Emerging Fungal Pathogens Warfare, Fungi-Like Organisms, and the World's Major Crops: Lessons from the Past and Solutions for the Future

Abstract

In order to feed the growing population, food production must be increased while minimizing food losses. Nevertheless, diseases caused by pathogens, particularly fungi, are responsible for severe crop losses. Even in today's world, farming systems are prone to various fungal disease epidemics, and care should be taken to avoid disastrous disease outbreak events that the world experienced before. Maize, palm oil, potato, rice, soybean, sugarcane, and wheat are the topmost major crops cultivated extensively worldwide. Any severe disease outbreak that occurs in those crops could cause heartbreak to the world market, and people who are living under the poverty line are highly vulnerable to food insecurity. Given this scenario, we attempt to comprehensively summarize the literature, mainly emphasizing the value of disease control using novel and advanced technologies. Here, first, we discuss previous historical disease outbreaks to showcase what we could learn from the past. Second, new disease emergence/new records of causative agents have been brought to signify the continuing threat and future threat of disease epidemics. Subsequently, the article presents the reasons behind such disease outbreaks, and lastly, it brings the possible disease epidemic mitigating strategies for researchers, farmers, and governing bodies to rethink.