💡CWR-derived materials are underused resources with strong potential for food innovation! From barley muffins and roasted teas to wheat pasta, lettuce pesto and pea-based products, our work shows how crop diversity can be translated into practical food applications. cousinproject.eu/resources/pr...

📽️ 🥦 𝗡𝗲𝘄 #𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗩𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 - 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮: 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝗽𝘀 Did you know that the wild relatives of Brassica crops hold valuable traits that can help strengthen the crops❓ ✴️ 𝑾𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒐 𝒐𝒏 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝑻𝒖𝒃𝒆 👉https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwMujjGoqQo @epsoeurope.bsky.social

📽️🌱 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 How can wild relatives of our crops help build a more resilient and sustainable food system ❓ Our new video showcases 2.5 years of progress and impact across Europe! @epsoeurope.bsky.social 👉 www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxMs...

Video 1_COUSIN project: 2.5 Years of Progress and Impact

YouTube video by European Plant Science Organisation

youtube.com

🌳 Christian Schöb (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos) participated in the 8th European Agroforestry Federation (EURAF) Conference in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. 📖 Read more: cousinproject.eu/news/present... #COUSINProject #EURAF2026 #Agroforestry #cropwildrelatives #HorizonEurope

Presentation and the 8th European EURAF conference in Neuchâtel, Switzerland | Cousin Project

At the 8th European conference organized by the European Agroforestry Federation in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Christian Schöb (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos) pr ...

cousinproject.eu

🌍 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗻𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗡 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 The project partners gathered in Italy to review project progress, discuss ongoing research activities, and coordinate the next steps. 🌱Read more: cousinproject.eu/news/three-d...

🍒 Yesterday Scandicci hosted a 𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲 focused on food prototypes that could be developed from CWRs. The activity, organised by project partner Universidade Católica Portuguesa, is part of the project’s research exploring how CWRs can be commercialised and used in culinary applications.

🗣️ Elisa Pizarro Carbonell (Aprisco) recently took part at the SEAE Agroecology Conference in Pamplona. She presented the innovative work in northern Extremadura on #CWRs through the #COUSINproject and the BiodivRURAL living lab. Read the full article here 👉 cousinproject.eu/news/aprisco...

🌱🍽️ Inventing the food of the future Students explored the connections between food, health, sustainability, and innovation in an event organized by Universidade Católica Portuguesa. 👉 cousinproject.eu/news/inventi... #cropwildrelatives #COUSINproject

Encantado de presentar nuestro equipo de #leguminosas @iascsic.bsky.social en el Instituto Nuestra Sra. de los Remedios de #Ubrique @ageinves.bsky.social @cousinproject.bsky.social @nustalgic @cousinproject.bsky.social

🎨 Art and Crop Wild Relatives at the APRISCO event The #COUSINproject will present an initiative that connects art and science communication to highlight the importance of CWRs and the role of rural communities. Join us 🌱 cousinproject.eu/news/art-and... #CWRs #agrobiodiversity #EUProjects

The Federal Office for Agriculture and University of Lausanne have published two new studies evaluating Switzerland’s 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘂 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 🌱 Two scientific articles were published as part of this work! 👉 cousinproject.eu/resources/pu...

🌱On February 25, 2025, the #cousinproject was presented by the University of Catania during a study day on plant and microbial germplasm collections hosted by the Accademia dei Georgofili in Florence. Read the full article on our website 👉 cousinproject.eu/conferences/...

Cuaderno de campo is an 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 created by #Aprisco to connect agroecology research with school community. ☀️ Students work in an experimental garden exploring legumes, cereals, and their CWRs while learning science, maths, art, and even robotics. cousinproject.eu/news/cuadern...

🌱 On February 25, Florence will host a study day on the management and use of plant germplasm and microbial collections for the protection and economic enhancement of agrobiodiversity. CWRs will also be on the agenda! More info in the website cousinproject.eu/conferences/...

🥦 𝙊𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙁𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙖𝙣𝙖 𝙞𝙣 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝 𝙤𝙛 𝘽𝙧𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙖 𝙈𝙖𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙥𝙖 Some #COUSIN partners, together with Professor Maggioni, a member of the ECPGR working group on #CWRs, explored Favignana in search of Brassica macrocarpa. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱! 💫 👉 Read the full article cousinproject.eu/news/excursi...

📚𝐀𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢́𝐧 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 (𝐆𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚 𝐥𝐚 𝐎𝐥𝐥𝐚)! 🌱 This year, #cropwildrelatives were introduced! Many of them come from the #Aprisco gene bank, while others come from more distant areas. Read the full article! cousinproject.eu/news/cultiva... --- #COUSINproject

🌱 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐞! 🌱 The Italian partner Rete Semi Rurali ETS presented the #COUSINproject during 𝐢𝐧𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐞! 🎥 The episode is now available with 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬. 👉 www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJE0... --- #CropWildRelatives #agrobiodiversity #sustainableagriculture #horizoneurope

PREZIOSI CUGINI - InRETE! - Puntata 2

YouTube video by ReteSemiRurali

youtube.com

📽️🌿𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍 𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐠 - #𝟝: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 #CWRs are a vital source of genetic diversity for future #𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙮, and their conservation must be prioritised. 🔗https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0mrlPAfJQ4&list=PLtyuevfcEDYi7GidFx8igBjg4u6mFqI5t&index=5

COUSIN video scribing - #5: The Crop Wild Relatives Conservation Strategies explained

YouTube video by COUSIN project

youtube.com

📩 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐧! If you haven't already done so, subscribe and stay updated about the latest developments, research results and events of COUSIN. 👉 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 🎈 Subscribe here: [ 🔗 cousinproject.eu/newsletter/ ]

📹✏️𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍 𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐠 - #𝟚: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 🔗𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙤: www.youtube.com/watch?v=B51l... 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹! 🌱

COUSIN video scribing - #2: The importance of Crop Wild Reltives

YouTube video by COUSIN project

youtube.com

🎥 ✏️ 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍! The COUSIN project has produced a series of video scribing to trace the history, characteristics, and potential of Crop Wild Relatives. 🌾 #𝟙: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 👉 www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XtG....

