National Plant Protection Organizations Research Articles

Fusarium Tropical Race 4 in Latin America and the Caribbean: status and global research advances towards disease management

Fusarium wilt of banana (FWB), caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc), poses an undeniable threat to global banana production. This disease has intensified in recent years, with the tropical race 4 (TR4) strain spreading rapidly. Since 2018, the number of affected countries has increased from 16 to 23, presenting a significant challenge to researchers, producers, and National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs) worldwide. The potential impact of TR4 in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is particularly concerning. This region boasts seven of the top ten banana-exporting countries, and bananas and plantains are crucial for food security and income generation. In Colombia, where TR4 was detected in 2019, the disease has already spread from La Guajira to Magdalena, and it is currently affecting 20 large commercial export farms. In Peru, the disease was detected in 2021 and although still restricted to the northern region, flood irrigation and heavy rains associated with the Yaku cyclone, boosted pathogen spread, and more than 400 small organic banana farmers are currently affected. In Venezuela, TR4 detection occurred in 2023, with plantations across three states and five municipalities now affected. Worryingly, TR4 has also been confirmed in plantains, a staple food in the region. Current national responses in LAC primarily rely on preventive and reactive measures: preventing initial incursions and containing outbreaks to avoid further spread. However, the disease’s relentless progression suggests that its eventual presence in all banana-producing areas is likely. Therefore, exploring alternative management approaches beyond pathogen exclusion becomes crucial, both in affected and disease-free regions. This paper examines the current spread of TR4, focusing on epidemiological aspects and recent research-based management options. Key epidemiological features were highlighted, drawing practical examples from various scales (plots to landscapes) and utilizing experiences from LAC’s fight against TR4. The paper also reviews field-tested approaches in biosecurity, biological control, resistant varieties, soil health, and integrated disease management, acknowledging the specific challenges faced by smallholder settings. In each section research initiatives were analyzed, identifying gaps, and proposing directions to minimize TR4 impact and accelerate the development of sustainable solutions for managing this devastating disease.

Which SDM Model, CLIMEX vs. MaxEnt, Best Forecasts Aeolesthes sarta Distribution at a Global Scale under Climate Change Scenarios?

A precise evaluation of the risk of establishing insect pests is essential for national plant protection organizations. This accuracy is crucial in negotiating international trade agreements for forestry-related commodities, which have the potential to carry pests and lead to unintended introductions in the importing countries. In our study, we employed both mechanistic and correlative niche models to assess and map the global patterns of potential establishment for Aeolesthes sarta under current and future climates. This insect is a significant pest affecting tree species of the genus Populus, Salix, Acer, Malus, Juglans, and other hardwood trees. Notably, it is also categorized as a quarantine pest in countries where it is not currently present. The mechanistic model, CLIMEX, was calibrated using species-specific physiological tolerance thresholds, providing a detailed understanding of the environmental factors influencing the species. In contrast, the correlative model, maximum entropy (MaxEnt), utilized species occurrences and spatial climatic data, offering insights into the species' distribution based on observed data and environmental conditions. The projected potential distribution from CLIMEX and MaxEnt models aligns well with the currently known distribution of A. sarta. CLIMEX predicts a broader global distribution than MaxEnt, indicating that most central and southern hemispheres are suitable for its distribution, excluding the extreme northern hemisphere, central African countries, and the northern part of Australia. Both models accurately predict the known distribution of A. sarta in the Asian continent, and their projections suggest a slight overall increase in the global distribution range of A. sarta with future changes in climate temperature, majorly concentrating in the central and northern hemispheres. Furthermore, the models anticipate suitable conditions in Europe and North America, where A. sarta currently does not occur but where its preferred host species, Populus alba, is present. The main environmental variables associated with the distribution of A. sarta at a global level were the average annual temperature and precipitation rate. The predictive models developed in this study offer insights into the global risk of A. sarta establishment and can be valuable for monitoring potential pest introductions in different countries. Additionally, policymakers and trade negotiators can utilize these models to make science-based decisions regarding pest management and international trade agreements.

