Developments in breeding for resistance in potato: Challenges of the past, present and future

Abstract

Potato (Solanum tuberosum) is one of the most important staple foods worldwide carrying versatile opportunities in utilisation and high added value. Cultivated potato is threatened by various diseases and pests. Late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans and various viruses cause high losses in yield and quality. Since many decades breeding for disease resistance is of high importance. Thus at Julius Kühn-Institute breeding research and resistance testing are focussed on them. Besides classical breeding methods marker assisted selection becomes of increasing importance in the breeding process yet. In future methods of genome editing possibly will be introduced into the breeding process for healthy and high valuable potatoes.