Annual Report: CIRAD 2007
Preventing and managing health risks
Geomatics and epidemiology: animal diseases from above
Geomatics, a discipline that deals with spatially referenced data, has been used in epidemiology for several years now, to observe the spatiotemporal distribution of diseases and identify environmental risk factors. It is used in numerous CIRAD projects, particularly studies of vector-borne diseases. The aim is to determine high-risk zones and periods so as to improve the surveillance and control of such diseases.
Understanding and preventing the emergence of bird flu in developing countries
Bird flu is a highly contagious cosmopolitan viral disease. In 1997, a highly pathogenic H5N1-type virus became established in Southeast Asia, spreading to Europe in 2005 and Africa in 2006. There are still many questions surrounding how it spreads and survives in the environment, and its epidemiological cycle. In the hope of finding answers, CIRAD launched right at the start of the crisis a set of research projects aimed at understanding the virus better and at anticipating its spread.
An entomotoxic albumin from peas in transgenic rice
Rice weevils are the main pest affecting grain stocks in developing countries. They are primarily eradicated by chemical treatments, which are now banned or to which the insect has already developed resistance. In the absence of any effective biological treatments or known natural resistance in rice, CIRAD is looking into the possibilities offered by an entomotoxin found in peas, whose expression was recently achieved in transgenic rice.
Cassiicolin, a toxin produced by a pathogenic fungus of rubber trees
Corynespora cassiicola, a fungus of the family Ascomycetes, causes a serious leaf disease in rubber trees. The disease appeared in India and Malaysia in the early 1960s and has since gradually spread to the whole of Asia and recently to Africa, causing major yield losses. Molecular analyses of the toxin responsible for the fungus’ pathogenicity have revealed an entirely new type of virulence mechanism, offering new prospects for diagnosis and control.
Fruit flies, a pest to be reckoned with in the mango orchards of West Africa
Mangoes play a major role in the West African economy. During the period between crop harvests, mangoes are a vital part of the diet of rural populations. However, mangoes are also an export crop very popular with European consumers. These assets are under threat from fruit flies, which are a pest to be reckoned with and can severely damage orchards. They are found throughout the mango growing zone and are currently the object of research projects that should give rise to regional-scale control programmes.
The cotton aphid: an identity survey
The cotton aphid, a polyphagous, cosmopolitan insect, is one of the main cotton pests in the savannahs of Africa. How does it survive in this hostile environment, despite insecticide treatments? A study in northern Cameroon has shown that depending on the season, it has various host plants, and that it is resistant to many insecticides. These results could give rise to new control strategies.
Summary:
- Geomatics and epidemiology: animal diseases from above
- Understanding and preventing the emergence of bird flu in developing countries
- Des fruits conservés sans fongicide
- An entomotoxic albumin from peas in transgenic rice
- Cassiicolin, a toxin produced by a pathogenic fungus of rubber trees
- Fruit flies, a pest to be reckoned with in the mango orchards of West Africa
- The cotton aphid: an identity survey