Work in the Stop the Rot SCRI project includes gathering isolates of onion bacterial pathogens collected from US farms over the duration of the project (2019-2023).
A selection of these isolates will be included in the National Onion Bacterial Strain Collection (NOBSC). At the end of the Stop the Rot project, a searchable database will be provided here, to centralize sample collection information, isolate identification, pathogenicity testing results, photos, and DNA sequencing data. We anticipate more than 5,000 unique accessions.
The National Onion Bacterial Strain Collection (NOBSC) resulting from the Stop the Rot SCRI project will provide an invaluable resource for future genetic studies of pathogens and associated bacteria in/on onions, for example in whole-genome sequencing to find virulence factors in order to develop robust molecular tools to detect and differentiate pathogenic vs. non-pathogenic bacteria. The NOBSC will facilitate the development of effective phenotypic methods of screening onion germplasm for reactions to diverse bacterial pathogens, alone and in combinations, which will support future efforts to breed for resistance.
For more information, see the Stop the Rot project page, or contact us at stoptherot.project@gmail.com