Pantoea stewartii subsp. stewartii an Inter-Laboratory Comparative Study of Molecular Tests and Comparative Genome Analysis of Italian Strains
<i>Pantoea stewartii</i> subsp. <i>stewartii</i> (Pss) is a Gram-negative bacterium causing Stewart wilt, a severe disease in maize. Native to North America, it has spread globally through the maize seed trade. Resistant maize varieties and insecticides are crucial to mitigate the disease's economic impact. Pss is a quarantine pest, requiring phytosanitary certification for the seed trade in European countries. Accurate diagnostic tests, including real-time PCR, are fundamental to detect Pss and distinguish it from other bacteria, like <i>Pantoea stewartii</i> subsp. <i>indologenes</i> (Psi), a non-quarantine bacteria associated with maize seeds. Population genetics is a valuable tool for studying adaptation, speciation, population structure, diversity, and evolution in plant bacterial pathogens. In this study, the key activities of interlaboratory comparisons are reported to assess diagnostic sensitivity (DSE), diagnostic specificity (DSP) and accuracy (ACC) for different real-time PCR able to detect Pss in seeds. The results of complete sequencing of Italian bacterial isolates are presented. This study enhances our understanding of molecular methods for diagnosing and identifying pathogens in maize seeds, improving knowledge of Pss genomes to prevent their spread and trace possible entry routes from endemic to non-endemic areas.
Authors
- Domenico Rizzo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2834-4684)
- Nicoletta Pucci (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7286-4287)
- Marco Di Marsico
- Francesca Gaffuri (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6329-3750)
- Valeria Scala (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9383-8766)
- Stefania Loreti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7761-6186)
- Pasquale Domenico Grieco
- Valeria Gualandri
- Marco Testa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5725-8131)
- Maria Rosaria Silletti
- Alessia L’Aurora (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6698-6250)
- Eleonora Barra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9713-5483)
- Salvatore Fascella
- Serena Ciarroni
- Francesca Giacobbi
- S. Talevi
- Riccardo Aiese Cigliano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9058-6994)
- Francesca De Amicis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7079-1037)
- Andreas Gallmetzer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9416-2080)
- Di Bisceglie
- Riccardo Fiorani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3582-1070)
- Giovanna Mason
- Cosimo Tocci
- Alessandro Polito
Institutions
- Fondazione Edmund Mach (IT)
- Università degli Studi della Tuscia (IT)
- SOM Biotech (Spain) (ES)
- Regione Campania (IT)
- Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection (IT)
- Forestry Research Centre (IT)
- Agenzia Regionale Prevenzione e Ambiente della Regione Emilia-Romagna (IT)
- Sardegna Agricoltura (IT)
- Istituto Sperimentale per la Frutticoltura (IT)
- Agenzia Regionale per la Protezione dell'ambiente ligure (IT)
- Regione del Veneto (IT)
- Regione Emilia-Romagna
- Regione Liguria
Publication Details
- Journal
- Plants
- Published
- 2025-05-14
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14101470
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Plant Pathogenic Bacteria Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.75
Funders
- European Commission
- Ministero delle Politiche Agricole Alimentari e Forestali