Collection(s) : Repères
Paru le 01/04/2004 | Broché 176 pages
Professionnels
édition CIRAD
Cocoa black pod rot causes almost 30 % losses in world cocoa production. This disease is caused by various species of the genus Phytophthora. The most harmful species, P. megakarya, is currently invading Ivory Coast, the leading producing country. Faced with this threat, teams of researchers from CIRAD in France, IRAD in Cameroon, CNRA in Ivory Coast and CRU in Trinidad came together in a research project on the genetic bases of cocoa tree resistance to Phytophthora diseases. This research received financial backing from European chocolate makers through the Caobisco association.
This overview presents the results obtained in work undertaken during the project. Its main purpose is to provide the international community with knowledge and tools that can be used to breed cocoa trees with greater resistance to Phytophthora.
Improvement of cocoa tree resistance to Phytophthora diseases covers pathogen diversity, epidemiological knowledge, the genetic parameters of resistance observed in the field, and practical breeding aspects. The relevance of different screening tests involving artificial inoculations and the use of molecular markers for the selection of resistant material are widely covered.
Christian Cilas is a researcher in applied mathematics with the CIRAD Tree Crops Department. He coordinates research on the integrated control of cocoa Phytophthora diseases.
Denis Despréaux, who is currently a research adviser to the Director of International Relations and Cooperation at the Ministry of Youth, Education and Research, began his career as a plant pathologist in Cameroon. He subsequently carried out research on cocoa Phytophthora diseases. The project described in this book was launched when he was Head of the CIRAD Cocoa Programme.
