Advances in understanding and controlling rice blast disease: Mechanisms and management strategies

Rice blast, caused by the filamentous fungus Magnaporthe oryzae , is one of the most destructive diseases affecting rice cultivation worldwide, posing a serious threat to food security and economic stability. The disease can infect rice at all developmental stages, from seedling emergence to grain filling, leading to yield losses and even total crop failure. This review summarizes recent advances in rice blast research, with a focus on disease symptoms, causal factors, and control strategies. We highlight progress in chemical and biological control, resistance breeding, and molecular approaches, with particular emphasis on genome editing, RNA interference technologies, effector biology, and omics-guided functional genomics. Emerging tools such as CRISPR/Cas-based editing, host- and spray-induced gene silencing, genomics, and AI-assisted resistance design are reshaping blast resistance discovery and deployment. By integrating genetic resistance with climate-adaptive cultivation, a prevention-oriented and sustainable management framework is proposed. This comprehensive overview provides insights into current challenges and future directions for rice blast control. • Magnaporthe oryzae causes devastating rice blast disease, affecting all growth stages. • Advances in chemical and biological control, resistance breeding, and molecular strategies. • Emerging approaches including gene pyramiding, HIGS/SIGS, and CRISPR/Cas-based genome editing.