New Inoculation Method Can Protect Soybeans Against Devastating Leaf Blight

Reported in three major soybean-producing countries in South America (Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay), Cercospora leaf blight (CLB) is a global threat to soybean. CLB causes dark-purple lesions on leaves and premature defoliation, which can diminish soybean production.

Currently there are no CLB-resistant soybean cultivars, and fungicides are becoming less effectiveness as CLB develops resistance. To combat this devastating disease, it is imperative to breed resistant soybeans.

Thanks to a collaboration between scientists at the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences in Japan and at the National University of Northwestern Buenos Aires and the National Institute of Agricultural Technology in Brazil, we now have an inoculation method that can identify resistance against one of the CLB pathogens.