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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, July 2005, p. 3581-3588, Vol. 71, No. 7
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.7.3581-3588.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Relative Importance of Bacteriocin-Like Genes in Antagonism of Xanthomonas perforans Tomato Race 3 to Xanthomonas euvesicatoria Tomato Race 1 Strains

A. P. Hert,¹ P. D. Roberts,² M. T. Momol,³ G. V. Minsavage,¹ S. M. Tudor-Nelson,¹ and J. B. Jones^1*

Department of Plant Pathology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611,¹ Southwest Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Immokalee, Florida 34142,² North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Quincy, Florida 32351³

Received 12 August 2004/ Accepted 18 January 2005

In a previous study, tomato race 3 (T3) strains of Xanthomonas perforans became predominant in fields containing both X. euvesicatoria and X. perforans races T1 and T3, respectively. This apparent ability to take over fields led to the discovery that there are three bacteriocin-like compounds associated with T3 strains. T3 strain 91-118 produces at least three different bacteriocin-like compounds (BCN-A, BCN-B, and BCN-C) antagonistic toward T1 strains. We determined the relative importance of the bacteriocin-like compounds by constructing the following mutant forms of a wild-type (WT) T3 strain to evaluate the antagonism to WT T1 strains: Mut-A (BCN-A^–), Mut-B (BCN-B^–), Mut-C (BCN-C^–), Mut-AB, Mut-BC, and Mut-ABC. Although all mutant and WT T3 strains reduced the T1 populations in in planta growth room experiments, Mut-B and WT T3 were significantly more effective. Mutants expressing BCN-B and either BCN-A or BCN-C reduced T1 populations less than mutants expressing only BCN-A or BCN-C. The triple-knockout mutant Mut-ABC also had a significant competitive advantage over the T1 strain. In pairwise-inoculation field experiments where plants were coinoculated with an individual mutant or WT T3 strain and the T1 strain, the mutant strains and the WT T3 strain were reisolated from more than 70% of the lesions. WT T3 and Mut-B were the most frequently reisolated strains. In field experiments where plants were group inoculated with Mut-A, Mut-B, Mut-C, Mut-ABC, and WT T1 and T3 strains, Mut-B populations dominated all three seasons. In greenhouse and field experiments, the WT and mutant T3 strains had a selective advantage over T1 strains. Bacterial strains expressing both BCN-A and BCN-C appeared to have a competitive advantage over all other mutant and WT strains. Furthermore, BCN-B appeared to be a negative factor, with mutant T3 strains lacking BCN-B having a selective advantage in the field.

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* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Plant Pathology, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110680, Gainesville, FL 32611. Phone: (352) 392-3631. Fax: (352) 392-6532. E-mail: jbjones{at}ufl.edu.

Journal series no. R-10634 from the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station.

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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, July 2005, p. 3581-3588, Vol. 71, No. 7
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.7.3581-3588.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

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