A new study led by KAUST researchers has discovered a key gene that impacts crop resistance to a parasitic weed that is one of the world’s greatest threats to crops. Pearl millet, a cereal crop commonly grown in Saudi Arabia and other dry and hot regions, is vulnerable to the weed Striga hermonthica (also known as purple witchweed). The researchers found that strains of pearl millet lacking CLAMT1b, a gene that is responsible for the synthesis of specific hormones were resistant to the weed, while those expressing the gene were not. The findings provide new clues on breeding strategies for food security. 

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