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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Griffin, Georgia » Plant Genetic Resources Conservation Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #105831
Title: USING 16S RDNA SEQUENCES AS SIGNATURE CHARACTERS TO IDENTIFY XYLELLA FASTIDIOSA

Author
item CHEN, JIANCHI
item BANKS, DONNA
item Jarret, Robert - Bob
item CHANG, CHUNG
item SMITH, BARBARA

Submitted to: Current Microbiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/1/1999
Publication Date: 4/1/2000
Citation: Chen, J., Bank, D., Jarret, R.L., Chang, C.J., Smith, B.J. Using 16s rdna Sequences as signature characters to identify xylella fastidiosa. Current microbiology 2000. Current microbiology 40:29-33 (2000)

Interpretive Summary: Grape growing in the southeastern US is difficult because many varieties of grapes are susceptible to a common bacteria that produces a condition known as Pierce's disease. The organism that causes Pierce's disease can be difficult to accurately identify. This makes it difficult to diagnose the disease. This paper describes a techniqie that permits the unambiguous identification of the bacteria that causes Pierce's disease using unique differences in the genetic material of the Pierce's disease bacteria.

Technical Abstract: The nucleotide sequences of 16S rDNAs (coding for the small sub-unit ribosomal RNAs) were used to identify Xylella fastidiosa, a nutritionally fastidious plant pathogenic bacterium. The near-complete 16S rDNAs from nine strains of Xyl. fastidiosa including seven pathotypes and one strain of Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris, were amplified through PCR using two conserved primers (forward primer 5'-AGA GTT TGA TCC TGG CTC AG-3' and reverse primer 5'-AAG GAG GTG ATC CAG CC-3') sequenced. The 16S sequences were compared with all eukaryote and prokaryote DNA entries in GenBank database. A Xyl. fastidiosa 16S rDNA sequence, M26601, was determined to be the most similar one to all the near-complete (1,537 bp) and partial 5' end sequences from Xyl. fastidiosa but not those from the Xanthomonas strain. A 20 bp oligonucleotide (5'-TTG GTA GTA ATA CCA TGG GT-3') was found to be highly characteristic of Xyl. fastidiosa. Since the 16S rDNA of Xyl. fastidiosa strains are highly homologous and characteristically different from other bacteria including the most closely related Xanthomonas, 16S rDNA sequences can be used as signature characters to identify this bacterium.