Update on the situation of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ in Italy
‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ is a bacteria that can infect plants of Solanaceae and Apiaceae families. Only Solanaceae haplotypes of ‘Ca. Liberibacter solanacearum’ are listed in the EPPO A1 List. In Europe, ‘Ca. Liberibacter solanacearum’ is only known to occur on Apiaceae.
The bacterium was first found in Italy in 2016 in Sicilia in a few carrot (Daucus carota) fields (EPPO RS 2018/036). In 2022, it was detected in specimens of the psyllid vector Bactericera trigonica (Hemiptera: Triozidae) in the Abruzzo region. Both haplotypes D and E were detected. B. trigonica was also trapped in an adjacent potato field, although at a lower incidence. In 2023, carrots were sampled in one of the fields where the psyllids had been collected. The presence of ‘Ca. Liberibacter solanacearum’ was confirmed in samples of both symptomatic and asymptomatic carrots. To date, the bacterium does not seem to cause notable damage to the crops in the surveyed area.
The situation of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ in Italy can be described as follows: Present, only in some areas on carrot crops.
Sources
Bertinelli G, Tizzani L, Mosconi F, Ilardi V, Bertin S (2024) First report of the association of the psyllid vector Bactericera trigonica (Hemiptera: Triozidae) with ‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ in Italy. Insects 15(2), 117. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15020117
Tizzani L, Bertinelli G, Bertin S, Ilardi V (2024) First report of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ in carrot plants in mainland Italy. Journal of Plant Pathology (early view) https://doi.org/10.1007/s42161-024-01698-w