CONTROL OF PIERCES DISEASE THROUGH DEGRADATION OF XANTHAN GUM

• Author(s): Cooksey, Donald; Schiller, Neal;
• Abstract: Endophytic xanthan gum-degrading bacteria isolated by enrichment culture were characterized for their mode and dynamics of xanthan degradation, colonization of plants, and interactions with Xylella fastidiosa. In vitro, growth and biofilm production by the endophytic xanthan degrader from oleander, Acinetobacter johnsonii GX123, was enhanced by xanthan gum as a substrate and by cells of X. fastidiosa added to a minimal medium. Xanthan gum was degraded rapidly during log-phase growth the this endophyte, and viscosity was reduced almost to non-detectable levels. GX123 colonized stems and leaves of oleander systemically, and systemic colonization was enhanced by co-inoculation with X. fastidiosa. Its effects on symptom expression are still under investigation.
• Publication Date: Aug 2003
• Journal: 2003 Pierce's Disease Research Symposium