✨ The COUSIN community is now live on Zenodo, a 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞, 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧-𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 created by #CERN and @openaire.bsky.social which allows researchers to 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐬. 🔗https://zenodo.org/communities/cousinprojecteu/records?q=&l=list&p=1&s=10&sort=newest

🥦 💡 During the Open Day organised by SMARTIES.BIO, it was possible to observe the #brassica populations of the #COUSINproject alongside Prof. Ferdinando Branca of the University of Catania. 👉 cousinproject.eu/training-act... --- #cropwildrelatives #brassica #plantbreeding #horizoneurope

🥬 💥 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞! 💁‍♀️ Exploring lettuce #CWRs can reveal useful traits and genetic regions that breeders can use to 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿, 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝘂𝗰𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀. 🔗 👇 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗔𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 ❶⓿ 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 cousinproject.eu/resources/pr... @wurplant.bsky.social

👣The UNICT research team carried out a collection mission along Palermo and Trapani provinces to monitor three B. rupestris populations, one of the five Brassica wild relatives species highlighted  by the #COUSINproject 🥦 cousinproject.eu/events/field...

Field monitoring of Brassica rupestris populations in the Palermo area | Cousin Project

On October 15th, 2025, the UNICT research team carried out a collection mission along Palermo and Trapani provinces (Caltavuturo, Sclafani Bagni and Castell ...

cousinproject.eu

As part of the COUSIN project 🌱, we’re studying how crop wild relatives (CWR) handle abiotic (🌞🔥🧂) and biotic (🐛🍄🦠) stresses. We’ve just sown different genetic lines of Thinopyrum intermedium (intermediate wheatgrass) with alfalfa 🌱 @uvic-ucc.cat @udivulga.bsky.social @cousinproject.bsky.social

🫛 ✨ 𝗔𝗻 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗼𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗢𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱! 📚 It can be read here 👇 link.springer.com/article/10.1... rdcu.be/eKB3a --- @csic.es @diegorubiales.bsky.social #CropWildRelatives #CWRs #foodsecurity #plantbreeding #horizoneurope

Genome wide association study unveils the genetic basis of Orobanche crenata resistance in pea - Theoretical and Applied Genetics

Key message GWAS using DArTseq markers identified novel resistance sources against parasitic broomrape in pea, elucidating candidate genes for marker-selected breeding as leverage for cultivar develop...

link.springer.com

🫛 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙚𝙖'𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 🌿 👩‍🔬 👩‍🌾 In the #COUSINProject, researchers and breeders are working to develop 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗮 𝘃𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, ideal for difficult conditions such as those in the Mediterranean region. 🔗 👇Practice Abstract 8 cousinproject.eu/resources/pr...

8 - Characterisation and use of wild relatives in pea breeding | Cousin Project

CWRs of pea, including Pisum fulvum, provide essential traits such as resistance to broomrape and powdery mildew. The COUSIN Project supports the developmen ...

cousinproject.eu

An important publication on #orobanche resistance in #pea has just been published!👇

Diego Rubiales @diegorubiales.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Glad to see our recent study on #orobanche resistance in #pea published . Much more to come soon Theoretical and Applied Genetics share.google/LpJzGd21zgWO... @iascsic.bsky.social @ageinves.bsky.social @horizoneu.bsky.social @cousinproject.bsky.social

Glad to see our recent study on #orobanche resistance in #pea published . Much more to come soon Theoretical and Applied Genetics share.google/LpJzGd21zgWO... @iascsic.bsky.social @ageinves.bsky.social @horizoneu.bsky.social @cousinproject.bsky.social

Genome wide association study unveils the genetic basis of Orobanche crenata resistance in pea - Theoretical and Applied Genetics

Key message GWAS using DArTseq markers identified novel resistance sources against parasitic broomrape in pea, elucidating candidate genes for marker-selected breeding as leverage for cultivar development and efficient disease control to enhance food security. Abstract Crenate broomrape (Orobanche crenata) is an important obligate root parasitic weed that causes severe yield losses in pea (Pisum sativum) production. O. crenata is difficult to eradicate in pea fields due to its high resilience and prolific seed boom capable of hibernating in soils for decades. Existing control strategies are not cost effective in low input legumes like pea. The most efficient ecofriendly mode of control is using resistant cultivars. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) studies based on bi-parental mapping has guided O. crenata resistance discovery, albeit their deployment in pea breeding is hindered by low marker resolution and large genetic distance. This study presents the first genome-wide association study (GWAS) on O. crenata resistance in pea, utilizing 324 diverse accessions and 26,045 diversity array technology sequence (DArTseq) markers. Phenotyping was performed over four seasons under field conditions using alpha lattice design. Results showed a strong phenotypic variation with an environmental influence on O. crenata infection. Novel resistance sources were identified mainly within the wild Pisum fulvum and P. sativum subsp. elatius. GWAS with two models yielded a total of 73 marker-trait associations with Chromosome 5 as major hotspot. Interestingly, some linked markers were detected in close proximity to four previous O. crenata resistance QTL. DArTseq markers identified 24 putative candidate genes participating in different cellular processes, including vesicle trafficking and transports, deoxyribonucleic acid transcription regulation, and defense including some leucine rich repeat receptor-like kinases. These results provide a valuable genetic resource for O. crenata resistance and a step toward its effective sustainable management—to enhance genetic diversity and cultivar improvement for food security.

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