A time series analysis of monthly issuance of plant import permits in Nigeria

An import permit is issued by the National Plant Protection Organization of each country, known in Nigeria as the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), to allow the importation of pest-free plants and prevent the introduction of quarantine pests or check the entry of regulated non-quarantine pests of imported plant commodities. Issuance of import permits at the Post-Entry Quarantine, Surveillance and Diagnostic Station (PEQDS), Ibadan is mostly for germplasm materials mainly used for cultivation, which poses a high risk of pest introduction. Thus, this study investigated the statistical components of the issuance of import permits at the PEQDS using the Time Series approach to determine the peak period of collection essential for planning phytosanitary activities to mitigate the introduction of foreign pests. The dataset of the monthly issuance of import permits from January 2012 to July 2022 was analysed. From the preliminary study, we observed that the series exhibit seasonal and stationary components with no definite trend pattern, hence we modelled the series using a Seasonal Autoregressive Moving Average (SARIMA) model. Several models were estimated and the best model (SAR(12)) for forecasting the future import permit collectionwas selected based on the forecast accuracy measures. The forecasted values indicated the highest issuance of import permits in May and September, each year and showed a fluctuating movement over time in the future. To further prevent pest incursion and facilitate trade, NAQS needs to operate round-the-clock surveillance, keep its staff on high alert and adequate facilities operational for more effective activities. Other factors responsible for low and fluctuating issuance of import permits should also be investigated.

PCR-based detection for the quarantine fungus Colletotrichum kahawae, a biosecurity threat to the coffee (Coffea arabica) industry worldwide.

Coffee berry disease (CBD) is caused by Colletotrichum kahawae, a quarantine fungus still absent from most coffee-producing countries. Given the potential adverse effects on coffee berry production, it is a severe worldwide threat to farmers and industry. Current biosecurity management focuses on exclusion by applying quarantine measures, including certification of coffee plants and their products. However, methods for detecting C. kahawae by the NPPO (National Plant Protection Organization) laboratories still need approval. This research aims to functionally demonstrate, standardize, and validate a method for detecting and discriminating C. kahawae from other Colletotrichum species that may be present in coffee plant samples. The method proposes to use an end-point PCR marker for the mating type gene (MAT1-2-1) and a confirmatory test with a qPCR marker developed on the glutamine synthetase (GS) gene. The C. kahawae amplicons for the Cen-CkM10 marker exhibited specific melting temperature (Tm) values that could be readily differentiated from other tested species, including their relatives. Given the fungus's quarantine status, specificity was tested using artificial mixtures of DNA of C. kahawae with other Colletotrichum species and coffee plant DNA. The described method will enable NPPOs in coffee producing and exporting countries, especially Colombia, to prevent this pathogen's entry, establishment, and spread.

Prioritisation of quarantine pest list for the Caribbean using a multi-criteria decision approach

Quarantine plant pests are socially, economically and environmentally important due to their impact on food security, human health, global trade and crop production costs. The increase in global trade and tourism, frequent occurrence of natural disasters and climate changes have exacerbated the rate of entry, establishment and spread of plant pests regionally and globally. It has, therefore, become exigent to develop a list of pests of quarantine importance at the regional and national levels to prioritise and allocate the limited available resources to manage the associated risks. In the present study, the Technical Committee on the Formulation and Prioritisation of a Regional Priority Pest List for the Caribbean, in collaboration with the National Plant Protection Organisation of the Caribbean countries and the United States Department of Agriculture - Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS), developed and prioritised a quarantine pest list using a multi-criteria decision-making approach. The technical committee successfully evolved the process in 2014 and 2018 and developed a list of the top 10 pests of quarantine importance for the Caribbean Region, employing the Delphi Technique (DT) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) through the assignment of criteria that are relevant to the region. The Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata), frosty pod rot (Moniliophthora roreri) and the tomato leaf miner (Tuta absoluta), listed as top quarantine pest threats, were subsequently detected in the region. This exercise guided the authorities in advance to allocate resources and to develop response plans including capacity building for surveillance and detection of priority pests. This has demonstrated the significance and appropriateness of the multi-criteria decision approach to determine priority pest lists and prepare the region for development of better management practices.

