Seeds Need New Screening For Diseases

AMES - Mar 10/04 - SNS - Seeds still represent a viable window for diseases to enter a nation so security oriented as the United States.

So, in an effort to stem this source, there is a $900,000 federal grant available to help develop new ways to prevent the spread of seedborne diseases, with Iowa State University in the lead.

As part of a four-year project, funded by the US Department of Agriculture, researchers will attempt to develop new techniques to detect seed pathogens, in addition to training diagnosticians in using new methods.

"Our country has done a good job in keeping pathogens out of the system. But after Sept. 11, our commitment to tighter security revealed that seedborne diseases could be a potential weak link," said Manjit Misra, director of the Seed Science Center and Biosafety Institute for Genetically Modified Agricultural Products.

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