Plant Breeding and Management Strategies to Minimize the Impact of Water Scarcity and Biotic Stress in Cereal Crops under Mediterranean Conditions
Néstor Pérez-Méndez,
Cristina Miguel-Rojas,
Jose Antonio Jimenez-Berni,
David Gomez-Candon,
Alejandro Pérez-de-Luque,
Elias Fereres,
Mar Catala-Forner,
Dolors Villegas,
Josefina C. Sillero
Affiliations
Néstor Pérez-Méndez
Sustainable Field Crops Program, Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA), Carretera de Balada, Km 1, 43870 Amposta, Spain
Cristina Miguel-Rojas
IFAPA Alameda del Obispo, Area of Genomic and Biotechnology, Avenida Menéndez Pidal s/n, 14004 Cordoba, Spain
Jose Antonio Jimenez-Berni
Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible (IAS), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Alameda del Obispo s/n, 14004 Cordoba, Spain
David Gomez-Candon
Efficient Use of Water in Agriculture Program, Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA), Fruitcentre, PCiTAL, Parc Científic i Tecnològic Agroalimentari de Gardeny, 25003 Lleida, Spain
Alejandro Pérez-de-Luque
IFAPA Alameda del Obispo, Area of Genomic and Biotechnology, Avenida Menéndez Pidal s/n, 14004 Cordoba, Spain
Elias Fereres
Department of Agronomy, University of Cordoba, Alameda del Obispo s/n, 14004 Cordoba, Spain
Mar Catala-Forner
Sustainable Field Crops Program, Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA), Carretera de Balada, Km 1, 43870 Amposta, Spain
Dolors Villegas
Sustainable Field Crops Program, Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA), Avinguda Rovira Roure 191, 25198 Lleida, Spain
Josefina C. Sillero
IFAPA Alameda del Obispo, Area of Genomic and Biotechnology, Avenida Menéndez Pidal s/n, 14004 Cordoba, Spain
Wheat and rice are two main staple food crops that may suffer from yield losses due to drought episodes that are increasingly impacted by climate change, in addition to new epidemic outbreaks. Sustainable intensification of production will rely on several strategies, such as efficient use of water and variety improvement. This review updates the latest findings regarding complementary approaches in agronomy, genetics, and phenomics to cope with climate change challenges. The agronomic approach focuses on a case study examining alternative rice water management practices, with their impact on greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity for ecosystem services. The genetic approach reviews in depth the latest technologies to achieve fungal disease resistance, as well as the use of landraces to increase the genetic diversity of new varieties. The phenomics approach explores recent advances in high-throughput remote sensing technologies useful in detecting both biotic and abiotic stress effects on breeding programs. The complementary nature of all these technologies indicates that only interdisciplinary work will ensure significant steps towards a more sustainable agriculture under future climate change scenarios.
