PAPAS Hosts Nematode Molecular Diagnostics Workshop
Following the Potato Association of America’s annual conference, the PAPAS team hosted a Nematode Molecular Diagnostics Workshop on Friday, August 1, at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The event was led by PAPAS Project Co-Director Cynthia Gleason, Ph.D., assistant professor in plant pathology at Washington State University.
Attendees from University of Wisconsin, Washington State University, Oregon State University, University of Idaho, Cornell University, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, and Allied Cooperative’s Pest Pros learned about current and new potato nematode diagnostic methods.
Discussions included the need for robust testing, the pros and cons of different diagnostic methods, and the exciting potential of High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS) and AI in species identification.
This was a fantastic learning experience for participants, providing hands-on experience with a new diagnostic technique that’s both rapid and efficient: Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) assay.
Instructors shared their expertise with the participants through several presentations.
A talk on next generation sequencing for nematode diagnostics also brought about discussion on the needs and wants of diagnostic labs.
We also covered key factors like cost, the value of morphological support, and the role of AI in species identification. Overall, this workshop was a great step forward for nematode molecular diagnostics.
