Cytoplasmic male-sterility affects expression of resistance to Shoot Bug (Peregrinus maidis), Sugarcane Aphid (Melanaphis sacchari) and Spotted Stem Borer (Chilo partellus) in Sorghum

Discovery of cytoplasmic male-sterility (CMS) has led to large-scale exploitation of heterotic potential for increasing crop production (Kaul 1988). Most of the sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] hybrids developed have been based on milo (A1) cytoplasm with only a few hybrids based on A2 cytoplasm in China (Shan et al. 2000). The A1 cytoplasm-based hybrids have been reported to be highly susceptible to insect pests (Sharma 2001; Sharma et al. 2004; Dhillon et al. 2006). Therefore, it is important to diversify the CMS systems to safeguard against outbreaks of insect pests and diseases. In addition to diversifying CMS sources, it is also important to understand the interactions between the target insect pests and hybrid parents to develop appropriate strategies for development and deployment of insect-resistant hybrids. Therefore, we examined the influence of CMS on the expression of resistance to shoot bug [Peregrinus maidis (Ashmead)], sugarcane aphid [Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner)] and spotted stem borer [Chilo partellus (Swinhoe)] for deploying insect-resistance genes through high-yielding hybrids of sorghum for integrated pest management