TY - JOUR
T1 - 'Candidatus Liberibacter europaeus' sp. nov. that is associated with and transmitted by the psyllid Cacopsylla pyri apparently behaves as an endophyte rather than a pathogen
AU - Raddadi, Noura
AU - Gonella, Elena
AU - Camerota, Caterina
AU - Pizzinat, Alan
AU - Tedeschi, Rosemarie
AU - Crotti, Elena
AU - Mandrioli, Mauro
AU - Attilio Bianco, Piero
AU - Daffonchio, Daniele
AU - Alma, Alberto
PY - 2011/2
Y1 - 2011/2
N2 - 'Candidatus Liberibacter spp.' cause serious plant diseases. 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus', 'Ca. L. americanus' and 'Ca. L. africanus' are the aetiological agents of citrus greening (Huanglongbing) in Asia, America and Africa. 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum' causes diseases in Solanaceae in America and New Zealand. All four species are vectored by psyllid insects of different genera. Here, we show that the pear psyllid pest Cacopsylla pyri (L.) hosts a novel liberibacter species that we named 'Ca. Liberibacter europaeus'. It can bloom to high titres in the psyllid host, with more than 109 16S rRNA gene copies per individual. Fluorescent in situ hybridization experiments showed that 'Ca. L. europaeus' is present in the host midgut lumen, salivary glands and Malpighian tubules. 'Candidatus L. europaeus' has a relatively high prevalence (>51%) in C. pyri from different areas in the Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta regions in Italy and can be transmitted to pear plants in experimental transmission trials. However, even though high titres of the bacterium (more than 108 16S rRNA gene copies g-1 of pear plant tissue) could be detected, in the pear tissues no specific disease symptoms could be observed in the infected plants over a 6-month period. Despite liberibacters representing potential quarantine organisms, 'Ca. L. europaeus', first described in Italy and Europe, apparently behaves as an endophyte rather than a pathogen.
AB - 'Candidatus Liberibacter spp.' cause serious plant diseases. 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus', 'Ca. L. americanus' and 'Ca. L. africanus' are the aetiological agents of citrus greening (Huanglongbing) in Asia, America and Africa. 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum' causes diseases in Solanaceae in America and New Zealand. All four species are vectored by psyllid insects of different genera. Here, we show that the pear psyllid pest Cacopsylla pyri (L.) hosts a novel liberibacter species that we named 'Ca. Liberibacter europaeus'. It can bloom to high titres in the psyllid host, with more than 109 16S rRNA gene copies per individual. Fluorescent in situ hybridization experiments showed that 'Ca. L. europaeus' is present in the host midgut lumen, salivary glands and Malpighian tubules. 'Candidatus L. europaeus' has a relatively high prevalence (>51%) in C. pyri from different areas in the Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta regions in Italy and can be transmitted to pear plants in experimental transmission trials. However, even though high titres of the bacterium (more than 108 16S rRNA gene copies g-1 of pear plant tissue) could be detected, in the pear tissues no specific disease symptoms could be observed in the infected plants over a 6-month period. Despite liberibacters representing potential quarantine organisms, 'Ca. L. europaeus', first described in Italy and Europe, apparently behaves as an endophyte rather than a pathogen.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=79551481572&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1462-2920.2010.02347.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1462-2920.2010.02347.x
M3 - Article
C2 - 21040355
AN - SCOPUS:79551481572
SN - 1462-2912
VL - 13
SP - 414
EP - 426
JO - Environmental microbiology
JF - Environmental microbiology
IS - 2
ER -