Bacterial spot caused by Xanthomonas perforans is a major disease of tomatoes, leading to reduction in production by 10–50%. While copper (Cu)-based bactericides have been used for disease management, most of the X. perforans strains isolated from tomatoes in Florida and other locations worldwide are Cu-resistant. We have developed DNA-directed silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) grown on graphene oxide (GO). These Ag@dsDNA@GO composites effectively decrease X. perforans cell viability in culture and on plants. At the very low concentration of 16 ppm of Ag@dsDNA@GO, composites show excellent antibacterial capability in culture with significant advantages in improved stability, enhanced antibacterial activity and stronger adsorption properties. Application of Ag@dsDNA@GO at 100 ppm on tomato transplants in a greenhouse experiment significantly reduced the severity of bacterial spot disease compared to untreated plants, giving results similar to those of the current grower standard treatment, with no phytotoxicity.

Field trials were conducted at two locations in Florida to evaluate transgenic tomato expressing the ELONGATION FACTOR TU RECEPTOR (EFR) gene from Arabidopsis thaliana, the Bs2 gene from pepper, or both Bs2 and EFR (Bs2/EFR) for managing bacterial wilt caused by Ralstonia solanacearum and bacterial spot caused by Xanthomonas perforans. Expression of EFR or Bs2/EFR in the susceptible genotype Fla. 8000 significantly reduced bacterial wilt incidence (50 to 100%) and increased total yield (57 to 114%) relative to lines expressing only Bs2 or the nontransformed Fla. 8000 control, although the marketable yield was not significantly affected. Following harvest, surviving symptomatic and nonsymptomatic plants were assessed for colonization by R. solanacearum. There were no significant differences in the population at the lower stem. Interestingly, in the middle stem, no bacteria could be recovered from EFR or Bs2/EFR lines but viable bacterial populations were recovered from Bs2 and nontransformed control lines at 10 to 10 CFU/g of stem tissue. In growth-chamber experiments, the EFR transgenic tomato lines were found to be effective against seven different R. solanacearum strains isolated from the southeastern United States, indicating utility across the southeastern United States. In all of the bacterial spot trials, EFR and Bs2/EFR lines had significantly reduced disease severity (22 to 98%) compared with the Fla. 8000 control. The marketable and total yield of Bs2/EFR were significantly higher (43 to 170%) than Fla. 8000 control in three of four field trials. These results demonstrate for the first time the potential of using the EFR gene for field management of bacterial wilt and bacterial spot diseases of tomato.

Root-knot nematodes (RKNs; Meloidogyne spp.) and Ralstonia solanacearum, the causal agent of bacterial wilt, are major soilborne pathogens in U.S. tomato production. Methyl bromide has been used for decades to effectively manage RKN but its phase-out and the high cost of other effective fumigants such as 1,3-dichloropropene has resulted in a need to develop sustainable alternatives. Many of the commercially popular varieties used by the tomato industry do not have resistance to RKNs and R. solanacearum. Recent studies worldwide have shown the potential for grafting using resistant rootstocks as a sustainable and ecofriendly practice for R. solanacearum management. However, the effectiveness of R. solanacearum-resistant rootstocks on RKN management is not known. In this study, three commercially available R. solanacearum-resistant tomato rootstocks (‘RST-04-106-T’, ‘BHN 998’, and ‘BHN 1054’) were evaluated for resistance to Meloidogyne incognita in field tomato production in four field trials conducted for two consecutive years in two geographical locations: Florida and Virginia. Grafting rootstocks onto ‘BHN 602’ a tomato scion susceptible to bacterial wilt and RKNs, significantly reduced root galling caused by RKNs in all four field trials and increased yield in two of the trials compared with the nongrafted treatment. This study demonstrates the potential of grafting for managing multiple soilborne pathogens using the same rootstocks.

