Manuscript Title:

MONITORING THE LETHAL IMPACT OF HEAT ON CANDIDATUS LIBERIBACTER ASIATICUS (CLAS) PROTEOBACTERIUM, THE CONTRIBUTORY MEANS OF HUANGLONGBING IN PUNJAB, PAKISTAN

Author:

SHOUKET ZAMAN KHAN, MUHAMMAD JALAL ARIF, MUHAMMAD DILDAR GOGI, SHAHBAZ TALIB SAHI

DOI Number:

DOI:10.17605/OSF.IO/GJ2KT

Published : 2023-07-23

About the author(s)

1. SHOUKET ZAMAN KHAN - Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.
2. MUHAMMAD JALAL ARIF - Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.
3. MUHAMMAD DILDAR GOGI - Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.
4. SHAHBAZ TALIB SAHI - Department of Plant Pathology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.

Full Text : PDF

Abstract

Citrus ranked first out of all the fruits that are produced in Pakistan with a major share (~ 80%) of kinnow. To check the potential therapeutic impact of higher temperatures on Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) development on five citrus hosts (Citrus reticulata, Citrus paradisi, Citrus limon, Citrus limetta and Citrus sinensis), the proteobacterium CLas titers were monitored in psyllid specimens and naturally infected leaves using qPCR techniques and primers for two and half years by collecting samples from symptomatic citrus trees from three district study districts of Punjab i.e., Faisalabad, Sargodha and Toba Tek Singh. Apart from molecular detection of CLas in psyllid and leaf samples, the citrus trees were also observed visually and ranked on a disease scale from 0 to 5 based on symptoms percentage on citrus plants. The monthly mean temperatures at the three study districts were different but the variation among these temperatures was not big enough. The mean cyclic threshold (Ct value) of the greening bacterium was highest (37.02) in 2021 than the previous years in psyllid specimens that were collected from C. reticulata in Toba Tek Singh which represented lowest disease incidence while the lowest Ct value (12.07) in psyllid specimens that were collected from C. sinensis of Sargodha which represented highest disease incidence. The highest Ct values in leaf samples were recorded for C. reticulata (33.36) while the lowest Ct values for the C. sinensis (13.34) were recorded in comparison with C. paradisi, C. limon and C. limetta. Maximum disease index (DI) symptoms based on visual observations were observed on C. sinensis (3.85) in Sargodha during 2020 while minimum (1.40) on C. reticulata in Toba Tek Singh during 2019. The Ct values significantly increased in summer month e.g., May-June which show that minimum bacterium titer was found during the summer months due to heat impact, but heat is not enough to cure this citrus greening bacterium throughout the year. To reduce greening bacterium titer to minimum there is need to further improve management practices and manage psyllid populations using different IPM tactics.


Keywords

Citrus greening, disease index, therapeutic impact, heat, proteobacterium, citrus, bacterium titer, qPCR technique, psyllid.