding selection processes to attend the new bioenergy demand, by acting in four research topics. The first one is based upon the characterization and selection of clones in advanced stages of experimentation, which adjust to the primary energy potential definition of each selected line. For this, agronomic, phytopathological and molecular characterizations are proposed. The second is applied at the first breeding stages, to utilize a combined selection process to identify and select parents more efficiently for generating progenies with high bioenergy potential. In the third topic, it is proposed to start a genetic introgression program among commercial varieties and Saccharum spontaneum genotypes, to promote the incorporation of new genes for sucrose and biomass accumulation, resistance to pests and diseases and adaptation to 'Cerrado' regions ('drought-prone environments'). The last one aims to investigate the existing genetic diversity of the main sugarcane pathogens in the distinct Brazilian producing regions, to enable a more efficient selection of resistant/tolerant genotypes. The results should contribute with sustainable sugarcane cultivation, while contributing to keep the Brazilian leadership in sugar and biofuel production. (AU)
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