Attendance at 11th International Conference on Grapevine Breeding and Genetics, July 2014

Abstract

Dr Ian Dry was an invited speaker at the 11th International Conference on Grapevine Breeding and Genetics, Yanqing county, Beijing 29 July - 2 August 2014 where he presented a plenary talk entitled 'Resistance strategies of grapevines to biotrophic pathogens'. This presentation gave an overview of our current knowledge regarding the identification and function of resistance genes from wild grapevine species which can be used to confer resistance to powdery and downy mildew which are the two major pathogens of cultivated grapevines. Dr Dry also took the opportunity to visit with collaborators at China Agricultural University in Beijing to discuss current and future collaborations.

Summary

The International Conference on Grapevine Breeding and Genetics is held every four years and is the pre-eminent meeting for grape researchers working on grapevine molecular biology, genetics and genetic improvement. This was the first time that this conference had been held in China and was based just outside Beijing, in Yanqing county, one of the China’s major quality grape producing areas. The meeting attracted 370 international researchers from 40 countries who presented talks and posters in across seven general topic areas: 1. Grapevine breeding and new cultivar development 2. Genetic resources and evolution 3. Biotic and abiotic stress 4. Yield and berry quality 5. Vine growth and berry development 6. Interactions between genotype, environment and climate 7. Omics and bioinformatics The meeting provided an excellent opportunity to meet with leading grape researchers, discuss results and develop ideas for new collaborations. Attendance at the conference also gave Dr Dry the opportunity to visit with collaborators at China Agricultural University in Beijing to discuss current and future collaborations particularly relating to downy mildew pathogenicity genes and grapevine downy mildew resistance genes.