The widespread use and increasing reliance on herbicides for weed control has resulted in a global epidemic of evolved herbicide resistance in weed populations. In response, there has been a great deal of research effort to document resistance cases, understand the genetic and physiological mechanisms of resistance, and use models and model organisms to explore resistance management strategies. Here, we argue that the field of epidemiology, which systematically studies the extent, distribution and determinants of a harmful organism or condition, can greatly contribute to our efforts to understand the emergence, selection and spread of herbicide resistance. By systematically collecting data on weed abundance and distribution, the frequency and mechanisms of resistance, and agronomic and environmental metadata, it is possible to develop statistical models that identify the underlying relationships between these elements. In doing so, these approaches can provide novel insight into the relative importance, origin, and spread of different resistance mechanisms, and the agronomic, ecological and evolutionary drivers that dictate the dynamics of resistance evolution at local to global scales. Emerging technologies in weed surveillance, genomics and resistance diagnostics, statistics, and data science will greatly facilitate the collection and analysis of large-scale data sets, providing unprecedented potential for epidemiological analyses of the evolution of herbicide resistance at landscape scales.

中文翻译：

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采用流行病学方法进行除草剂抗性监测和管理

杂草控制中对除草剂的广泛使用和日益增加的依赖导致杂草种群中进化出的除草剂抗性在全球范围内流行。作为回应，已经有大量的研究工作来记录抗性案例，了解抗性的遗传和生理机制，并使用模型和模式生物来探索抗性管理策略。在这里，我们认为流行病学领域系统地研究了有害生物或条件的范围、分布和决定因素，可以极大地有助于我们了解除草剂抗性的出现、选择和传播。通过系统地收集有关杂草丰度和分布、抗性频率和机制以及农艺和环境元数据的数据，可以开发统计模型来确定这些元素之间的潜在关系。在这样做时，这些方法可以提供对不同抗性机制的相对重要性、起源和传播的新见解，以及决定局部到全球范围内抗性进化动态的农艺、生态和进化驱动因素。杂草监测、基因组学和抗性诊断、统计和数据科学等新兴技术将极大地促进大规模数据集的收集和分析，为景观尺度除草剂抗性演变的流行病学分析提供前所未有的潜力。不同抗性机制的起源和传播，以及决定局部到全球范围抗性进化动态的农艺、生态和进化驱动因素。杂草监测、基因组学和抗性诊断、统计和数据科学等新兴技术将极大地促进大规模数据集的收集和分析，为景观尺度除草剂抗性演变的流行病学分析提供前所未有的潜力。不同抗性机制的起源和传播，以及决定局部到全球范围抗性进化动态的农艺、生态和进化驱动因素。杂草监测、基因组学和抗性诊断、统计和数据科学等新兴技术将极大地促进大规模数据集的收集和分析，为景观尺度除草剂抗性演变的流行病学分析提供前所未有的潜力。