Background: Climate change, including higher temperatures (HT) has a detrimental impact on wheat productivity and modeling studies predict more frequent heat waves in the future. Wheat growth can be impaired by high daytime and nighttime temperature at any developmental stage, especially during the grain filling stage. Leaf chlorophyll content, leaf greenness, cell membrane thermostability, and canopy temperature have been proposed as candidate traits to improve crop adaptation and yield potential of wheat under HT. Nonetheless, a significant gap exists in knowledge of genetic backgrounds associated with these physiological traits. Identifying genetic loci associated with these traits can facilitate physiological breeding for increased yield potential under high temperature stress condition in wheat. Results: We conducted genome-wide association study (GWAS) on a 236 elite soft wheat association mapping panel using 27,466 high quality single nucleotide polymorphism markers. The panel was phenotyped for three years in two locations where heat shock was common. GWAS identified 500 significant marker-trait associations (MTAs) (p ≤ 9.99 × 10 − 4). Ten MTAs with pleiotropic effects detected on chromosomes 1D, 2B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 7B, and 7D are potentially important targets for selection. Five MTAs associated with physiological traits had pleiotropic effects on grain yield and yield-related traits. Seventy-five MTAs were consistently expressed over several environments indicating stability and more than half of these stable MTAs were found in genes encoding different types of proteins associated with heat stress. Conclusions: We identified 500 significant MTAs in soft winter wheat under HT stress. We found several stable loci across environments and pleiotropic markers controlling physiological and agronomic traits. After further validation, these MTAs can be used in marker-assisted selection and breeding to develop varieties with high stability for grain yield under high temperature.

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Three field experiments were conducted in Florida from 2012-2014 to assess the impact of acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM), a systemic acquired-resistance inducer, applied as foliar spray or through drip-irrigation lines, on bacterial wilt incidence and yield of grafted tomatoes. The experiments were conducted in a field with race 1, biovar 1 strain of Ralstonia solanacearum, causal agent of tomato bacterial wilt. In all three experiments, the susceptible tomato variety BHN 602, grafted onto a resistant rootstock BHN 998, was compared with nongrafted BHN 602, treated with or without foliar applications of ASM and with grafted plants treated with foliar applications of ASM. In two experiments, an additional treatment of drip applications of ASM on grafted and nongrafted plants was evaluated. Grafting alone or in combination with drip applications of ASM (178.6 μM) significantly reduced disease incidence and increased total marketable yield relative to nongrafted treatments. There were no significant differences between grafted plants with or without drip ASM applications in terms of bacterial wilt incidence or total marketable yield. However, we demonstrate for the first time that foliar ASM applications on grafted plants negatively affects the total marketable yield compared with drip ASM applications on grafted plants or nontreated grafted control.

Bacterial wilt of tomato caused by Ralstonia solanacearum species complex (RSSC) causes substantial yield losses in the tropics and subtropics. Disease management options by chemicals are limited, and host resistance is the cheapest and easiest means of control. However, sources of bacterial wilt resistance in tomato are limited.The disease often coincides with higher temperatures in the tropics, and resistance sources that are more heat stable are particularly valuable for breeding of tropically adapted tomato cultivars. The objectives of this study were to identify tomato accessions that demonstrate relatively high bacterial wilt resistance under high temperatures and to identify accessions that may possess QTLs other than Bwr-6 and Bwr-12 (two major disease resistance QTLs against bacterial wilt), which could be exploited in future breeding. Sixty-seven tomato entries reported as bacterial wilt resistant were evaluated in a greenhouse against one strain each of phylotype I (Pss4) and phylotype IIB (Pss1632) of the RSSC (average temperature ≥29°C). Of those, five and 19 were homozygous for Bwr-6 and Bwr-12, respectively, and six were homozygous for both QTLs. Bwr-12 contributed to resistance against phylotype I strain but not against the phylotype II strain. Bwr-6 contributed to resistance against both phylotype strains. Entries with both QTLs as a group performed relatively better against the phylotype I strain. Entry "94T765-24-79", which lacked Bwr-6 and Bwr-12, demonstrated relatively high resistance against the phylotype II strain and may carry new QTL/s. As new bacterial wilt resistance QTLs are mapped and markers designed, pyramiding multiple bacterial wilt resistance QTLs into new varieties should be straightforward, thereby increasing the chances of obtaining stable resistance. K E Y W O R D S bacterial wilt, Bwr-12, Bwr-6, marker-assisted breeding, Ralstonia solanacearum species complex, Solanum lycopersicum