Fruit rot is a major obstacle to growing melon and watermelon, cutting yields, causing financial losses for farmers and lowering fruit quality. Dr Md Rafiqul Islam, assistant professor in the Department of Biotechnology at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University (SAU), has developed three sets of molecular markers to detect the bacteria that cause it, which can help protect crops early.

He presented the findings at a press conference at the office of the SAU Journalists' Association on Monday. He developed the method after about three years of research at Sunchon National University in South Korea.

The disease is caused by the bacterium Acidovorax citrulli. Two strains have been cloned, sequenced and submitted to the international NCBI database.

By artificially inoculating 35 melon and 77 watermelon inbred lines or cultivars with the bacterium, six tolerant melon lines and four tolerant watermelon lines were identified. One set of markers linked to resistance to fruit rot has also been developed, allowing tolerant melon varieties to be selected in advance. He said his team is the first to develop this modern PCR-based detection method.

Melon and watermelon are cheap, widely available fruits that can be grown year-round with modern methods and are rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. The test can now be carried out in his laboratory, Dr Islam said.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.