Molecular Pathogens, 2025, Vol.16, No.2, 61-68 http://microbescipublisher.com/index.php/mp 61 Review Article Open Access Genetic Resistance to Pathogens in Rapeseed: A Comprehensive Review Kaiwen Liang Biomass Research Center, Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resources, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China Corresponding email: kaiwen.liang@hitar.org Molecular Pathogens, 2025, Vol.16, No.2 doi: 10.5376/mp.2025.16.0008 Received: 01 Mar., 2025 Accepted: 03 Apr., 2025 Published: 11 Apr., 2025 Copyright © 2025 Liang, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Liang K.W., 2025, Genetic resistance to pathogens in rapeseed: a comprehensive review, Molecular Pathogens, 16(2): 61-68 (doi: 10.5376/mp.2025.16.0008) Abstract This study comprehensively explores the research progress of genetic resistance of rapeseed, focusing on analyzing the classification of resistance genes, signal transduction pathways, and the role of gene editing technologies such as GWAS (GWAS) and CRISPR-Cas9; discussing the utilization of wild relative species, molecular marking and multiomic integration as innovative ways of resistance breeding. The article also elaborates on challenges such as resistance durability, climate change and international cooperation needs. By solving key issues in the study of genetic resistance of rapeseed, new ideas are provided for reducing chemical control dependence, improving yield and crop stress resistance, and hope to promote the development of sustainable agriculture. Keywords Genetic resistance; Rapeseed (Brassica napus); Pathogen management; Molecular breeding; Disease resistance genes 1 Introduction Rapeseed (Brassica napus) is an oil crop that is important worldwide. It can not only press oil, but also serve as animal feed. In agriculture, it brings a lot of income to farmers and has a great impact on the entire agricultural economy (Yu et al., 2023). Rapeseed can adapt to many climates and has high oil content, so it is widely grown to produce vegetable oils (Li et al., 2020). However, rapeseed cultivation also faces some problems, the most serious of which are diseases, especially sclerotinia stem rot and blackleg disease. These diseases are caused by Sclerotumand Leptospira, which reduces yield and affects the quality of the oil (Starosta et al., 2024). What’s more troublesome is that different pathogens may interact, and there are not many varieties with strong disease resistance at present, which makes disease prevention and control difficult (Yin et al., 2022). Studying the disease-resistant genes of rapeseed is very helpful in solving these problems. Now, scientists have found some resistance loci and have developed molecular marker technologies that can help breed disease-resistant varieties. This article compiles the current research results on the genetic resistance of rapeseed and introduces new progress in disease resistance breeding and possible future directions. Understanding these anti-disease mechanisms will not only help us cultivate better varieties, but also help reduce the use of pesticides and make agriculture more green and environmentally friendly. 2 Major Pathogens of Rapeseed and Their Impacts 2.1 Prevalence and impact of clubroot (Plasmodiophora brassicae) Clubroot disease of rapeseed is a very common and serious disease, and is caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae. In recent years, with the increase of rapeseed planting area, clubroot disease has become more common and the condition has become more serious, causing considerable troubles to rapeseed production. This disease will cause tumors to grow at the roots, affecting the plants to absorb water and nutrients, and eventually make rapeseed grow poorly and yield decreases. In order to deal with this disease, scientists need to understand its genetic mechanism and find genes that can resist the disease, so that new varieties are not afraid of clubroot disease (Li et al., 2020). 2.2 Infection mechanisms and damages caused by sclerotinia stem rot (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) Sclerotinia stem rot, also known as stem rot, is a common disease in rapeseed and has a great impact on yield and
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