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   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Study leads to milestone advances in understanding lethal bronzing of   
   palm trees    
      
     Date:   
         May 31, 2023   
     Source:   
         University of Florida   
     Summary:   
         Scientists have identified a key chemical associated with lethal   
         bronzing (LB) infected palm trees. LB is a bacterial disease that   
         kills more than 20 species of palm trees in the Southern United   
         States and Caribbean and has been devastating the Florida green   
         industries for nearly two decades.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Palm trees infected with lethal bronzing disease emit signals that warn   
   nearby healthy palms of the threat. Those healthy palms produce their   
   own defense that University of Florida scientists one day hope to harness   
   to protect palms against the disease.   
      
   Entomologist Brian Bahder and his team at UF/IFAS Fort Lauderdale Research   
   and Education Center (UF/IFAS FLREC) consider the study's outcome a   
   turning point for palm disease research because it has high potential for   
   developing management strategies for lethal bronzing, a deadly disease   
   spread by a small insect commonly called a planthopper. This discovery   
   could help manage other palm and plant diseases.   
      
   Plants affected by disease or pests can emit small chemical signals,   
   or volatile organic compounds, indicating they are stressed.   
      
   Those compounds warn nearby healthy plants. Those healthy plants can   
   activate defense mechanisms -- organic compounds of their own -- to   
   potentially stave off the pest responsible for the disease.   
      
   "Volatile organic compounds are common in plants and play an important   
   role in protecting the plant," said Bahder. "Most importantly, some of   
   these compounds have antimicrobial properties. They have the potential for   
   use in defending against a variety of different infections in palms and   
   perhaps even other plants."  "We suspected there was a chemical compound   
   the planthopper was detecting," said Bahder. "The goal was to identify   
   the chemical to see if we could use it as a bait system. The resulting   
   data showed there was a much more interesting story going on and could   
   lay the foundation for developing a management plan for lethal bronzing   
   and perhaps other palm diseases."  This marks the first documented case   
   of green leaf volatiles in palms infected by the bacteria that causes   
   lethal bronzing.   
      
   For the study, Bahder and his team took leaf samples from infected   
   cabbage palms, nearby threatened palm trees and healthy palm trees that   
   were outside of the area with disease spread. All samples were taken   
   from trees in Fort Lauderdale. Over time, they tested the plants for   
   the disease among the three sets of palms and locations.   
      
   The lethal bronzing-infected palms gave off a specific signal, whereas   
   the nearby palms that were healthy responded and emitted a different   
   signal. The healthy palms that were at a distance from the infected area   
   emitted a different signal than both the infected and threatened palms.   
      
   "The threatened palms produced a compound with known antimicrobial   
   properties, and we are now interested in how this affects the epidemiology   
   of lethal bronzing in the field," said Bahder. "We hope to be able to   
   harness these natural plant volatiles to either treat palms directly or   
   stimulate them to produce their own defenses."  Lethal bronzing, first   
   detected in Tampa in 2006, transmitted by the planthopper Haplaxius   
   crudus was confirmed as the vector in 2021. For almost two decades,   
   the disease has been making its way steadily across the state, creating   
   significant casualties in Florida palms.   
      
   "The most important thing to note is that once symptoms show up on the   
   palm tree, it is too late, which is why prevention has been the first   
   line of defense," said Bahder.   
      
   Currently, when a tree has been infected, the only remedy is to remove   
   it. To prevent the bacteria from spreading, the surrounding trees require   
   sampling for phytoplasma. If the palm tests negative, then an antibiotic   
   treatment of oxytetracycline is administered as prevention. The treatment,   
   which is expensive, is repeated on a quarterly basis.   
      
   With the discovery of these plant-produced compounds, scientists see   
   this as a breakthrough in developing ways to manage the disease that   
   could allow for harnessing the plant's own natural defenses to create   
   a cure for infected plants that would eliminate the need for costly   
   antibiotic treatments.   
      
   "Scientists hope to be able to harness these compounds to develop new   
   management strategies," said Bader.   
      
   Next stage of the research process requires additional funding to find   
   ways to use the healthy green leaf volatiles compounds that are natural   
   to the palm's defense system to treat infected palms. The methods could   
   involve injecting the compound directly into infected palms and hopefully   
   curing the infected palm.   
      
   It could also involve potentially placing dispensers or spraying areas   
   of risk to stimulate the at-risk palms with natural defenses.   
      
   "The goal is to find cost-effective ways to protect palms whether they are   
   over large areas that may be at risk or individual properties. Ultimately,   
   we want to cut down on time and resources for nurseries and consumers,"   
   said Bahder.   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Florida. Original   
   written by Lourdes Mederos. Note: Content may be edited for style   
   and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Jordana A. Ferreira, Jose' A. Ramos, Debora R. C. S. Dutra,   
      Brandon Di   
         Lella, Ericka E. Helmick, Sonia C. N. Queiroz, Brian W. Bahder.   
      
         Identification of Green-Leaf Volatiles Released from Cabbage   
         Palms (Sabal palmetto) Infected with the Lethal Bronzing   
         Phytoplasma. Plants, 2023; 12 (11): 2164 DOI: 10.3390/plants12112164   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230531150041.htm   
      
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