TABLE 1.

Description of the four assessed research options to address Fusarium wilt of bananas.

Research option	Improved exclusion, surveillance, eradication and containment (ESEC)	Integrated crop and disease management (ICDM)	Conventional breeding of Fusarium resistant banana cultivars (CBRC)	Genetically modified Fusarium resistant banana cultivars (GMRC)
Adoptable innovation	(Improved) exclusion, surveillance, containment, and early eradication measures on farm, community, national, and international level	Crop and disease management package	High yielding and market accepted Fusarium resistant varieties	High yielding and market-accepted genetically modified (GM) Fusarium resistant varieties
Research agenda	• Strengthen science-based risk analysis protocol for Foc movement for local, national, regional, and intercontinental use • Develop/improve protocol to produce Foc-free planting material from tissue culture (TC), suckers, and macro propagation • Develop model for Foc epidemiology and pathogenicity and more efficient tools for epidemiological studies • Determine pathogen population structure, cultivar-specific disease intensity, and current distribution of Foc populations in key banana producing countries • Develop and optimize diagnostic protocols for TR4 and other relevant Foc strains Evaluate susceptibility/resistance of major cultivars to Foc TR 4 and other races		• Prospection for new sources of resistance to Foc in germplasm collection, including breeding lines • Identify and characterize resistance genes (and molecular markers) to support breeding processes including Marker Assisted Selection • Generate diploid pre-breeding lines with Foc resistance (emphasis on TR4) for major cultivar groups • Develop efficient protocols for phenotyping of breeding lines	• Identify pathogenicity factorsand defense/resistance genes and develop cisgenic and/or trans-genic constructs to generate Foc resistant bananas cultivars • Develop GM banana cultivars with Foc resistance • Phenotype GM bananas lines for Foc resistance at greenhouse level • Evaluate and select commercial GM lines resistant to Foc on multi-site field experiments
	• Validate efficient surveillance protocols to detect, delimitate, and monitor Foc spreading • Understand risk and pathways of Foc dissemination in soil, suckers, humans, other banana parts, diverse agricultural and non-agricultural practices within country, across borders, and between continents • Determine effectiveness of different eradication and isolation procedures for first detected Foc affected banana plants in Foc-free areas	• Identify and evaluate cover crops, intercrops, and other agronomic and soil management practices that suppress or accelerate Foc in banana and clarify mechanisms involved • Understand functional diversity of suppressive vs. conducive soils in banana production contrasting biological, physical, and chemical properties • Screen and characterize root-associated microorganisms w/Foc suppressive and growth promotion capacity • Prototype integrated Foc management strategies based on biological inputs (incl. microorganisms), crop (incl. resistant genotypes, chemical fertilizers fine tuning), and cropping systems	• Employ conventionally breeding methods to develop bananas with Foc resistance • Strengthen protocols and develop somaclonal and clonal selection for Foc resistance in susceptible (and partially resistant) cultivars • Identify possible Foc resistant substitutes for the major susceptible market and food security cultivars and select for clones with superior traits • Evaluate and select resistant genotypes on multi-site field experiments • Evaluate and develop post-harvest and market oriented strategies	• Evaluate and develop post-harvest and market oriented strategies