An Inter-Laboratory Comparative Study on the Influence of Reagents to Perform the Identification of the Xylella fastidiosa Subspecies Using Tetraplex Real Time PCR

In 2022, a test performance study (TPS) assessing the influence of different master mixes on the performance of the tetraplex real-time PCR (TqPCR) assay was organized. TqPCR allows for the specific detection and identification of Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) subspecies in a single reaction. Eighteen official laboratories of the Italian National Plant Protection Organization received a panel of 12 blind samples, controls, primers, probes, and different master mixes to participate in the TPS. Furthermore, the Research Centre for Plant Protection and Certification of the Council for Agricultural Research and Economics performed an intra-laboratory study (ITS) on spiked plant matrices to evaluate the analytical sensitivity of TqPCR employing the selected master mixes with the best performance. Naturally infected samples were analyzed for subspecies identification via TqPCR compared with the official multilocus-sequence-typing (MLST) method. The best results in this comparative study were obtained using Fast Universal PCR Master Mix (Applied Biosystems) and Brilliant multiplex QPCR Master Mix (Agilent), and they confirmed that the TqPCR test is reliable, offering the advantage of identifying this subspecies at the same time, thus saving time and resources. The TqPCR assay is suggested among the tests to be used by laboratories performing the official diagnosis of Xf to support the activities of official monitoring.

Root-knot nematode assessment: species identification, distribution, and new host records in Portugal.

Considered one of the most devastating plant parasitic nematodes worldwide, Meloidogyne spp. (commonly known as the root-knot nematodes (RKNs)) are obligate sedentary endoparasites that establish in the roots, causing hyperplasia and hypertrophy of surrounding cells, triggering the formation of galls. These galls will affect root development and physiology, leading to substantial yield losses. During 2017-2022, an extensive survey of Meloidogyne species was undertaken in Portugal (mainland and islands). A total of 1,071 samples were collected by the National Plant Protection Organization (DGAV) and private farmers from different regions of the country and were analysed at the Laboratory of Nematology (NemaINIAV). Samples in which the presence of Meloidogyne sp. was detected were used to perform bioassays to obtain females and juveniles for further studies. Since the accurate identification of RKNs is an important aspect of crop management, morphological and biochemical characterisation was performed. The most common morphological features were observed, showing consistency with previous descriptions of the genus. The biochemical identification using the esterase (EST) phenotype revealed the phenotypes of Meloidogyne arenaria, M enterolobi, M. hispanica, M. hapla, M. incognita, M javanica, and M. luci. Meloidogyne incognita and M. javanica were found to be the most prevalent species in the different regions followed by M. arenaria and M. hapla. This is the first distribution report performed in Portugal on RKNs, contributing to the development of management strategies and to updated information on the status of these pests in Europe.

What Did We Achieve Through VALITEST, an EU Project on Validation in Plant Pest Diagnostics?

Ensuring the reliability of diagnostic activities is an essential cornerstone of plant health strategies to reduce the risk of entry and spread of plant pests in a region and ultimately their impacts. Diagnostic tests should be validated to ensure that they are fit for purpose. Validation is usually done by diagnostic laboratories, although companies commercializing diagnostic kits also produce validation data for their products. Due to the high number of pest, matrix, and method combinations and given the significant resources required to validate tests, it is essential that validation data are shared with the entire diagnostic community and produced in a harmonized way to facilitate their use by different stakeholders. Indeed, the selection of tests to be used in specific contexts is not the sole responsibility of diagnostic laboratories but also involves national plant protection organizations. The VALITEST EU project (2018 to 2021) was established to tackle all these issues. New validation data for tests targeting important pests for the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization region were produced. Guidelines to improve and harmonize the validation framework were developed. Sharing of validation data and experience was ensured through the development of new or existing databases, the organization of training courses, and the dissemination of the project outputs in scientific publications and standards. Finally, the involvement of researchers, diagnosticians, policy makers, inspectors, and industries and the establishment of the European Plant Diagnostic Industry Association were important actions to strengthen the interactions between plant health stakeholders.[Formula: see text] Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .

Editorial 2023‐1

The availability of up-to-date information is essential nowadays in every field, and this is even more the case with the intensive use of the internet and social media. This is certainly also applicable for the work area of EPPO, protecting plant health depends on up-to-date information on pest distribution and pest emergences to be ready for immediate action to prevent introduction and for effective eradication. This is also the case for information on plant protection products such as efficacy evaluation and resistance development. In this way EPPO contributes to allow farmers to control pests in their crops in a sustainable way. In its Strategic Plan 2021–2025, EPPO has a new Strategic Objective on communication and making information available to stakeholders. For many years EPPO has focussed on collection of information and making it available in Databases. For instance, EPPO Global Database (gd.eppo.int), the Database on Efficacy Evaluation of PPPs, the Database on resistance to plant protection products, the PRA Platform, and the Database on Diagnostic Expertise, have been developed and made available via the EPPO website (www.eppo.int). In recent years even more effort has been invested into making up-to-date information available and on effective communication e.g. the Platform on communication material. For EPPO, keeping information up to date is only possible if the newest information is shared with us, e.g. on new occurrences of pest in a country as in the authored papers in this issue on first records. Another example is having the right information available on identification as described in the article on Salvinia plants in trade. The same applies to the revision of existing EPPO Standards when new information becomes available or new aspects need to be incorporated. That is the case for the revision of several specific Standards on efficacy assessment and for the revision of several EPPO Diagnostic Protocols adopted by the EPPO Council in September 2022 and published in this issue. EPPO Diagnostic Protocols are regularly reviewed by EPPO Diagnostic Panels to ensure that they include new diagnostic tests and new validation data available from research. As they are widely used by laboratories in the EPPO region, suggestions for corrections, clarifications or amendments are made by laboratories based on their experience. When this results in major changes the whole Standard will be revised and published. When limited amendments are needed, addenda and corrigenda are published as is the case in this issue. The same applies to other EPPO Standards that are reviewed by EPPO Panels. EPPO is grateful for the very valuable feedback received and for all experts and member countries supplying EPPO with new information as it ensures that Standards and Databases are as up to date and as accurate as possible. EPPO will continue to keep its information up to date with the assistance of many experts, National Plant Protection Organizations and other authorities.

The Need and a Vision for a Diagnostic Assay Validation Network

Plant biosecurity depends heavily on early detection of biological pest and disease threats and accurate diagnosis of causal agents. The information from these activities is disseminated and communicated with decision makers to promote effective mitigation. In the United States, most land-grant university, state, and private diagnostic and expert pest identifier labs are successfully networked via the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine (USDA APHIS PPQ; https://www.aphis.usda.gov/ ), the National Plant Diagnostic Network (NPDN; https://www.npdn.org ), and the National Clean Plant Network (NCPN; https://www.nationalcleanplantnetwork.org/ ). These organizations provide access to training, shared protocols, and standardized communications. For example, the NPDN has secure communications tools that network leadership built into its IT infrastructure and deploys a formal communications process and protocol for regulatory and high-risk samples. Additionally, the diagnostic networks adopt protocols from regulatory organizations such as the USDA-APHIS, European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO), North American Plant Protection Organization (NAPPO), and other international and national plant protection organizations (NPPOs). However, plant health diagnosticians also need access to validated protocols for endemic and nonregulated organisms. Although there is strong networking of diagnostic laboratories, plant disease diagnostic assay development and validation are siloed, representing a critical gap in our biosecurity infrastructure, especially for new or emerging pathogens. Most assays are developed in independent research labs and then chosen independently by the end-use laboratory. Assay developers, those who provide reference materials, labs that can provide ring testing for validation, and assay end users could be connected and integrated for more streamlined operations. Terminology and validation protocols need to be standardized within the United States and harmonized with our trade partners to ensure understanding. The ideal would be availability of standard, taxon-specific validation protocols, essential reference materials, and appropriate control materials for use to quickly develop and deploy assays in emergencies, as well as for day-to-day testing. This perspective article provides a summary of principles of assay validation, fitness-for-purpose concepts, and the need for continuous evaluation of assay performances. We describe the existing capacity and resources needed to efficiently develop, validate, and use diagnostic tests, as well as the inefficiencies and resource shortfalls currently faced. We propose development of a Diagnostic Assay Validation Network (DAVN) system to coordinate resources at the national level and harmonize with our partners at the international level. Here, we outline a project to set up the DAVN with the objectives of standardizing terminology and statistics and facilitating location of reference materials used in diagnostic assay development and validation via a portal of tools designed by and for the plant disease research and extension community. Although many of the concepts are also relevant to insects and other pests, the focus of this article is primarily plant pathogens.[Formula: see text] Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .

