Abstract
Bacterial wilt diseases caused by Ralstonia solanacearum, R. pseudosolanacearum, and R. syzygii subsp. indonesiensis (former R. solanacearum species complex) are among the most important plant diseases worldwide, severely affecting a high number of crops and ornamentals. Difficulties of bacterial wilt control by non-biological methods are related to effectiveness, bacterial resistance and environmental impact. Alternatively, a great many biocontrol strategies have been carried out, with the advantage of being environmentally friendly. Advances in bacterial wilt biocontrol include an increasing interest in bacteriophage-based treatments as a promising re-emerging strategy. Bacteriophages against the bacterial wilt pathogens have been described with either lytic or lysogenic effect but, they were proved to be active against strains belonging to R. pseudosolanacearum and/or R. syzygii subsp. indonesiensis, not to the present R. solanacearum species, and only two of them demonstrated successful biocontrol potential in planta. Despite the publication of three patents on the topic, until now no bacteriophage-based product is commercially available. Therefore, there is still much to be done to incorporate valid bacteriophages in an integrated management program to effectively fight bacterial wilt in the field.
Highlights
Frontiers in Plant ScienceBacterial wilt diseases caused by Ralstonia solanacearum, R. pseudosolanacearum, and R. syzygii subsp
The species Ralstonia solanacearum, R. pseudosolanacearum, and R. syzygii subsp. indonesiensis (Safni et al, 2014) are the causative agents of bacterial wilt (Kelman, 1953; Hayward, 1991), a disease with a worldwide distribution (Elphinstone, 2005; EPPO, 2017)
Biocontrol assays were performed by injecting one of the lysogenic bacteriophages into the major stem of the tested plants, and it was concluded that this filamentous bacteriophage was not successful for bacterial wilt biocontrol (Yamada et al, 2007) (Table 1). It was suggested the utility of bacteriophages φRSM1 and φRSS1 for molecular biological studies and specific and efficient detection of R. solanacearum, as well as the convenience of phages φRSL1 and φRSA1 for biocontrol assays of the pathogen in plant crops (Yamada et al, 2007). Another bacteriophage with lytic activity against R. solanacearum was isolated in Japan, named φRSB1 (Kawasaki et al, 2009) and classified into the Podoviridae-like family, with dsDNA of approximately 43.0 kb
Summary
Bacterial wilt diseases caused by Ralstonia solanacearum, R. pseudosolanacearum, and R. syzygii subsp. Indonesiensis (former R. solanacearum species complex) are among the most important plant diseases worldwide, severely affecting a high number of crops and ornamentals. Difficulties of bacterial wilt control by non-biological methods are related to effectiveness, bacterial resistance and environmental impact. A great many biocontrol strategies have been carried out, with the advantage of being environmentally friendly. Advances in bacterial wilt biocontrol include an increasing interest in bacteriophage-based treatments as a promising re-emerging strategy. Bacteriophages against the bacterial wilt pathogens have been described with either lytic or lysogenic effect but, they were proved to be active against strains belonging to R. pseudosolanacearum and/or R. syzygii subsp. Indonesiensis, not to the present R. solanacearum species, and only two of them demonstrated successful biocontrol potential in planta.
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