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The article presents information on the breakthrough achieved by the researchers at the University of Exeter in Great Britain in understanding the mechanism by which the fungus Magnaporthe oryzae infects rice plants.

The article discusses the importance of accurate weather information in planning blight control programs according to CSC Crop Protection in Scotland. The company offers a blight forecasting and monitoring service to potato growers in the region. CSC executive Colin Rennie noted that using the approach helps the company to determine when the spray interval is less crucial. He stressed the significance of right timing in the spray application.

Reports on the results of a survey on the resistance management of potato growers against blight diseases, conducted by Dow AgroSciences in Great Britain in March 2004.

Reports that a joint collaboration between Agilent Technologies Inc. and North Carolina State University in 2003 resulted to the creation of a new microarray that will facilitate a better genetic understanding of how rice blast disease affects the rice plant. Key features of the microarray; Benefits of the microarray to agricultural research.

The article focuses on issues concerning blight disease which affects rice fields in Great Britain, as of May 27, 2003. British company BASF Corp. is making efforts to prevent the growth of this disease. More attention is being paid to cultural controls to eliminate potential sources of infection and an early start made to spray programs. If a field becomes infected with blight, it should be immediately burnt with acid. However, rice growers are facing difficulties in maintaining the level of tuber blight control.

Cites facts relating to science. Percentage of adults in the U.S. that have access to the Internet; Amount of rice destroyed by rice blast disease; Number of Americans that die from carbon monoxide poisoning annually.