June 6, 2023 10:15 a.m.

U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley have announced that Oregon State University will receive more than $642,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to build out a tool that diagnoses invasive diseases in native plants.

Wyden said, “Oregon is a leader in growing food and foliage that power and enrich our lives – from fruit, berries and hazelnuts to wheat, plant starts and grass seed”. Wyden said, “Countless Oregon-grown products are shipped all around the globe, and I am gratified to see federal funds go toward preventing and treating harmful plant diseases so Oregon’s world-class farmers can continue to support jobs and our state’s economic growth, benefitting Oregon families for many generations”.

Merkley said, “Oregon’s thriving agriculture is under threat from pests and plant diseases”. He said, “This funding will help to keep Oregon’s world-renowned agricultural products healthy, which will not only benefit Oregon’s economy, but allow people in Oregon and elsewhere to continue to enjoy our state’s great products”.

A release from the senators said plant diseases pose significant threats to agriculture. Monitoring is a crucial step in disease prevention and requires affordable, sensitive, and specific diagnostic tests, especially to detect novel variants or strains. OSU will develop a low-cost CRISPR-based diagnostic tool capable of being used in the field to diagnose pathogens. OSU plans to use the funds from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to expand the CRISPR-based tools as well as develop web-based resources and protocols to prevent and address pests and plant diseases for widespread use.

More information is linked: https://today.oregonstate.edu/news/osu-researchers-propose-crispr-influencer-low-genetic-diversity-deadly-bacteria