First Report of Xylella fastidiosa Infecting Coffee in Costa Rica

Abstract

In 1995, severe symptoms were observed on ‘Caturra’ and ‘Catuaí’ coffee (Coffea arabica L.) varieties in farms in the southern part of the Central Valley in Costa Rica. Symptoms were reduced leaf size, malformation of leaves, curling of leaf edges, shortening of internodes, and severe leaf chlorotic mosaic, which sometimes became necrotic. Abortion of flowers and young beans was also observed, with a reduction in yield. Plants also showed irregular growth with an atypical curling appearance that gave rise to the Spanish name “crespera.” Ten and three healthy plants were inoculated by grafting in the greenhouse, using infected and healthy budwoods, respectively. Approximately 6 months after inoculation, 3 of 10 grafted plants with infected budwoods showed symptoms of leaf chlorosis, curling, and malformation of leaves and bunched new flushes. Samples of 39 symptomatic plants collected from the field and samples of 3 healthy plants maintained in the greenhouse were tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). All (100%) analyzed symptomatic samples were positive for X. fastidiosa, and all healthy controls were negative. The symptoms observed in Costa Rica are different from those described for coffee leaf scorch in Brazil (1,2), but the climatological conditions and soil type present in Costa Rica are also very different from the areas where X. fastidiosa occurs in Brazil. Leafhoppers were collected randomly in one of the most affected regions. Graphocephala permagna and Erythrogonia sonora were the most frequent insect species found associated with coffee. In ELISA, 34.5% (10 of 29) and 23.8% (5 of 21) of the collected specimens belonging to G. permagna and E. sonora, respectively, tested positive for X. fastidiosa. These positive ELISAs do not necessarily mean that the insect is a vector. The results presented here extend the known geographic distribution of X. fastidiosa. To our knowledge, this is the first report of X. fastidiosa in coffee in Costa Rica. References: (1) M. J. G. Beretta et al. Plant Dis. 80:821, 1996. (2) de Lima et al. Plant Dis. 82:94, 1998.

New Coffee Plant-Infecting Xylella fastidiosa Variants Derived via Homologous Recombination

“…Coffee leaf scorch (CLS), due to X. fastidiosa, was first identified in 1995 in Brazil (21) and later in Latin American coffeeproducing countries such as Costa Rica (22). Symptoms of CLS include drying of infected branches, shortening of internode regions, decreased fruit size, chlorosis, and early senescence of leaves.…”

Isolation and molecular characterization of Xylella fastidiosa from coffee plants in Costa Rica

“…Recently, X. fastidiosa was also detected in coffee and citrus plants in Costa Rica (Rodriguez et al, 2001;Aguilar et al, 2005b). X. fastidiosa has been associated with a coffee disease known as "crespera" by the growers, due to irregular growth of leaves with an atypical curling of the margins of leaf blades.…”

“…X. fastidiosa has been associated with a coffee disease known as "crespera" by the growers, due to irregular growth of leaves with an atypical curling of the margins of leaf blades. Others symptoms of "crespera"-affected Costa Rican coffee plants include reduced leaf size and malformation, shortening of internodes and severe chlorotic mosaic of leaves (Rodriguez et al, 2001), as seen in coffee leaf scorch in Brazil. The symptoms have been reported by coffee producers since 1995.…”

Diversidad de cicadélidos y clastoptéridos (Hemiptera) en tres zonas productoras de café afectadas por Xylella fastidiosa Wells et al. en Costa Rica

“…Muchas de las especies informadas no son de interés económico, razón por la cual son poco conocidas. Otras son de gran importancia, principalmente por el daño que causan al cultivo durante su alimentación, o por ser vectores de patógenos causantes de enfermedades importantes, tal es el caso de la quemadura de las hojas del café o "Coffee Leaf Scorch" (Lima et al 1998, Rodríguez et al 2001, Vargas et al 2002.…”

“…La producción cafetalera de Costa Rica se ha visto afectada por una serie de enfermedades dentro de las cuales destaca la crespera del café (Rodríguez et al 2001), nombre dado por los productores locales a la enfermedad causada por la bacteria limitada al xilema, Xylella fastidiosa Wells et al (Lima et al 1998), principalmente por los síntomas observados en el follaje (disminución del área foliar y borde ondulado), y que en Brasil se conoce como "atrofi a dos ramos de cafeeiro" (Paradela Filho et al 1995. Este patógeno es transmitido principalmente por cicadélidos (Cicadellidae) de la subfamilia Cicadellinae Sensu Young (1968) (Proconiini y Cicadellini), así como cercópidos (Cercopidae) y clastoptéridos (Clastopteridae: Clastoptera sp.)…”