• Title: Sustainable food: gene pyramiding for smart rice (Oryza sativa L.) in the conditions of climate change
• Authors: Nguyen Thi Lang, Tran Bao Toan, Bui Chi Buu
• Publication Info: Journal of Science, Tien Giang University, No. 03/2025, pp. 107 - 117

This study focuses on six major concerns including (i) methane emissions, (ii) drought tolerance, (iii) salinity tolerance, (iv) pest and disease resistance, (v) rice yield, and (vi) rice quality. Integrating these important traits into high-yielding rice varieties is a crucial step in the strategy to develop the smart rice variety which can adapt to climate change (climate-smart rice). The results show that marker-assisted selection (MAS) enables the effective pyramiding of multiple genes related to both biotic and abiotic traits, while also improving productivity under adverse climatic conditions. In this study, gene pyramiding over multiple generations BC4F4 across five different MAS breeding programs was analyzed to evaluate the phenotypic and genotypic effects. By leveraging genetic information, the process of multi-trait selection was conducted more effectively, allowing the simultaneous integration of multiple desired traits into a single variety. This research highlights the future direction of advanced rice breeding through modern breeding techniques, especially gene pyramiding, to develop superior varieties that are resistant to stressors. These efforts contribute significantly to the advancement of climate-smart rice systems.

• Title: Impacts of chemical fertilizers combined with organic fertilizers on soil properties and growth physiology of king oranges in Kon Tum
• Authors: Le Nguyen Thanh Ngọc, Nguyen Trong Phuoc, Bien Anh Khoa, Nguyen Thi Lang
• Publication Info: Journal of Science, Tien Giang University, No. 03/2025, pp. 118 - 126

The experiment with four treatments including T0: (no fertilizer), T1 (chemical fertilizers), T2: (reduced chemical fertilizers combined with organic fertilizers, fertilizing with N, P2O5, K2O and organic fertilizers of 0.56N, 0.23P, 0.33K and 10 kg/tree) and T3 (reduced chemical fertilizers combined with biological organic fertilizers, fertilizing with N, P2O5, K2O and biological organic fertilizers of 0.508, 0.320, 0.310 and 10 kg/tree) was carried out in an orange garden in KonTum to evaluate the effectiveness of organic fertilizers on the yield, growth, soil properties, etc. of orange trees when the nutrients in the fertilizers of each treatment were the same except for T0. The data collected in 2024 show that both T2 and T3 were beneficial in improving soil fertility (physical and chemical properties of soil and microorganisms) and growth physiology of citrus (growth, nutrition) and promoting abundant flowering. The comprehensive evaluation shows that T3 was more effective than T2. Organic fertilizers have potentials to partially replace chemical fertilizers by improving soil properties, growth physiology and yield of orange trees in hilly areas of Dak Plong, Dak Ha District and Kon Tum.

• Title: Molecular and morphological identification of Phytophthora species on durians
• Authors: Nguyen Thi Hong Loan, Nguyen Thi Lang
• Publication Info: Journal of Science, Tien Giang University, No. 03/2025, pp. 127 - 135

Durians are one of the most important crops in the Mekong Delta, but production is currently severely affected by root rot, stem rot and fruit rot, which have been shown to be caused by several Phytophthora species. The aim of this study is to identify the causative agents of root rot, stem rot and fruit rot in durians and to investigate the morphological and genetic variations of the pathogen. A disease survey was conducted in all three durian growing provinces including Can Tho, Tien Giang and Tra Vinh in 2022-2023 and the pathogen was isolated from 18 diseased trees. Morphological and PCR evidence identified the pathogen as Phytophthora palmivora in 100% of the diseased trees. Four randomly amplified microsatellite (RAMS) markers were used to assess the genetic variation among the 18 collected Phytophthora palmivora isolates. Genetic analysis reveals that 23 loci from all four primers and 59.25% of the isolates were polymorphic. The Shannon diversity index (I) for the collected Phytophthora palmivora isolates was 0.57, indicating a highly clonal pathogen population. These findings have important implications for the development of sustainable disease management strategies including resistant genotypes for durians in the Mekong Delta.