Recent Advances on Coffee Leaf Rust

Abstract

Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) is a major constraint for coffee production in the world. Ever since its first outbreak as the famine of coffee in Ceylon, CLR has already been recorded in Lake Victoria of Kenya. Till date, more than forty five races of Hemileia vastatrix, the fungus causing CLR disease, have been identified. Nine CLR resistance genes (S_H1 to S_H9), conferring either independently or jointly, are also been traced in different coffee species. However, the breakdown of host-plant resistance vis-à-vis evolving new races of the pathogen, development of durable CLR resistant varieties without deterring their taste attributes under organic farming condition remained as the biggest challenge in coffee growing nations like Nepal. This review tries to uncover the overall history, setbacks, research progresses and achievements in CLR all around the globe.