Invasive plant pathogens, such as Xylella fastidiosa (Xf), pose a major threat to global agricultural and natural ecosystems, yet their impacts are rarely assessed across agro–natural interfaces where plant diversity, landscape structure and environmental stress...
Publications
Keywords
Thermotherapy Treatments of Fruit Trees of the Genus Prunus Infected by Viruses and Bacteria
The thermotherapy technique has been used to evaluate the viability of hot water treatments (HWTs) for the elimination of different pathogens that infect commercial fruit trees. The present project focuses on common pathogens of Prunus species at the nursery level...
A metabolic model based on a pangenome core reveals putative conserved biochemical features of the phytopathogen Xylella fastidiosa
Xylella fastidiosa is a xylem-limited phytopathogenic bacterium responsible for severe diseases in many economically important crops. Despite its impact, its metabolism remains poorly characterized due to fastidious growth and the limited availability of defined...
The susceptibility of olive cultivars to Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca ST53 affects transmission efficiency of the insect vector Philaenus spumarius (Hemiptera: Aphrophoridae)
BACKGROUND Olive quick decline syndrome (OQDS), caused by Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca ST53, has devastated olive groves in Apulia (southern Italy), severely impacting olive production and rural agroecosystems. High populations of the key insect...
Confirmation of Xylella fastidiosa (Lysobacterales: Lysobacteraceae) transmission by 8 leafhopper species present in coffee plantations in Costa Rica
Xylella fastidiosa Wells et al. 1987 is a vector-transmitted plant pathogen of economic importance that is widespread throughout coffee plantations in Costa Rica. Previous studies have shown the existence of a broad diversity of leafhoppers present in different coffee...
Emerging risk of Xylella fastidiosa in Europe under global change
The insect-borne bacterium Xylella fastidiosa is one of the most damaging plant pathogens affecting perennial crops in Europe since its first detection in 2013. Although its spread has remained geographically constrained, recent outbreaks and surveillance data suggest...
Genomic Analysis of Prophage Distribution in Xylella fastidiosa Reveals Extensive Diversity and Horizontal Gene Transfer
Xylella fastidiosa is a plant-pathogenic bacterium responsible for significant agricultural and environmental impact. Prophages, genetic elements of viral origin integrated into bacterial genomes, play a key role in bacterial evolution by facilitating horizontal gene...
A genomic locus uniquely encoded by blueberry-infecting Xylella fastidiosa strains affects motility and biofilm formation in vitro, and virulence in planta
Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) is an insect-transmitted, xylem-limited bacterial plant pathogen that infects hundreds of plant species. This pathogen causes bacterial leaf scorch in southern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum interspecific hybrids) in the southeastern...
Endophytic colonization and epiphytic presence of Metarhizium brunneum alter the feeding behavior of the Xylella fastidiosa vector Philaenus spumarius
Philaenus spumarius represents the primary vector of the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa in Europe; hence, control measures are directed toward it, with a need for alternatives aligned with the agricultural sustainability criteria. Entomopathogenic ascomycetes (EA) show...
First Report of Xylella fastidiosa Infection and Pierce’s Disease in Resistant Grape Cultivars in Texas, United States
All commercially cultivated European grapevines (Vitis vinifera) are considered susceptible to Pierces disease (PD) caused by the xylem-limited bacterium Xylella fastidiosa (Wilcox et al. 2015). PD causes vine losses and is the primary limiting factor to grape...