ALEPPO, Syria, Sept. 11 (UPI) -- Wind-borne wheat diseases threaten food security in at least 26 countries and genetic diversity worldwide, scientists in Syria said.

Of particular concern is the black stem rust Ug99, which emerged in East Africa, invaded West Asia and now appears headed to South Asia, where wheat is essential to survival, said Dr. Mahmoud Solh, head of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas.

Solh and other scientists at a conference in Aleppo, Syria, called for a global wheat rust reference laboratory to isolate and interrupt wheat disease, Solh said in a release Friday.

The laboratory would hold samples of all known species of wheat rust in secure containment, identifying new sources of resistance in wheat and developing new wheat varieties, said Ronnie Coffman, vice chair of the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative.

"We are running against time to ensure development of durable resistant varieties," Coffman said.