This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Fukui, R. Articles by Alvarez, A. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Fukui, R. Articles by Alvarez, A. M. Agricola Articles by Fukui, R. Articles by Alvarez, A. M.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Appl. Environ. Microbiol., Mar 1996, 1021-1028, Vol 62, No. 3
Copyright © 1996, American Society for Microbiology

Relationship between Symptom Development and Actual Sites of Infection in Leaves of Anthurium Inoculated with a Bioluminescent Strain of Xanthomonas campestris pv. dieffenbachiae

R Fukui, H Fukui, R McElhaney, SC Nelson and AM Alvarez
Department of Plant Pathology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822-2279

The infection process of bacterial blight of anthurium was monitored with a bioluminescent strain of Xanthomonas campestris pv. dieffenbachiae. The relationship between symptom expression on infected leaves (assessed visually) and the extent of bacterial movement within tissues (evaluated by bioluminescence emission) varied among anthurium cultivars. In several cultivars previously considered susceptible on the basis of symptom development alone, bacterial invasion of leaves extended far beyond the visually affected areas. In other cultivars previously considered resistant, bacterial invasion was restricted to areas with visible symptoms. In three cultivars previously considered resistant, leaves were extensively invaded by the bacterium, and yet few or no symptoms were seen on infected leaves. The pathogen was consistently recovered from leaf sections emitting bioluminescence but not from sections emitting no light. At an early stage of infection, no significant differences in the percentages of infected areas as determined by visual assessment were observed in any of the cultivars. However, differences among cultivars were detected by bioluminescence as the disease progressed, because bacterial invasion was not always accompanied by symptom expression. In susceptible cultivars, the advancing border of infection was 5 to 10 cm inward from the margins of the visible symptoms and often reached to the leaf petiole even when symptoms were visible in <10% of the total leaf area. Comparisons of anthurium cultivars in which a nondestructive method was used to quantify the severity of leaf infection by a bioluminescent pathogen have enabled us to evaluate susceptibility and resistance to bacterial blight accurately. Such evaluations will be of importance in breeding resistant cultivars for disease control.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Robene-Soustrade, I., Laurent, P., Gagnevin, L., Jouen, E., Pruvost, O. (2006). Specific Detection of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. dieffenbachiae in Anthurium (Anthurium andreanum) Tissues by Nested PCR. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 1072-1078 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Grall, S., Roulland, C., Guillaumes, J., Manceau, C. (2005). Bleeding Sap and Old Wood Are the Two Main Sources of Contamination of Merging Organs of Vine Plants by Xylophilus ampelinus, the Causal Agent of Bacterial Necrosis. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71: 8292-8300 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Fukui, R., Fukui, H., Alvarez, A. M. (1999). Suppression of Bacterial Blight by a Bacterial Community Isolated from the Guttation Fluids of Anthuriums. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 65: 1020-1028 [Abstract] [Full Text]