This document summarizes 5 projects related to improving cassava. It provides updates on project status and completion of activities. Several key activities were not completed or partially completed for various projects related to developing a cassava reference set, markers for biotic traits, and phenotyping for drought tolerance. Plans are described to finish activities through no-cost extensions. Key future activities are outlined to expand products through continued pre-breeding, gene pyramiding, phenotyping, and exploring heterosis. Potential funding sources and plans for data management and sharing are also mentioned.

1. Cassava RI Perspectives from
Crop group parallel session

2. Projects
• Project 1: Improvement and evaluation of the
existing cassava reference set for Africa
• Project 2: Improving and deploying markers for biotic
traits
• Project 3: Implement MARS projects for drought
tolerance
• Project 4: Phenotyping cassava for drought tolerance
to identify QTLs
• Project 5: A Cassava Breeding Community of Practice
in Africa for Accelerated Production and
Dissemination of Farmer-Preferred Cassava Varieties
Resistant to Pests and Diseases

3. Project Status
Projects # of
Activities
%
Completed
Done Advanced
progress :
done by
2014
TBD Unknown
1 9 5 0 - 4
2 13 6 5 - 2
3 10 4 5 1 0
4* 10 2 5 1 1
5 16 9 4 2 1
* One activity no longer feasible; thus modified

4. Activities Not Completed
Project 1
• Place SEC materials in vitro,
virus index and exchange
(Unknown)
• Place additional germplasm
in set (Unknown)
• Assemble complete set at
IITA and CIAT
• Make available reference
set to Nigeria, Tanzania &
Ghana
Project 2
• Markers for CBSD: BMGF
project related

5. Activities not Completed – contd.
Project 3
• CMD: SNP genotyping of
parents for second
recombination cycle (May not
be necessary)
Project 4
• Harvest and measurement of
destructive and production
traits
• Joint analysis of data
(Colombia and Brazil)
Project 5
• MAS for CBSD – BMGF
project related
• SNP genotyping for S3 lines
– partial completion in
2014
• Introgressing drought
tolerance into superior
hybrids (under gene pool
improvement) – related to
MARS

6. Products
Ready
• Microsatellite kit for reference
set
• Reference set
• Cassava germplasm for
physiological and biotic traits
• Drought resistant germplasm
• Two MAS developed varieties for
CMD resistance combined with
other traits
• Four CMD resistant/CBSD
tolerant varieties
• Training course materials for
drought tolerance
• South American Drought
tolerance varieties
• Markers for drought tolerance
• CBSD tolerant line – AR40-6
• Partial inbred genetic stocks for
beta carotene, starch, CBSD
Not Ready
• SNP set for reference set
• Finger printing SNP set
• Africa: Markers for drought
productivity (validation)
• Phenotyping protocol for
new physiological traits
• South America: Markers for
QTL - drought/physiological
traits
• SNP set for CMD resistance

7. Plans to Finish Activities
• No-cost extension
• Activities to continue along respective
projects
Work Plan modifications:
• Distribution of reference set may be limited to a subset.
• Controlled experiments rather than field trial more feasible
than field trails for South American drought phenotyping
Assumptions:
• Markers for CBSD to be provided by BMGF project

8. Key activities for continuation to expand
products in the Post-GCP phase
• Complementary pre-breeding initiative with BMGF to
enhance utilization of reference set – leading to new
products with higher genetic diversity
• Gene pyramiding for CMD resistance – testing
genotypes with multiple resistance through the
breeding pipeline
• Phenotyping for second recombination products
drought tolerance (MARS) and multi-environment
testing in the breeding pipeline – varietal release
• Phenotyping of new drought populations developed at
CIAT: – gene discovery for drought tolerance and
physiological traits
• Heterosis – explore partial inbreds

9. Funding sources
•BMGF
•AGRA
•Core funds of Institutes/Centers
•GCP (??)

10. Data management / sharing
• IBP formatted data – Crop Curator (Fernando
Rojas)
• Different format (Arllet Portugal)
• Fingerprinting data – Chunlin He
• Other considerations – public databases,
AgTrials, GCP CR

11. Thank You!