Poster: Molecular & Cellular Plant-Microbe Interactions: MPMI
717-P
Secretome annotation in the citrus greening bacterial pathogen
L. Cano (1), M. Pitino (2), Y. Duan (2) (1) University of Florida, U.S.A.; (2) US Horticultural Research Laboratory, U.S.A.
Citrus greening or also known as Huanglongbing (HLB) is one of most deadly citrus disease in Florida and in the world. The causal agent is the bacterium Candidatus liberibacter asiaticus (CLas). Plant pathogens secrete molecules that manipulate host physiology to achieve colonization. The main goal of our study was to identify and make available to the citrus community a set of candidate pathogen secreted proteins from CLas using genome sequences and in planta gene expression. Identified secreted protein candidates can be employed in high throughput functional genomics screens, commonly referred to as effectoromics, to test citrus germplasm for specific pathogen recognition by resistance R proteins. Our findings highlight about 10 candidate secreted proteins for pathogen-assisted breeding in citrus for resistance to HLB.