Article
Plant Sciences
Camilo H. Parada-Rojas, Lina M. Quesada-Ocampo
Summary: Phytophthora capsici epidemics are driven by warm temperatures and wet conditions. The population structure of P. capsici is influenced by host crop, geographical origin, fungicide sensitivity, and mating type. Understanding the population structure is important for managing P. capsici in the field. Our study identified different genetic clusters and found some correspondence with host and geographical distribution. We also discovered stratification in fluopicolide sensitivity and nonrandom mating in North Carolina populations.
Article
Plant Sciences
Shun Feng, Shicai Tang, Yongfei Jian, Xiaoqing Huang, Liang Jin, Zhenglin Zhu, Pan Dong, Zhengguo Li
Summary: Streptomyces sp. strain A2-16, isolated from potato root zone soil, has been found to inhibit the growth of Phytophthora infestans. Genome analysis revealed a large number of coding genes and secondary metabolite biosynthesis gene clusters in A2-16, potentially contributing to disease resistance in host plants. Comparison with other Streptomyces species indicated that A2-16 may be a novel species.
Article
Agronomy
Erika M. Bueno, Casey L. McIlhenny, Yolanda H. Chen
Summary: The article discusses the adaptability of agricultural insect pests to stressors and the potential role of cross-protection mechanisms. By studying single and multiple stressors, the importance of cross-protection in insect pests is revealed, and mechanisms such as epigenetic modifications that facilitate cross-protection are proposed.
PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Biology
Jessica Ann Phillips, Juan S. Vargas Soto, Samraat Pawar, Janet Koprivnikar, Daniel P. Benesh, Peter K. Molnar
Summary: Helminth parasites are widespread in ecosystems, but predicting their response to climate change is challenging. This study compiled a large dataset on the temperature sensitivity of helminths and used metabolic theory to estimate the activation energy for their developmental rates. The findings suggest that different helminth taxa may vary in their sensitivity to rising temperatures.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Tara E. Stewart Merrill, Dana M. Calhoun, Pieter T. J. Johnson
Summary: Understanding the capacity of different species to support parasite transmission, known as "competence", is crucial for modeling transmission and testing diversity-disease theory. However, the factors that generate competence and drive its variation are not well understood. This study developed novel approaches to systematically quantify competence for a multi-host, multi-parasite community. The findings suggest that variation in competence is mainly driven by differences in barrier resistance and pre-transmission mortality, highlighting the importance of host resistance and parasite pathogenicity. Host species identity was found to be a strong predictor of competence variation. This study provides valuable insights into the mechanisms of infection and epidemiological patterns.
FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Forest R. R. Schenck, Katherine DuBois, Melissa R. R. Kardish, John J. J. Stachowicz, A. Randall Hughes
Summary: Temperature increases due to climate change have impacted disease distribution and severity, leading to outbreaks that can harm host populations. The identity, diversity, and microbiome of hosts can influence their response to infection and temperature, but little is known about their role as important mediators of disease in altered thermal environments. In this study, an 8-week warming experiment was conducted to examine the effects of warming, host genotypic identity, and host genotypic diversity on infection prevalence and intensity in seagrass. The results showed that genotypically diverse host assemblages had lower infection intensity, but not prevalence, at elevated temperatures. Additionally, changes in the host microbiome were correlated with genotype-specific responses to infection under warming. This research highlights the context dependence of biodiversity-disease relationships and emphasizes the potential significance of interactions between biodiversity loss, climate change, and disease outbreaks.
Article
Plant Sciences
A. Rahman, J. R. Standish, K. N. D'Arcangelo, L. M. Quesada-Ocampo
Summary: Pseudoperonospora cubensis is the cause of cucurbit downy mildew, with annual epidemics in the United States due to windborne sporangia traveling long distances and surviving prolonged exposure to sunlight. A multiplex quantitative PCR assay has been developed to detect the pathogen early on and improve disease management.
Article
Biology
Tad A. Dallas, Pedro Jordano
Summary: The study on host-helminth parasite interactions found that geographical area influences species richness and the number of species interactions, but the species-area slopes for host species and helminth parasites were different than theoretical predictions. Additionally, host-helminth network modularity decreased with increasing area, contrary to theoretical predictions.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Zoology
Ana Santacruz, David Hernandez-Mena, Ramses Miranda-Gamboa, Gerardo Perez-Ponce De Leon, Claudia Patricia Ornelas-Garcia
Summary: Astyanax mexicanus has colonized cave environments multiple times and shows evolutionary parallelisms in troglobitic traits. In this study, the macroparasite communities in cavefish populations were investigated and compared to those in surface fish populations. The study identified 13 parasite taxa, with monogeneans being the dominant group. Surprisingly, the cavefish exhibited higher parasite richness than the surface fish. This study provides baseline data on parasite diversity in A. mexicanus and offers insights into the role of divergent parasite infections in the evolution of cave adaptive traits.
ZOOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Madeleine Barton, Hazel Parry, Samantha Ward, Ary A. Hoffmann, Paul A. Umina, Maarten van Helden, Sarina Macfadyen
Summary: Climate change has complex impacts on agricultural pests, with process-based models often unable to fully explore species' responses. A novel mechanistic model has been developed here, providing valuable insights into population dynamics of two cosmopolitan species.
ECOLOGICAL MODELLING
(2021)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Xiaoxue Du, Levan Elbakidze, Liang Lu, R. Garth Taylor
Summary: This study explores the role of weather and pest infestation forecast errors in agricultural pest management. It suggests that applying pesticides later in the growing season can have more benefits than early application when pesticide use is restricted due to environmental or health regulations, and highlights the value of information.
Article
Entomology
Ghislain T. Tepa-Yotto, Henri E. Z. Tonnang, Georg Goergen, Sevgan Subramanian, Emily Kimathi, Elfatih M. Abdel-Rahman, Daniel Flo, Karl H. Thunes, Komi K. M. Fiaboe, Saliou Niassy, Anani Bruce, Samira A. Mohamed, Manuele Tamo, Sunday Ekesi, May-Guri Saethre
Summary: The fall armyworm is now a global pest, with biological control being a sustainable and environmentally friendly option. Predicting the habitats of parasitoids in South America offers new insights for controlling the pest.
Article
Plant Sciences
Weiya Xue, Kathleen G. Haynes, Xinshun Qu
Summary: The study evaluated resistance to late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans clonal lineage US-23 in 217 potato cultivars in Pennsylvania. Significant differences in resistance were found among cultivars, with 30 showing resistance and 32 showing moderate resistance. Late blight resistance and early blight resistance were positively correlated, and no yield trade-off associated with late blight resistance was observed in the absence of disease pressure.
Editorial Material
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Kelly A. Speer
Summary: Parasitic and parasitoid organisms rely on chemical cues to locate a host. Recent research suggests that the microbiome can emit volatile organic compounds that attract or repel parasites. This innovative mechanism changes our understanding of host-parasite coevolution and highlights the role of the microbiome as a third actor in this interaction.
Article
Plant Sciences
J. R. Standish, E. Gongora-Castillo, M. J. Bowman, K. L. Childs, M. Tian, L. M. Quesada-Ocampo
Summary: In this study, a bioinformatics pipeline was developed to predict specific diagnostic markers for Peronospora belbahrii, the causative agent of basil downy mildew. These markers were validated and used to develop a highly sensitive qPCR assay for detecting P. belbahrii in leaf tissue and seed samples. The assay was able to detect low concentrations of P. belbahrii genomic DNA and a small number of sporangia. This research is valuable for diagnostics and identifying contaminated seed lots to mitigate the effects of basil downy mildew epidemics.
Article
Virology
Ramesh R. Vetukuri, Pruthvi B. Kalyandurg, Ganapathi Varma Saripella, Diya Sen, Jose Fernando Gil, Nina Lukhovitskaya, Laura J. Grenville-Briggs, Eugene Savenkov
ARCHIVES OF VIROLOGY
(2020)
Article
Entomology
Mudassir Iqbal, Maha Jamshaid, Muhammad Awais Zahid, Erik Andreasson, Ramesh R. Vetukuri, Johan A. Stenberg
Summary: The study demonstrated that Aureobasidium pullulans is an effective biocontrol agent to control strawberry diseases caused by fungal pathogens, and can be an effective alternative to chemical-based fungicides.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Muhammad Awais Zahid, Murilo Sandroni, Ramesh Raju Vetukuri, Erik Andreasson
Summary: The researchers developed a fast and nondestructive method using near-infrared scanning to analyze leaf injuries, which was compared to the traditional trypan blue staining method. The new protocol was found to be time-efficient, nondestructive, chemical-free, and suitable for high-throughput studies.
Article
Microbiology
Edoardo Piombo, Ramesh R. Vetukuri, Anders Broberg, Pruthvi B. Kalyandurg, Sandeep Kushwaha, Dan Funck Jensen, Magnus Karlsson, Mukesh Dubey
Summary: This study investigated the role of DCL-dependent RNAi in mycoparasitic interactions by deleting dcl genes in Clonostachys rosea, revealing the importance of DCL in producing sRNAs involved in antagonistic actions. The study also identified novel microRNA-like RNAs in C. rosea and demonstrated potential cross-species communication mediated by sRNAs targeting virulence factors in other fungi.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2021)
Article
Biology
Farideh Ghadamgahi, Saeed Tarighi, Parissa Taheri, Ganapathi Varma Saripella, Alice Anzalone, Pruthvi Balachandra Kalyandurg, Vittoria Catara, Rodomiro Ortiz, Ramesh Raju Vetukuri
Summary: Microbial bio-stimulants, particularly plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain FG106, have the potential to enhance plant productivity and combat pathogens. FG106 displayed multiple plant growth-promoting attributes and effectively inhibited various phytopathogens, suggesting it could serve as a valuable biocontrol agent in agriculture.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Edoardo Piombo, Ramesh Raju Vetukuri, Poorva Sundararajan, Sandeep Kushwaha, Dan Funck Jensen, Magnus Karlsson, Mukesh Dubey
Summary: In this study, the role of sRNA-mediated gene regulation in mycoparasitic interactions was investigated by performing sRNA and degradome tag sequencing of the mycoparasitic fungus Clonostachys rosea interacting with the plant-pathogenic mycohosts Botrytis cinerea and Fusarium graminearum. The majority of differentially expressed sRNAs were downregulated during the interactions with the mycohosts compared to a C. rosea self-interaction control, thus allowing desuppression of mycohost-responsive genes. Degradome analysis showed a positive correlation between high degradome counts and antisense sRNA mapping and led to the identification of 201 sRNA-mediated potential gene targets for 282 differentially expressed sRNAs. The study expands the understanding of sRNA in regulating interspecific fungal interactions and mycoparasitism.
APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Jessica Bubolz, Patrycja Sleboda, Anna Lehrman, Sven-Ove Hansson, Carl Johan Lagerkvist, Bjorn Andersson, Marit Lenman, Svante Resjo, Marc Ghislain, Muhammad Awais Zahid, Nam Phuong Kieu, Erik Andreasson
Summary: In this study, we demonstrate the full late blight resistance of genetically modified potatoes containing three resistance genes in a population with genetic diversity of the pathogen. Furthermore, through field trials, we show that intervention among consumers in the field leads to a more favorable attitude towards genetically modified crops.
GM CROPS & FOOD-BIOTECHNOLOGY IN AGRICULTURE AND THE FOOD CHAIN
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Edoardo Piombo, Bekele Gelena Kelbessa, Poorva Sundararajan, Stephen C. Whisson, Ramesh Raju Vetukuri, Mukesh Dubey
Summary: In this study, the genomes of several oomycete species were analyzed to investigate the role of RNA silencing. It was found that RNA silencing plays a crucial role in limiting the expansion of transposons, regulating gene expression, and potentially controlling infection in oomycetes. Novel miRNA-like RNAs (milRNAs) were also discovered, which may have implications in pathogenicity and biocontrol.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Okanlawon L. Jolayemi, Ali H. Malik, Ramesh R. Vetukuri, Ganapathi V. Saripella, Pruthvi B. Kalyandurg, Tobias Ekblad, Jean W. H. Yong, Marie E. Olsson, Eva Johansson
Summary: Protein-based biostimulants (PBBs) enhance plant development by upregulating genes related to protein and photosynthesis. Hydrolyzed wheat gluten (HWG) and potato protein film (PF) were effective PBBs for promoting sugar beet growth and improving protein-related traits. Sucrose accumulation in the roots was mainly influenced by the availability of nitrogen.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Nurul Atilia Shafienaz binti Hanifah, Farideh Ghadamgahi, Samrat Ghosh, Rodomiro Ortiz, Stephen C. Whisson, Ramesh R. Vetukuri, Pruthvi B. Kalyandurg
Summary: The use of biocontrol agents with plant growth-promoting activity has been recognized as a sustainable approach in agriculture. Four bacteria were found to be associated with increased plant height in a field evaluation of potato plants treated with biocontrol rhizobacteria. Comparative analysis of the growth-promoting activity of the four bacterial strains, namely Pseudomonas fluorescens SLU99, Serratia plymuthica S412, S. rubidaea AV10, and S. rubidaea EV23, was conducted using tomato and potato plants. The results showed that P. fluorescens SLU99 promoted growth in both potato and tomato plants, while EV23 only promoted growth in potato plants. SLU99 induced the expression of hormone-related genes in potato and tomato, particularly those involved in the regulation of auxin, cytokinin, gibberellic acid, and ethylene. These findings provide insights into the mechanisms underlying the growth promotion and biocontrol effects of these rhizobacteria and suggest their potential use in improving crop yield sustainably.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Horticulture
Samia Samad, Rodmar Rivero, Pruthvi Balachandra Kalyandurg, Ramesh Raju Vetukuri, Ola M. Heide, Anita Sonsteby, Sammar Khalil
Summary: This study examined the floral transition in the cultivated everbearing strawberry using morphogenetic and molecular analyses. The results showed that environmental factors have a strong influence on meristem development and identified the FaFT1-FaSOC1 pathway similar to that in the everbearing woodland strawberry. The study also revealed the roles of FaFT1 and FaSOC1 in floral induction and initiation, as well as the potential of using FaFUL as an early indicator of floral initiation in everbearing cultivars.
Article
Agronomy
Ramesh R. Vetukuri, Mukesh Dubey, Pruthvi B. Kalyandurg, Anders S. Carlsson, Stephen C. Whisson, Rodomiro Ortiz
Summary: Modern plant breeding remains time-consuming and expensive, leading to a need for alternative methods. RNA interference technology, especially spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS), shows potential for controlling endogenous gene expression in plants or pathogens. SIGS has the added benefit of reducing pest impact and enhancing crop performance.
CROP BREEDING AND APPLIED BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2021)