Resistance-breaking ability of wild brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens, on resistant rice cultivars has been reported in many Asian countries. To understand the development of resistance-breaking ability of wild BPH in Korea, we conducted the nymphal survivorship test and the electrical penetration graph (EPG) on susceptible and resistant rice cultivars with four different BPH populations, which were collected in the early 1980s (S-BPH), 2005, 2006, and 2007, respectively. The S-BPH showed low survival rates on resistant rice cultivars carrying Bph1 and bph2, respectively. On the other hand, recent(2005~2007) wild BPH populations seemed to have high resistance-breaking ability because they maintained elevated survival rates on most other resistant rice cultivars except Gayabyeo (Bph1 and bph2) and Rathu Heenati (Bph3). In the EPG monitoring, however, wild BPHs could not easily feed on the phloem sap of resistant rice cultivars, Cheongcheongbyeo (Bph1), ASD7 (bph2), and Gayabyeo. Wild BPHs spent more time on reaching the phloem sieve elements of resistant cultivars. Ph waveform duration and honeydew excretion amount of wild BPHs also decreased. From the results, we suggest that though recent wild BPHs collected in Korea have high resistance-breaking ability simultaneously on rice cultivars carrying Bph1 and bph2 through the increase of survivorship, they still have to pay some cost to feed on the phloem sap of resistant rice cultivars.

Japonica rice cultivars exhibit high susceptibility to bacterial blight(BB) disease due to genetic vulnerability in Korea. Korean japonica resistant rice cultivars mainly possess one of the genes, Xa1 or Xa3 for BB resistance. These resistance genes are becoming susceptible to K3a, resulting in serious rice yield reduction. This study was carried out to confirm the effect of xa13 gene pyramiding for developing of japonica rice cultivars resistant to BB pathogen breaking down Xa1 or Xa3. IRBB4 conferring Xa4 gene was resistant to K1(HB01013), K2(HB01014), K3(HB01015), and moderately resistant to K3a(HB01009). IRBB5 having xa5 gene was resistant to K1, K2, K3, and K3a. The recessive gene xa13 was resistant to K1 race but susceptible to K2, K3, and K3a. But Xa21 gene is susceptible to predominant K1 race but resistant to other races such as K2, K3, and K3a. Two genes Xa3 and xa13 were susceptible and Xa4 gene was moderate resistant to 24 isolates. xa5 and Xa21 genes were resistant to all isolates including K3a. When xa13 gene combined Xa4, xa5 and Xa21 genes, effect of xa13 gene pyramiding showed higher resistant reaction than that having singe gene out of Xa4, xa5, and Xa21. The order of resistance against 24 isolates breaking down Xa3 gene was IRBB55(xa13+Xa21) > IRBB53 (xa5+xa13) > IRBB51 (Xa4+xa13).