Tomato Brown Rugose Fruit Virus Nextstrain Build Version 3: Rise of a Novel Clade

In the Netherlands, tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV; genus Tobamovirus) was first identified in tomato crops in 2019. Since then, the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO-NL) has performed surveys to track and trace this regulated virus aiming for its eradication. To gain more insight in the epidemiology of ToBRFV, genomes were assembled from Illumina sequence data. Whole-genome phylogenetics was integrated with epidemiological metadata in a Nextstrain build. Two new clades were defined, one of which displayed a rapid increase in comparison to the previous version of the Nextstrain build. This rapid increase could be attributed to the unauthorized application of an isolate of ToBRFV as a cross-protection product. Further analysis of the test results of positive samples from tomato production sites suggests that both deliberate application and accidental introduction had occurred. This report introduces the inclusion of 61 new (near) complete ToBRFV genomes in version three of the Nextstrain build, available from https://nextstrain.nrcnvwa.nl/ToBRFV/20220412 . [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY 4.0 International license .

Solanum carolinense L.

<i>Solanum carolinense</i> L.

Molecular characterization and comparisons of potato wart (Synchytrium endobioticum) in historic collections to recent findings in Canada and the Netherlands

AbstractSynchytrium endobioticum (Schilb.) Perc. is a chytrid fungus causing potato wart disease and is one of the most important quarantine diseases on cultivated potato. Infected host tissues develop warts rendering the crop unmarketable. Resting spores, that can remain viable and infectious for decades, are formed in warted tissues and are released into the surrounding soil when host tissue decays.To better understand the pathogen’s diversity and to potentially uncover pathways of migrations and introduction events, molecular characterization was performed on the historical S. endobioticum resting spore collection of the Dutch National Plant Protection Organization. Mitochondrial genomes were assembled and annotated, and four novel structural variants were identified from these materials with intronic presence-absence variation in cox1 or cob genes and structural variation in the dpoB – TIR region. Several fungal isolates were shown to contain mixtures of structural variants. We analyzed the mitogenomic sequences obtained from recent potato wart disease findings in Canada and the Netherlands in the context of the historical materials and found that fungal isolates from the new Dutch outbreak contained a specific mixture of mitogenomic variants previously not observed in the Netherlands. Based on the mitogenomic profile, pathotype 38(Nevşehir) was suspected which was later verified with the Spieckermann bioassay. To further facilitate dissemination of data and interactive visual analytics we created a public Nextstrain webpage with S. endobioticum mitogenomic sequences and associated metadata on their geographic origin, pathotype identity and (mixture) of mitogenomic variants (https://nextstrain.nrcnvwa.nl/Sendo).

When the Beetles Hit the Fan: The Fan-Trap, an Inexpensive, Light and Scalable Insect Trap under a Creative Commons License, for Monitoring and Experimental Use.

Monitoring is an important component in pest management, to prevent or mitigate outbreaks of native pests and to check for quarantine organisms. Surveys often rely on trapping, especially when the target species respond to semiochemicals. Many traps are available for this purpose, but they are bulky in most cases, which raises transportation and deployment issues, and they are expensive, which limits the size and accuracy of any network. To overcome these difficulties, entomologists have used recycled material, such as modified plastic bottles, producing cheap and reliable traps but at the cost of recurrent handywork, not necessarily possible for all end-users (e.g., for national plant-protection organizations). These bottle-traps have allowed very large surveys to be conducted, which would have been impossible with standard commercial traps, and we illustrate this approach with a few examples. Here, we present, under a Creative Commons BY-SA License, the blueprint for a fan-trap, a foldable model, laser cut from a sheet of polypropylene, which can rapidly be produced in large numbers in a Fab lab or by a commercial company and could be transported and deployed in the field with very little effort. Our first field comparisons show that fan-traps are as efficient as bottle-traps for some Scolytinae species and we describe two cases where they are being used for monitoring.

PLANT QUARANTINE: AN EFFECTIVE APPROACH FOR THE PREVENTION OF DISEASES: A REVIEW

A major factor in the long-distance spread of diseases and insect pests that could be dangerous to the agriculture of the importing country is the interchange of germplasm and the international trade of agri-horticultural products. Protecting nations from the unauthorized influx of novel insect pests and illnesses fall within the purview of the National Plant Protection Organizations. Combining regulatory and technical strategies that can guarantee biosecurity for a country or region can be used to achieve the exclusion. The International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs), which offer standards on pest prevention, detection, and eradication, are developed by the Food and Agriculture Organizations International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC). Inthe recent era, the import and export of plant commodities have dramatically increased,and the chance of plant diseases is also increased from their original native place to new location, where it does not exist. The new diseases have tremendous loss in India and the world. In the last decade beginning the government of India in 2003 has notification of new Plant Quarantine order (PQ order)that harmonized Indias regulatory frameworkwith the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and internationally accepted standards and the tenants of the sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreement of the world trade organization. So,to prevent exotic diseases from a foreign country or within country legal restrictions are enforced commonly known as quarantinelaws. Plant Quarantine measures are taken at the domestic or in time or as well as foreign Quarantine. It acts as an important tool to exclude plant diseases.Effectively implementation of Quarantine is highly emphasized for disease management.

