Comparison of real-time PCR and droplet digital PCR for the detection of Xylella fastidiosa in plants.

Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) is a quarantine plant pathogen bacterium originating from the Americas and that has emerged in Europe in 2013. Xf can be detected directly on plant macerate using molecular methods such as real-time PCR, which is a sensitive technique. However, some plants may contain components that can act as PCR reaction inhibitors, which can lead to false negative results or an underestimation of the bacterial concentration present in the analyzed plant sample. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) is an innovative tool based on the partitioning of the PCR reagents and the DNA sample into thousands of droplets, allowing the quantification of the absolute number of target DNA molecules present in a reaction mixture, or an increase of the detection sensitivity. In this study, a real-time PCR protocol, already used for Xf detection in the framework of official surveys in the European Union, was transferred and optimized for Xf detection using ddPCR. This new assay was evaluated and compared to the initial real-time PCR on five plant matrices artificially inoculated and on naturally infected plants. In our conditions, this new ddPCR enabled the detection of Xf on all artificially inoculated plant macerates with a similar limit of detection, or a slight benefit for Quercus ilex. Moreover, ddPCR improved diagnostic sensitivity as it enabled detection of Xf in samples of Polygala myrtifolia or Q. ilex that were categorized as negative or close to the limit of detection using the real-time PCR. Here, we report for the first time a ddPCR assay for the detection of the bacterium Xf.

Data processing of qualitative results from an interlaboratory comparison for the detection of "Flavescence dorée" phytoplasma: How the use of statistics can improve the reliability of the method validation process in plant pathology.

A working group established in the framework of the EUPHRESCO European collaborative project aimed to compare and validate diagnostic protocols for the detection of "Flavescence dorée" (FD) phytoplasma in grapevines. Seven molecular protocols were compared in an interlaboratory test performance study where each laboratory had to analyze the same panel of samples consisting of DNA extracts prepared by the organizing laboratory. The tested molecular methods consisted of universal and group-specific real-time and end-point nested PCR tests. Different statistical approaches were applied to this collaborative study. Firstly, there was the standard statistical approach consisting in analyzing samples which are known to be positive and samples which are known to be negative and reporting the proportion of false-positive and false-negative results to respectively calculate diagnostic specificity and sensitivity. This approach was supplemented by the calculation of repeatability and reproducibility for qualitative methods based on the notions of accordance and concordance. Other new approaches were also implemented, based, on the one hand, on the probability of detection model, and, on the other hand, on Bayes' theorem. These various statistical approaches are complementary and give consistent results. Their combination, and in particular, the introduction of new statistical approaches give overall information on the performance and limitations of the different methods, and are particularly useful for selecting the most appropriate detection scheme with regards to the prevalence of the pathogen. Three real-time PCR protocols (methods M4, M5 and M6 respectively developed by Hren (2007), Pelletier (2009) and under patent oligonucleotides) achieved the highest levels of performance for FD phytoplasma detection. This paper also addresses the issue of indeterminate results and the identification of outlier results. The statistical tools presented in this paper and their combination can be applied to many other studies concerning plant pathogens and other disciplines that use qualitative detection methods.

Draft genome sequences of five Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidifoliorum strains isolated in France

ABSTRACT Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidifoliorum causes necrotic spots on the leaves of Actinidia deliciosa and Actinidia chinensis. P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum has been detected in New Zealand, Australia, France and Spain. Four lineages were previously identified within the P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum species group. Here, we report the draft genome sequences of five strains of P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum representative of lineages 1, 2 and 4, isolated in France. The whole genomes of strains isolated in New Zealand, representative of P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum lineages 1 and 3, were previously sequenced. The availability of supplementary P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum genome sequences will be useful for developing molecular tools for pathogen detection and for performing comparative genomic analyses to study the relationship between P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum and other kiwifruit pathogens, such as P. syringae pv. actinidiae.

Draft genome sequences of five Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidifoliorum strains isolated in France.

Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidifoliorum causes necrotic spots on the leaves of Actinidia deliciosa and Actinidia chinensis. P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum has been detected in New Zealand, Australia, France and Spain. Four lineages were previously identified within the P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum species group. Here, we report the draft genome sequences of five strains of P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum representative of lineages 1, 2 and 4, isolated in France. The whole genomes of strains isolated in New Zealand, representative of P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum lineages 1 and 3, were previously sequenced. The availability of supplementary P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum genome sequences will be useful for developing molecular tools for pathogen detection and for performing comparative genomic analyses to study the relationship between P. syringae pv. actinidifoliorum and other kiwifruit pathogens, such as P. syringae pv. actinidiae.

New Coffee Plant-Infecting Xylella fastidiosa Variants Derived via Homologous Recombination.

Xylella fastidiosa is a xylem-limited phytopathogenic bacterium endemic to the Americas that has recently emerged in Asia and Europe. Although this bacterium is classified as a quarantine organism in the European Union, importation of plant material from contaminated areas and latent infection in asymptomatic plants have engendered its inevitable introduction. In 2012, four coffee plants (Coffea arabica and Coffea canephora) with leaf scorch symptoms growing in a confined greenhouse were detected and intercepted in France. After identification of the causal agent, this outbreak was eradicated. Three X. fastidiosa strains were isolated from these plants, confirming a preliminary identification based on immunology. The strains were characterized by multiplex PCR and by multilocus sequence analysis/typing (MLSA-MLST) based on seven housekeeping genes. One strain, CFBP 8073, isolated from C. canephora imported from Mexico, was assigned to X. fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa/X. fastidiosa subsp. sandyi. This strain harbors a novel sequence type (ST) with novel alleles at two loci. The two other strains, CFBP 8072 and CFBP 8074, isolated from Coffea arabica imported from Ecuador, were allocated to X. fastidiosa subsp. pauca. These two strains shared a novel ST with novel alleles at two loci. These MLST profiles showed evidence of recombination events. We provide genome sequences for CFBP 8072 and CFBP 8073 strains. Comparative genomic analyses of these two genome sequences with publicly available X. fastidiosa genomes, including the Italian strain CoDiRO, confirmed these phylogenetic positions and provided candidate alleles for coffee plant adaptation. This study demonstrates the global diversity of X. fastidiosa and highlights the diversity of strains isolated from coffee plants.