Plant pest surveillance: from satellites to molecules.

Gonçalo Silva,Sarah Sommer,Oindrila Hossain,James Legg,Alex Laverick,Yaiza Gutierrez-Vazquez,Thomas P Howard,Latifa Mrisho,Jenny Tomlinson,Qingshan Wei,Kaitlin M Gold,Nawaporn Onkokesung,Ian P Adams,Neil Boonham,Joseph M Jez,Christopher N Topp

doi:10.1042/etls20200300

Abstract

Plant pests and diseases impact both food security and natural ecosystems, and the impact has been accelerated in recent years due to several confounding factors. The globalisation of trade has moved pests out of natural ranges, creating damaging epidemics in new regions. Climate change has extended the range of pests and the pathogens they vector. Resistance to agrochemicals has made pathogens, pests, and weeds more difficult to control. Early detection is critical to achieve effective control, both from a biosecurity as well as an endemic pest perspective. Molecular diagnostics has revolutionised our ability to identify pests and diseases over the past two decades, but more recent technological innovations are enabling us to achieve better pest surveillance. In this review, we will explore the different technologies that are enabling this advancing capability and discuss the drivers that will shape its future deployment.

Highlights

With United Nations figures estimating that the world population is expected to reach almost 10 billion people in 2050 [1], there will be growing demand for food delivered through increased production, changes in dietary preferences and improved distribution [2]
• Innovations in technology are providing a great array of tools to enable surveillance in support
• Automation will be crucial in building effective surveillance systems to provide early warning of the presence

Summary

Introduction

With United Nations figures estimating that the world population is expected to reach almost 10 billion people in 2050 [1], there will be growing demand for food delivered through increased production, changes in dietary preferences and improved distribution [2]. A smartphone-based gas sensor developed for noninvasive diagnosis of plant diseases has been demonstrated by Li et al [65] (Figure 2A), combining brightfield smartphone microscopy with a paper-based colorimetric chemical sensor array [66,67] to achieve high sensitivity for green leaf volatiles and phytohormones This device was able to identify late blight (P. infestans) in asymptomatic plants 2 days post inoculation and accurately differentiate late blight from other pathogens. Nucleic acid-based methods with the potential to be used outside the laboratory have been developed for plant pathogens including viruses, bacteria, fungi, and oomycetes [87] Most of these methods have been used to test small samples of plant tissue with symptoms of disease with relatively low throughput, to confirm the presence of a specific pest. Biosensors could be positioned in fields or storage sites and periodically checked for produced indicators of environmental change, such as pathogen presence

Discussion

Summary