Enhancing banana weevil (Cosmopolites sordidus) resistance by plant genetic modification: A perspective

Abstract

Banana weevil is a serious pest of bananas and plantains in Africa. The development of resistant 
cultivars is seen as the long term and more sustainable control strategy. The difficulty in conventional 
breeding of bananas and plantains has prompted efforts towards the use of genetic transformation for 
banana and plantain improvement. In this review, the current status of banana weevil resistance, 
sources of resistance and resistance mechanisms is assessed. Further, current efforts and future 
prospects for identifying resistance genes outside the genus Musa with potential to control banana 
weevil in a transgenic approach are outlined and discussed.