Pierce's Disease (PD) of grapevines, caused by Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa (Xf), is a limiting factor in the cultivation of grapevines in the US. There are presently no effective control methods to prevent or treat PD. The therapeutic and prophylactic efficacy of a phage cocktail composed of four virulent (lytic) phages was evaluated for control of PD. Xf levels in grapevines were sign...

Vascular occlusions are common structural modifications made by many plant species in response to pathogen infection. However, the functional role(s) of occlusions in host plant disease resistance/susceptibility remains controversial. This study focuses on vascular occlusions that form in stem secondary xylem of grapevines (Vitis vinifera) infected with Pierce's disease (PD) and the impact of o...

Comprehensive next generation sequencing virus detection was used to detect the whole spectrum of viruses and viroids in selected grapevines from the Czech Republic. The novel NGS approach was based on sequencing libraries of small RNA isolated from grapevine vascular tissues. Eight previously partially-characterized grapevines of diverse varieties were selected and subjected to analysis: Chard...

Across the United States from California to Florida and as far north as Virginia, grapevines are succumbing to Pierce’s Disease (PD) which currently infects more than 30% of grapevines and is a threat to the $30 billion wine industry. PD is caused by the bacterial pathogen, Xylella fastidiosa, which blocks water from flowing through the xylem of plants. Affected grapevines develop leaves that a...

Xylella fastidiosa infects a wide range of plant hosts and causes economically serious diseases, including Pierce's disease (PD) of grapevines. X. fastidiosa biocontrol strain EB92-1 is infectious to grapevines but does not cause symptoms. The draft genome of EB92-1 reveals that it may be missing 10 potential pathogenicity effectors.

European grapevine populations quickly disappeared from most of their range, massively killed by the spread of North American grapevine pests and diseases. Nowadays taxonomic pollution represents a new threat. A large Vitis complex involves escaped cultivars, rootstocks, and wild grapevines. The study aimed to provide insight into the Vitis complex in the Danube region through field and genetic...

Grapevine leafroll disease (GLD) is the most important disease of grapevines, occurring in every grape-growing country (Martelli, 1993). GLD affects grapevines adversely, where it delays the maturation of the berries, decreases the accumulation of sugars and affects the overall yield and quality of the fruit (Over de Linden and Chamberlain, 1970). This negatively impacts on the wine industry, w...

Xylella fastidiosa is the causal agent of Pierce's disease of grape, an economically significant disease for the grape industry. X. fastidiosa systemically colonizes the xylem elements of grapevines and is able to breach the pit pore membranes separating xylem vessels by unknown mechanisms. We hypothesized that X. fastidiosa utilizes cell wall degrading enzymes to break down pit membranes, base...

The grapevine cultivar Grk, a close relative of Crljenak ka{telanski/Zinfandel, is grown exclusively in southern Croatia. Grapevine yellows-like symptoms were observed on vines in the vineyards in Lumbarda (southern Croatia) and in propagated grapevines near Zadar and Zagreb. The majority of the detected phytoplasma isolates belonged to the 16SrI group. However, RFLP pattern and R16F2n/R2 fragm...

to assess the genetic relationships between 72 cultivated and 65 wild grapevines in west azerbaijan and in kurdistan, 19 ssr markers were employed. microsatellitic primer pairs amplified, a total of 163 alleles with an average of 8.6 alleles/locus (for cultivars) and 153 alleles with an average of 8.05 alleles/locus (for wild samples). the expected heterozigosity varied from 0.7 in cultivars to...