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Article: Elusive bacteria pinpointed with DNA tests.
- Article from:
- Agricultural Research
- Article date:
- June 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 U.S. Government Printing Office. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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New tests developed by ARS scientists can identify pathogenic bacteria that attack strawberries and citrus. Positive identification of two previously elusive bacteria can now be made quickly and easily.
Speed is important, says geneticist Margaret Pooler, because "by the time leaves on a strawberry plant look scorched or blighted, it's too late to treat it for angular leaf spot disease.
"The same holds true for citrus. Mottled patches on citrus leaves could mean that the tree is already infected with citrus variegated chlorosis (CVC), a bacterial disease," she says.
Pooler, along with plant pathologist John Hartung at the ARS Fruit Laboratory in ...