Being prepared for huanglongbing disease of citrus: a simulation exercise workshop for contingency planning held in Valencia, Spain

AbstractContingency plans aim to ensure a rapid and effective response to an outbreak of a pest likely which is to have a major impact. Huanglongbing is a devastating disease of citrus not yet present in the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO) region. A simulation exercise workshop for contingency planning was held in Valencia, Spain over 3 days in October 2021 as part of the PRE‐HLB project funded by the European Union Horizon 2020 programme. In total, 49 experts from the EPPO region attended the workshop. Participants represented a range of stakeholders from citrus cooperatives, grower associations, nursery workers, citrus exporters, landscapers and gardeners, scientists, Regional Plant Health Authorities, National Plant Protection Organizations and the European Commission. Participants were split into five groups and each group acted as an outbreak management team for a scenario based on a finding of a quarantine pest. The scenario followed the first (fictitious) finding of Diaphorina citri (the insect vector of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’, a causal agent of huanglongbing) at a citrus orchard in Spain. As the scenario developed over a month time scale, each team had to organize themselves to manage a number of issues designed to mimic the development of an outbreak of huanglongbing of citrus over the course of the exercise. The groups acknowledged the usefulness of the Spanish contingency plans for huanglongbing and its vectors, the EPPO Standards, and the risk‐based surveillance design tool RiBESS+.

New occurrence of Meloidogyne graminicola (Nematoda: Meloidogyninae) from rice fields in Italy: Variability and phylogenetic relationships.

Since the first detection of Meloidogyne graminicola in Piedmont, North Italy, in 2016, further inspections for the presence of the rice root‐knot nematode were carried out in rice fields of neighboring regions, in accordance with the Italian NPPO (National Plant Protection Organization) to support the official phytosanitary measures, to enable the early detection of the rice pest, and to prevent its spread within the national territory. In 2018, surveys of rice fields in Lombardy region revealed a new occurrence of M. graminicola. In the present study, we confirmed the identification of the rice nematode in Lombardy using the ribosomal ITS region and the mitochondrial COI and COII genes. The sequences and phylogenetic analyses revealed that Lombardy M. graminicola population grouped in all trees in the main cluster containing Meloidogyne species belonging to graminis group, but always in a different subgroup compared to the Piedmont population of M. graminicola. These results clearly suggest that the two Italian populations have been recently and independently introduced and confirm that the geographic origin is not the main factor leading to M. graminicola population variability.

First Report of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense Tropical Race 4 Causing Fusarium Wilt in Cavendish Bananas in Peru.

Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense Tropical Race 4 (Foc TR4), the causal agent of Fusarium wilt of banana (FWB), is currently the major threat to the banana industry worldwide (Dita et al. 2018). Restricted to South Asia for more than 20 years, Foc TR4 has spread in the last years to the Middle East, Mozambique, and Colombia (García-Bastidas et al. 2019; https://pestdisplace.org/embed/news/map/disease/11). The incursion of Foc TR4 in Colombia increased awareness and prevention efforts across Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC). However, new Foc TR4 outbreaks in LAC countries were considered a matter of time. In April 2021, banana (Musa spp., Cavendish, AAA) plants (30% of incidence) showing typical symptoms of FWB, such as leave yellowing, wilting and vascular discoloration were observed in one farm (about 1 ha) located in Querecotillo, Peru (4°43'54.84"S 80°33'45.00"W). Mycological analyses of samples (pseudostem strands) collected from 10 symptomatic plants were performed as described by Dita et al. (2010). These analyses revealed a continuous presence of fungal colonies identified as Fusarium oxysporum species complex. Molecular diagnostics targeting two different genome regions (Dita et al 2010; Li et al. 2013) identified nine of these isolates as Foc TR4. These results were further confirmed by qPCR analyses using the commercial Clear Detections TR4 kit. The genome of four single-spore isolates (PerS1, PerS2, PerS3 and PerS4) was sequenced using the Illumina platform (MiSeq Kit, 2x151 bp Paired-End). The strain PerS4 was also sequenced using Oxford Nanopore (FLOW-MIN111; R10.3 chemistry) as described by Lopez-Alvarez et al., (2020). The generated draft assembly yielded 533 contigs for a size of 47 Mbp (BioProject: PRJNA755905), which is comparable with sizes of previously reported Foc TR4 strains (Asai et al. 2019; García-Bastidas et al. 2019; Maymon et al. 2020; Warmington et al. 2019; Zheng et al. 2018). The sequence assembly showed high contiguity (94.9%) and high similarity (95.48%) with the high-quality genome sequence of the Foc TR4 isolate 'UK0001' (Warmington et al. 2019). Further analyses to identify the presence/absence of full sequences for the putative effector genes (Secreted In Xylem - SIX) and their allelic copies, also revealed that the SIX genes profile of the strains isolated from Querecotillo matched with previously reported Foc TR4 isolates (Czislowski et al. 2017). Pathogenicity tests with three isolates and water controls were performed as described by Dita et al. (2010), using five Cavendish plantlets per treatment. Four weeks after the inoculation typical external and internal symptoms of FWB were observed only in the inoculated plants. Fungal isolates recovered from inoculated plants tested positive for Foc TR4 when analyzed with PCR diagnostics as mentioned above. No fungal isolates were recovered from water-control plants which did not show any symptoms. Altogether, our results confirm the first incursion of Foc TR4 in Peru. Currently, Foc TR4 has the phytosanitary status of a present pest with restricted distribution in Peru and it is under official control of the National Plant Protection Organization - SENASA. Reinforced prevention and quarantine measures, disease monitoring and capacity building to detect, contain and manage eventual new outbreaks of Foc TR4 are strongly encouraged across LAC banana producing countries, especially for those bordering Peru with larger banana plantations, such as Ecuador and Brazil.

Climate Change Effects on Pathogen Emergence: Artificial Intelligence to Translate Big Data for Mitigation

Plant pathology has developed a wide range of concepts and tools for improving plant disease management, including models for understanding and responding to new risks from climate change. Most of these tools can be improved using new advances in artificial intelligence (AI), such as machine learning to integrate massive data sets in predictive models. There is the potential to develop automated analyses of risk that alert decision-makers, from farm managers to national plant protection organizations, to the likely need for action and provide decision support for targeting responses. We review machine-learning applications in plant pathology and synthesize ideas for the next steps to make the most of these tools in digital agriculture. Global projects, such as the proposed global surveillance system for plant disease, will be strengthened by the integration of the wide range of new data, including data from tools like remote sensors, that are used to evaluate the risk ofplant disease. There is exciting potential for the use of AI to strengthen global capacity building as well, from image analysis for disease diagnostics and associated management recommendations on farmers' phones to future training methodologies for plant pathologists that are customized in real-time for management needs in response to the current risks. International cooperation in integrating data and models will help develop the most effective responses to new challenges from climate change.

Prioritization of invasive alien species with the potential to threaten agriculture and biodiversity in Kenya through horizon scanning

Invasive alien species (IAS) rank among the most significant drivers of species extinction and ecosystem degradation resulting in significant impacts on socio-economic development. The recent exponential spread of IAS in most of Africa is attributed to poor border biosecurity due to porous borders that have failed to prevent initial introductions. In addition, countries lack adequate information about potential invasions and have limited capacity to reduce the risk of invasions. Horizon scanning is an approach that prioritises the risks of potential IAS through rapid assessments. A group of 28 subject matter experts used an adapted methodology to assess 1700 potential IAS on a 5-point scale for the likelihood of entry and establishment, potential socio-economic impact, and impact on biodiversity. The individual scores were combined to rank the species according to their overall potential risk for the country. Confidence in individual and overall scores was recorded on a 3-point scale. This resulted in a priority list of 120 potential IAS (70 arthropods, 9 nematodes, 15 bacteria, 19 fungi/chromist, 1 viroid, and 6 viruses). Options for risk mitigation such as full pest risk analysis and detection surveys were suggested for prioritised species while species for which no immediate action was suggested, were added to the plant health risk register and a recommendation was made to regularly monitor the change in risk. By prioritising risks, horizon scanning guides resource allocation to interventions that are most likely to reduce risk and is very useful to National Plant Protection Organisations and other relevant stakeholders.