Citrus greening disease, also called huanglongbing (HLB), is a bacterial infection of citrus trees that results in small, misshapen and sour fruits that are unsuitable for consumption.
Citrus greening disease, also called huanglongbing (HLB), is a bacterial infection of citrus trees that results in small, misshapen and sour fruits that are unsuitable for consumption. The disease ultimately kills the tree.
Because there is no cure, HLB is a major threat to the $10 billion citrus industry in Florida, where it was first detected in 2005, and to the $7 billion industry in California, where it appeared last year.
Researchers from the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI), the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) and the University of Washington investigated a seemingly unlikely source of biocontrols for HLB: neuropeptides found in Asian citrus psyllids, the insect that carries the disease-causing bacterium Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas), which it spreads while feeding on a tree’s leaves and stems.
The research team, led by BTI faculty member Michelle Heck, published its findings on Feb. 10 in the Journal of Proteome Research.
Read more at Cornell University
Image: Asian citrus psyllids feed on a citrus tree. The psyllids deposit a bacterium in the sap that causes citrus greening disease, a scourge to the citrus industries in Florida and California, worth a combined $17 billion. Credit: Boyce Thompson Institute/Provided
