UF/IFAS researchers are working on developing a citrus tree that can kill psyllids in an effort to combat citrus greening.
UF/IFAS researchers are developing a citrus tree that can kill psyllids, the vector that transmits citrus greening, according to a UF/IFAS news article. “A citrus tree that produces its own potent defense against the Asian citrus psyllid by preventing this insect from reproducing would reduce or possibly eliminate vector populations,” said Lukasz Stelinski, an entomology professor at UF/IFAS CREC. He added that, “In terms of stopping HLB, this approach could curtail the ability of an otherwise very effective vector from spreading the pathogen.” Researchers have “developed the modified tree in the lab and the greenhouse,” and they now have to prove it in the field. See the details of the research below.
Citrus Tree That Can Kill Psyllids
Researchers have developed the “modified tree” by inserting a gene from a soil-borne bacterium called Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) into a citrus tree. The “gene provides instructions for the new citrus tree on how to make” a protein that kills young Asian citrus psyllids (ACPs).
The ACPs feed on the citrus tree and ingest the protein. According to the article, the protein “binds to specific receptors on the gut wall, causing pores to form. This disrupts the insect cells on the gut wall, ultimately killing the insect.”
Bryony Bonning, an entomology professor who led the research to identify the bacterial proteins used in the research, said “Given the widespread use of Bt proteins for protection of other crops against insect pests, we think we’re on the right track for control of the Asian citrus psyllid. The next step is to prove this method works in the field, so that citrus growers everywhere will no longer have to contend with the insect that transmits this deadly disease. The next stage is to grow these trees in the ground into a more mature stage under natural field conditions.”
The article shared that UF/IFAS researchers “hope to begin testing the trees in about a year.”
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