Field Crop 2024, Vol.7, No.4, 212-221 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/fc 218 the molecular mechanisms of resistance and the development of new resistant germplasm will be crucial for long-term control of Verticilliumwilt in cotton. Figure 2 Fiber length distribution of greenhouse-grown upland cotton (Adopted from Ayele et al., 2020) Image caption: Healthy (top) and inoculated with Verticillium dahlia (bottom). L (n) [mm], length by number in millimeters (Adopted from Ayele et al., 2020) 7 Future Directions and Research Gaps 7.1 Emerging cotton diseases and their potential impact Emerging diseases such as Black root rot and secondary pests are becoming more frequent in cotton production systems, particularly in regions like Australia. These diseases pose significant threats to cotton yield and fiber quality, necessitating the development of new resistant cultivars and advanced breeding techniques (Egan and Stiller, 2022). Additionally, viral diseases in cotton, which often mimic nutrient deficiencies and insect damage, are challenging to identify and manage. The rapid identification and breeding of virus-resistant cotton lines using molecular virology and genomics are crucial to mitigate these threats (Tarazi and Vaslin, 2022). 7.2 Innovations in disease resistance breeding The integration of genomic selection, high throughput phenomics, gene editing, and landscape genomics is pivotal for the future of cotton breeding. These tools enable the identification and utilization of resistance sources from Gossypium germplasm, facilitating the development of cultivars resistant to a range of diseases including Bacterial blight, Verticilliumwilt, Fusariumwilt, and Cotton bunchy top (Egan and Stiller, 2022). Moreover, the use of miRNAs, such as the ghr-miR482b-GhRSG2 module, has shown promise in enhancing resistance to
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