New Findings May Help Fight Blackleg and Softrot Potato Disease
November 9, 2007| |
Researchers from the University of Cambridge made a discovery into the genetics of Erwinia carotovora, the bacterium that causes the economically damaging potato blackleg and soft rot disease. Funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), the study shows that Erwinia mutants incapable of expressing the gene relA were also impaired in their ability to damage potatoes and cause disease. relA helps the bacterium recognize when nutrient levels in the cell are getting low. It also activates the release of enzymes that can destroy plant cell wall. The discovery could lead to new ways to fight the disease that causes significant yield loss worldwide.
“We have shown that the production of cell wall degrading enzymes is genetically linked not only to signaling abilities but also to the bacterium’s nutritional status. This has important implications for researchers looking for new ways to control the disease. We have opened up the potential to develop pesticides and anti-rot agents” said Dr. Martin Welch, lead author of the study.
Read the paper published by the Journal of Bacteriology at http://jb.asm.org/cgi/content/abstract/189/21/7643 or http://jb.asm.org/cgi/content/full/189/21/7643
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